Running News Daily

Boston champions and U.S. record holders return for 2023 B.A.A. 10K

The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) has announced professional fields for the 2023 B.A.A. 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital, to be run on Sunday, June 25 through Back Bay. Among the challengers set to compete are Boston Marathon champions Hellen Obiri (2023) and Benson Kipruto (2021), defending B.A.A. 10K winner Leonard Korir, as well as national record holder Emily Sisson. Complete field lists can be found below.

The B.A.A. 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital will be the second event of the 2023 B.A.A. Distance Medley, a year-long series featuring the B.A.A. 5K (April), B.A.A. 10K (June), and B.A.A. Half Marathon (November). Registration remains open with limited spots remaining.

“Many fan favorites and global stars return to Boston for this year’s B.A.A. 10K, including Boston Marathoners, American record holders, Olympians and Paralympians,” said Mary Kate Shea, Director of Professional Athletes for the B.A.A. “The B.A.A. 10K course is flat, fast, and –most importantly—fun for our top contenders. We look forward to kicking off summer with a memorable competition on June 25.”

Obiri, a two-time Olympic silver medalist, won April’s Boston Marathon in her Boston debut, and will return to the roads hoping to extend her winning streak. Her 30:15 personal best at 10K is fourth fastest among the field, only trailing Sheila Chepkirui (Kenya, 29:46), Vicoty Chepngeno (Kenya, 30:14), and Joan Chelimo Melly (Romania, 30:14). Chelimo Melly won the B.A.A. 10K in 2017, while Chepkirui placed fourth at last month’s TCS London Marathon.

Korir, the reigning B.A.A. 10K champion, is fresh off a win at the USA 25K National Championships on May 13, and looks to become the fourth man to win back-to-back B.A.A. 10Ks. Sisson, the current American record holder in the marathon and half marathon also will return, joined by Olympic Marathon bronze medalist and former Boston resident Molly Seidel.

Among the international field squaring off are Boston Marathon winners Kipruto (2021), Edna Kiplagat (2017 and 2021), and Caroline Rotich (2015), all of Kenya. Gabriel Geay (Tanzania) will return after a runner-up finish at April’s Boston Marathon, and previously won the B.A.A. 10K in 2018.

Geoffrey Koech, winner of last year’s B.A.A. Half Marathon, will compete, as will Callum Hawkins of Great Britain, twice the fourth-place finisher at the World Championships marathon, plus decorated road racers Edward Cheserek (Kenya), a 17-time NCAA champion, and Zouhair Talbi (Morocco), most recently fifth at the Boston Marathon. From Team B.A.A. are Matt McDonald, Paul Hogan, Jonas Hampton, and Eric Hamer.

Mary Ngugi of Kenya, a two-time B.A.A. 10K winner and two-time Boston Marathon podium finisher, will aim for title number three, as fellow Kenyan Sharon Lokedi, the 2022 TCS New York City Marathon champion, looks for her first B.A.A. event victory. Team B.A.A.’s Annie Rodenfels, third place and top American at the 2023 B.A.A. 5K, will make her debut at the 10K distance leading a full contingent of Boston-based B.A.A. teammates including Bethany Hasz, Megan Hasz, and Jenna Magness.

Hermin Garic, the 2022 B.A.A. 10K winner, returns in the men’s wheelchair division, while Yen Hoang, third place at the 2021 Boston Marathon, leads the women’s wheelchair division. Brian Reynolds and Liz Willis will compete in the T61-64 (lower-limb impairment) division having already earned podium placings at the Boston Marathon in April. Reynolds, a Massachusetts native, set a world best 1:25:46 at the 2022 B.A.A. Half Marathon. Local Para athlete and last year’s T61-64 women’s winner, Adrianne Haslet, will also compete. Additional 2023 Boston Marathon Para division winners Andrew Thorson (T11-T13 vision impairment) and Atsbha Gebre (T45/T46 upper-limb impairment) are racing.  The B.A.A. 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital has been certified by World Para Athletics as a record-eligible competition, paving the way for Para Athletes to set world and national records this year.

