Running News Daily

Americans Bowman, Bareikis take first place at Pittsburgh Marathon

Two Americans topped both the Men's and Women's Division at this year's Pittsburgh Marathon. Andrew Bowman and Jane Bareikis were the first to cross the finish line in their divisions.

Bowman, who is married to 2018 marathon champion Sydney Bowman, ended the race at 2:15:52, more than a minute faster than his next two competitors.

"Anything can happen in a marathon, so surreal. But now I'm just incredibly grateful that it all came together," Bowman told Pittsburgh's Action News 4.

At 2:37:37, Bareikis became the first woman to cross the finish line. Bareikis set her own personal record earlier this year with a time of 2:29:00.

Wesley Kiptoo crossed the line for the half marathon, becoming a three time winner of the half. Kiptoo's time is marked at 1:01:32. The time is just shy of beating the course record of 1:01:25.

USA's Stephanie Bruce was the first woman to finish the half at 1:11:11.

Elite athletes, including last year's winner Tyler McCandless, took off at 7 a.m. McCandless, 37, crossed the finish line at last year at 2:16:08. This year, McCandless finished in third at 2:17:45.

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Participants from 50 states and 24 countries crossed the finish line at this year's event as over 300,000 spectators watched their run from all over the course.

This year's marathon is bigger and better than ever, bringing in new events and more people.

"There are movers from all over the world coming to move with us this weekend, whether they're walking, jogging or running this weekend," P3R CEO Troy Schooley said.

For over 43% of runners, this was their first time running a 26.2-mile marathon.

The Pittsburgh community came together to cheer on its hometown runners and support new visitors coming to the city.

"It's unbelievable," Schooley said. "And not just the movers with us, it's the spectators. Some will never take part in the event, but they know the first weekend in May, they're going to get out on the street, support the runners and help them get to the finish line."

Jennifer Bigham to Headline Women’s Field at 2024 DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon

Pittsburgher Jennifer Bigham will headline the women’s field at the 2024 DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon on Sunday, May 5. Bigham, a formidable force in the local running community, has an impressive record that includes victories at the USA Masters Half Marathon Championships and the USA Masters One Mile Championships in 2022. With five wins at the City of Pittsburgh Great Race, she already has cemented her status as a local legend but is now ready to tackle 26.2 miles for the first time in PIttsburgh.

“I’ve been looking forward to running the Pittsburgh Marathon for many years, and my time has finally come,” Bigham said. “I’ve been a part of many events on marathon weekend, from the toddler trot and kids marathon, to the 5K, and half-marathon. Lining up to experience the full 26.2 in my city that I love will be very special. I know the cheers from my community on race day will power me through the tough moments. This finish line will be a special one for me!”

After taking an eight-year hiatus from competitive running post-college, she returned to the sport following the birth of her first child. Now a mother of four, Bigham’s comeback story is an inspiration to athletes and parents alike. Her remarkable comeback was highlighted by qualifying for and competing in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials.

This year she will face tough competition from Jane Bareikis, who set a marathon personal best of 2:29:00 at the Berlin Marathon last fall, and local runner Laura Harnish, who also ran in the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Team Trials and holds a marathon personal best of 2:42:09.

The 2024 DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon will offer a prize purse of $32,000 with a $7,000 top prize. For more information about the 2024 DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, visit thePittsburghMarathon.com.

About the DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon Weekend of EventsThe Pittsburgh Marathon was held annually from 1985-2003. After a five-year hiatus, the DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon was relaunched in 2009 and debuted with a sold-out field of 10,000 participants. It has grown each year since, evolving from a single race day into a weekend of events for the whole family that annually attracts nearly 40,000 runners. Read more at: ThePittsburghMarathon.com

About P3RP3R is the region’s go-to premier sporting event and experience expert. While best known for the annual DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon, P3R organizes up to 20 major events every year. With a rich history of working with top-tier clients such as the Pittsburgh Steelers, UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, the Pittsburgh Penguins, the National Senior Games, and more, P3R brings operational excellence to every aspect of event planning and execution. As part of P3R’s non-profit mission to inspire any and all to MOVE with us, we provide premium event experiences and robust programming – including the Run for a Reason Charity Program, award-winning Kids of STEEL program, Pittsburgh Corporate Challenge, RUN Varsity, and more – that engage everyone in the Western Pennsylvania community and beyond.