Media members interested in covering the B.A.A. 10K, presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital, may apply for credentials here.

Registration for the 2023 B.A.A. 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital, is currently open through the B.A.A.’s online platform Athletes’ Village. All participants who enter will receive an adidas participant shirt, unique bib number, and finisher medal. Additional participant information can be found on baa.org. The race will start at 8:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, June 25 on Charles Street adjacent to Boston Common and Boston Public Garden.

Brigham and Women's Hospital, the B.A.A. 10K’s presenting sponsor and exclusive fundraising partner, will again field a team of fundraising runners. Since 2016, more than 2,100 runners and 180 teams have raised $1.2 million to fuel life-giving breakthroughs at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Learn more and register at www.runbwh.org/10k.

(05/25/2023) Views: 128 ⚡AMP

SAINA VICTORIOUS and KORIR REPEATS AT THE USATF 25 KM CHAMPIONSHIPS

GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan — It was a thrilling morning of racing in Grand Rapids on Saturday, as both the women’s and men’s races came down to the final mile, with Betsy Saina earning her first USATF title and Leonard Korir repeating as champion at the USATF 25 km Championships.

The USATF 25 km championships was hosted by the Amway River Bank and is the sixth stop on the USATF Running Circuit.

The women started first Saturday morning in Grand Rapids, and as the gun sounded it was USATF Running Circuit veteran Dakotah Lindwurm jumping to the early lead and setting a pace that immediately strung out the field. Lindwurm, along with other top competitors, would eventually pack up and run much of the front half of the race together.

 As the lead pack passed the 10 km split, Lindwurm continued to drive the pace, while the remaining athletes in the group, Saina, Keira D’Amato, Jessa Hanson, Jeralyn Poe, and Nell Rojas all seemed content letting Lindwurm pace the way up front. 

By 15 km, the trio of Lindwurm, Saina, and D’Amato were the remaining three runners up front, with Hanson and Poe running together a few seconds back. Eventually, D’Amato put in a surge to jump to the lead, as Lindwurm dropped off pace and connected with Hanson and Poe.

The move put D’Amato and Saina up front, claiming valuable seconds between themselves and the chase group as the final stages of the race were now upon them. D'Amato and Saina started to work together, and while Lindwurm and Hanson worked to try to maintain contact, their effort eventually couldn’t match that of the front running duo. 

With just under a mile and a half to go, Saina put in a surge that D’Amato simply couldn’t match. Saina charged forward, never looking pack, working hard to create crucial space between her and D’Amato. As the finish came into view, Saina nearly missed the final turn, allowing D’Amato to regain a few seconds on her rival, but ultimately Saina held off D’Amato, claiming her first USATF title as she crossed the line in 1:24:32. 

D’Amato claimed the runner-up spot at the USATF 25 km Championships for the second year running, this time crossing the finish in 1:24:39, adding another strong result to her young 2023 campaign. Behind the leading duo, Hanson held off Lindwurm for third, crossing the finish in 1:25:33, while Lindwurm held on over the final miles to claim fourth overall in 1:25:58. Rojas and Poe stayed close to the chase, as well, taking home fifth and sixth place in 1:26:19 and 1:26:32. With their third and fifth place finishes, Hanson and Rojas leapt Emma Hurley in the USATF Running Circuit overall standings, as the duo are now tied for first with 29 points.

Hurley now sits third with 22 points, having not raced Saturday in Grand Rapids. Breanna Sieracki took home seventh in 1:28:43, Mackenzie Caldwell claimed eighth in 1:29:19, Katrina Spratford-Sterling earned ninth in 1:30:13, and Joanna Stephens finished tenth for the second consecutive year with a 1:30:49 finish. 