The USATF Half Marathon Championships hosted by the OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon are the fourth stop on the 2022 USATF Running Circuit

With $40,000 of prize money on the line and course conditions ideal for fast times, Olympians Leonard Korir and Emily Sisson headline the men’s and women’s field for Saturday’s USATF Half Marathon Championships in downtown Indianapolis, in what promises to be an exciting morning of racing. 

Korir (Colorado Springs, Colorado/USATF Colorado) leads a talented men’s field to the start line in Indianapolis. The two-time USATF Half Marathon champion is having a strong start to his 2022 season, with a runner-up effort at the USATF 15 km Championships and a fourth-place finish at the USATF Cross Country Championships, which puts him atop of the USATF Running Circuit overall standings with 19 points, four points ahead of Shadrack Kipchirchir, who is not racing Saturday. 

Korir will be joined up front by Futsum Zienasellassie (Flagstaff, Arizona/USATF Arizona), who finished sixth at the USATF 15 km Championships and ninth at the USATF Cross Country Championships. Zienasellassie beat Korir at the 2021 USATF Half Marathon Championships, placing fifth to Korir’s seventh. 

At the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run early last month, Zienasellassie placed an impressive fourth against strong competition, finishing four seconds up on fifth place Reid Buchanan, as well as besting sixth place finisher Lawi Lalang.

Both Buchanan (San Diego, California/USATF Southern California) and Lalang (Colorado Springs, Colorado/USATF Colorado) are entered in Saturday’s contest and will vie for top three finishes. Jacob Thomson (Flagstaff, Arizona/USATF Arizona), who placed tenth at the USATF 15 km Championships, leads the rest of the field, which includes notable road race standouts Noah Droddy (Boulder, Colorado), Sid Vaughn (Flagstaff, Arizona), and Caleb Kerr (Zionsville, Indiana/USATF Indiana). Leading the women’s field, Sisson (Flagstaff, Arizona/USATF New England) seeks to continue her dominance on the roads.

The Providence-based standout has had a quiet start to her 2022, only racing once. That one race though was one to remember, winning the USATF 15 km Championships by nearly two minutes. Sisson currently sits tied for third in the USATF Running Circuit standings with 15 points, only behind Emily Infeld and Emily Durgin, who have 20 and 19 points respectively. 

Behind Sisson, notable veteran Allie Kieffer (West Islip, New York/USATF New York) resumes her racing in the United States. Kieffer has raced twice in 2022, once in Great Britain and again in Italy. Her performance at the Roma Ostia Half Marathon in early March was impressive, as she finished fourth in 1:09:17 on the fast Italian course. Kieffer placed fourth in the 2021 USATF Half Marathon Championships in 1:10:44 and will look to improve on that performance on Saturday. 

Another top three contender is Tayler Tuttle (Boulder, Colorado/USATF Colorado). Tuttle placed eighth at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run last month, while finishing tenth at the USATF 15 km Championships. A top three performance in Indianapolis would move Tuttle into top five on the USATF Running Circuit. 

Other key entries include Jane Bareikis (Crestwood, Illinois/USATF Illinois), who has run 1:14 for the half marathon distance twice this year, along with Madison Offstein (Chicago, Illinois/USATF Illinois).

Rock N Roll DC Recap

More than 12,000 registered participants took to the streets of the Nation’s Capital on Saturday celebrating the 10th running of the United Airlines Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Washington D.C.

The musically-themed event provided runners and walkers alike with an unforgettable running tour of the District showcasing some of its most iconic scenery, including the National Mall, the White House, the Capitol Building, the Lincoln Memorial, and much more before passing down an electric finish at RFK Stadium all during peak cherry blossom season.

The second event in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Elite™ half marathon series took part at Rock ‘n’ Roll Washington, D.C., it was Justin Kent (Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada) and Hirut Guangul (New York, N.Y.) claiming victories.