As the men’s race got underway, reigning champion Korir and Thomson jumped to the lead immediately, pushing the early pace and dropping the majority of the field within the first 5 km, leaving a small group of only eight men in the lead pack. 

Over the next 5 km, Korir and Thomson would continue to lead, with USATF Running Circuit veterans Brian Shrader and Joel Reichow, along with Connor Winter, making a top group of five runners. Rolling along, the lead pack passed through 15 km, with Reichow dropping off the group, leaving four men to race the final 10 km in Grand Rapids. Winter would eventually fall off pace, making it a three-man race to the finish with less than 5 km to go. 

With a mile to go, Korir started to push the pace, one that both Shrader and Thomson couldn’t match. Korir used his experience in Grand Rapids, picking it up around the curves of the final stages of the race, putting enough space on his competition to hold on to victory, repeating as USATF 25 km champion in 1:14:45. 

Thomson was able to hold off Shrader over the final quarter mile of the race, taking second place in 1:14:49 to Shrader’s third place effort of 1:14:53. Korir’s finish pushed him into the top spot in the USATF Running Circuit overall rankings with 46 points. Thomson’s runner-up effort kept him in second, but moving ahead of Hillary Bor in points, totaling 43 points through six races on this year’s circuit. Shrader’s third place effort moved him up to fourth, five points behind Bor’s 31-point total with 26 points. 

Winter held on to fourth place, running a magnificent race from start to finish, crossing the line in 1:15:30. John Dressel and Reichow finished fifth and sixth overall in 1:16:06 and 1:17:12 respectively. Rounding out the top ten, Jarrod Ottman ran to seventh in 1:18:58. Adam Walker and Will Norris both ran under 1:20:00, with 1:19:06 and 1:19:21 eighth and ninth place finishes. Brendan Gregg took home tenth in 1:22:27, outlasting two-time USATF 25 km champion Fernando Cabada, who took eleventh with the same time. The seventh and eighth stop on the 2023 USATF Running Circuit are the USATF Women’s 6 km Championships in Canton, Ohio, and the USATF Men’s 8 km Championships in Kingport, Tennessee, both events taking place on July 15.

(05/14/2023) Views: 97 ⚡AMP

Amway River Bank Run returns to Grand Rapids celebrating its 46th year

It's a spring staple in West Michigan: the Amway River Bank Run is celebrating its 46th year.

It brings roughly 25,000 people to downtown Grand Rapids and has an estimated $2.4 million impact on the community.

This is the second year with new race courses.

The 5K, 10K and 25K all start on Ottawa Avenue and end at Monroe and Pearl.

This means for the 25K you get the hills out of the way early on, then the back half is flat.

Race organizers say this will likely mean faster finish times.

Several elite runners will also be back this year including last year's winner Leonard Korir, along with Kiya Dandena and Johnny Crain who placed third and fourth, respectively.

On the women's side, Dakotah Lindwurm and Molly Bookmyer who placed third and sixth last year will also be returning.

Whether you're looking to set a course record or a personal one, officials say there's a race for you and a medal that comes with it!

Grand Rapids River Bank Run's revamped course to return.

“This race may have started with the 25K. And that event gains a lot of attention. But I encourage everyone to find their distance, whether it's a 5K, 10K, the walk, or the 25K, if that's what you want to do. This event is for everyone to participate in the greatest road race, I think, in the United States,” said Scott Stenstrom, VP of marketing & communications director for Fifth Third Bank.

Now, if running isn't your thing, you can still volunteer!

Roughly 1,000 people are needed to make race day a reality.

You can sign up to help online.

Of course, everyone is invited to celebrate at Finishers Fest happening inside DeVos Place.

(05/04/2023) Views: 104 ⚡AMP

Who Will Run the World Championships Marathon for the U.S. This Summer?

The three men and three women are selected by a descending order time list. But not everyone accepts their spot. Over 9 days in August, the World Athletics Championships will take place in Budapest, Hungary. The women’s marathon is scheduled for August 26, and the men’s is August 27, the last day of competition. 