The winners

The Rock ‘n’ Roll Elite half marathon series offered a shared $10,000 elite prize purse and Elite Beat Rankings (EBR) points to the top three male and female finishers including in his second straight victory, Justin Kent of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada took top honors in the men’s race, earning 50 EBR points with a finishing time of 1:03:56 and cementing his #1 ranking, with 100 total points in the new series. Collecting 44 EBR points was Benjamin Preisner of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada with a finishing time of 1:05:01, and John Borjesson of Boulder, Colo. followed in third place finishing at 1:05:49 and scoring 39 points. Hirut Guangul of New York, N.Y. took the top spot in the women’s race earning 50 points with a finishing time of 1:14:01. Emiline Delanis of Cary, N.C. followed Guangul in second for the women’s division with a finishing time of 1:14:24, earning 44 points, while Jane Bareikis of Crestwood, Ill. rounded out the podium with a time of 1:14:31, earning 39 points. The new Rock ‘n’ Roll Elite half marathon competition offers world-class runners the opportunity to showcase their talents in eight cities in North America, culminating with a grand finale at the 2023 edition of Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Las Vegas.

Several local bands, including Enviro Drum, Ocho de Bastos, Prettier in Person, BATALIA, and School of Rock performed live on band stages along the route interspersed with crowd support. The party wasn’t only on the course – runners were treated to the sounds of local favorite White Ford Bronco whose lead singer, Gretchen Gustafson ran the half marathon just before taking the stage at the Finish Line Festival at the Armory Mall just outside RFK Stadium.

Khapilina and Sbaai break course records at the Wizz Air Sofia Marathon

Viktoriya Khapilina and Youssef Sbaai came out on top at the Wizz Air Sofia Marathon on Sunday (11), winning the World Athletics Bronze Label road race in course records of 2:27:57 and 2:13:03 respectively.

Khapilina, who warmed up for this race with a 1:12:24 half marathon PB in Kovel last month, was part of a five-woman pack during the early stages. The Ukrainian passed through 10km in 35:08 alongside Kenyan trio Naom Jebet, Cynthia Kosgei and Marta Akeno as well as Uganda’s Clementine Mukadanga.

Running well inside the pace required to break the course record (2:32:35), Khaplina, Jebet, Kosgei and Akeno maintained their tempo to reach half way in 1:14:13. Mukadanga had drifted back, while Japan’s Haruka Yamaguchi had broken away from USA’s Jane Bareikis to reach the half-way point in 1:16:15.

Khapilina and Jebet increased the pace, leaving Kosgei and Akeno to fall off the lead pack. At 30km, reached in 1:45:01, the lead duo had a 51-second margin over the chasers with Yamaguchi a further two minutes in arrears.

Jebet struggled to keep up with Khapilina in the closing stages as the Ukrainian went on to win in 2:27:57, taking six seconds off the PB she set when winning the Krakow Marathon last year. Jebet finished second in 2:28:41 while Kosgei held on to third place in 2:32:10, all three women finishing well inside the previous course record. Yamaguchi came through for fourth place in 2:32:49.

The men’s race was even closer as Moroccan duo Youssef Sbaai and Radouan Nouini were given the same time at the finish with Sbaai given the verdict.

A group of seven men went through the opening 10km in 31:41, and six of them – Sbaai, Nouini, Mohamed Ali of the Netherlands, and Kenyan trio Duncan Koech, Jonathan Maiyo and Victor Chelokoi – were still in contention at the half-way point, reached in 1:06:46.

The pace then increased and Koech, Maiyo and Chelokoi fell out of the lead pack. Ali did likewise just before the 30km checkpoint, leaving the Moroccan duo to pass that marker in 1:34:04.

Locked in a duel for victory, Sbaai and Nouini forged ahead in the final 10 kilometres and opened up a significant gap on the chasers. Still neck-and-neck in their sprint for the finish line, they crossed the line almost together with Sbaai just getting the edge on his younger compatriot, both clocking 2:13:03.

The winning time is a course record, although the race record – set on a different course – still stands to Khristo Stefanov with his 2:11:26 clocking from 1997.

Ali finished third in 2:16:21 with Koech taking fourth place in 2:17:09, finishing 40 seconds ahead of Uladzislau Pramau of Belarus. Maiyo, competing for the first time in five years, was sixth in 2:22:32.