USA Track and Field (USATF) uses different selection procedures for this event than it does for the Olympic Games. Instead of using a Trials race, as it does for the Olympics, USATF offers spots to athletes using a descending order time list for certain marathons run between December 1, 2021, and May 30, 2023, as long as those athletes have met the qualifying criteria set by World Athletics. (The rules are complicated. For instance, the Boston Marathon is not on the list of “World Athletics approved” courses, but USATF is allowing times run at Boston in 2022 and 2023 for the descending order list.)

Not every American athlete will accept a spot, if offered. Some instead will choose to focus on a fall marathon, where they can earn substantial appearance fees and prize money that aren’t offered at worlds. Others won’t race at all this summer or fall, and instead they’ll train for the Olympic Marathon Trials in February 2024. How is it likely to shake out? Runner’s World reached out to the top seven men and women currently on the list or their coaches or agents to inquire about their plans. The window to run a qualifying time, however, remains open until the end of May. So a top performance in the next month could shake up the list. 

Here’s what they said: 

Women

Emily Sisson, 2:18:29, 2022 Chicago Marathon: Not likely, per her agent, Ray Flynn

Keira D’Amato, 2:19:12, 2022 Houston Marathon: Yes, if offered a spot 

Betsy Saina, 2:21:40, 2023 Tokyo Marathon: No, she is focusing on a fall marathon 

Sara Hall, 2:22:10, 2022 World Championships marathon: Has not yet decided

Emma Bates, 2:22:10, 2023 Boston Marathon: Not likely, per her agent, Ray Flynn

Susanna Sullivan, 2:24:27, 2023 London Marathon: Yes, if offered a spot 

Aliphine Tuliamuk, 2:24:37, 2023 Boston Marathon: Will consider if offered a spot, per her agent, Hawi Keflezighi

Wild card: Will Molly Seidel run a May marathon? 

Men

Conner Mantz, 2:08:16, 2022 Chicago Marathon: Not likely, per his agent, Ray Flynn

Scott Fauble, 2:08:52, 2022 Boston Marathon: No Elkanah Kibet, 2:09:07, 2022 Boston Marathon: Yes, currently deployed with the U.S. Army in Poland but will accept a spot if offered 

Zachery Panning, 2:09:28, 2022 Chicago Marathon: Yes, per coach Kevin Hanson

Leonard Korir, 2:09:31, 2023 Paris Marathon: Did not immediately respond to a message from Runner’s World 

Galen Rupp, 2:09:36, 2022 World Championships marathon: No, will run a fall marathon, per his agent, Ricky Simms

Futsum Zeinasellassie, 2:09:40, 2023 Rotterdam Marathon: Will consider if offered a spot, per his agent, Hawi Keflezighi 

Wild card: Biya Simbassa runs the Prague Marathon, his debut, on May 7. 

(04/30/2023) Views: 162 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World

Thomson and Tuliamuk came out on top at USATF Half marathon championships

FORT WORTH, TX — The racing strategies were different, but the end result was the same for Jacob Thomson and Aliphine Tuliamuk Sunday morning in Fort Worth, Texas, as both runners claimed victory at the USATF Half Marathon Championships. 

On-demand race videos and coverage of the USATF Half Marathon Championships hosted by the Cowtown Marathon, the second stop on the 2023 USATF Running Circuit.  

A conservative early pace in the men’s race kept together the entire starting field, as Olympian Jared Ward jumping to the lead and taking on the pacing duties. He was joined up front by fellow Saucony pro Brian Shrader, as the 18-man lead pack passed through 5 km in 15:23. Just past the 5 km split, Thomson decided to push the pace, jumping to the lead and opening up a nearly five second gap. Thomson would continue to string the field out, running 30 seconds faster for the next 5 km split, as the Under Armour pro came through 10 km in 30:16. 

As Thomson came through 10 km, defending champion Leonard Korir, 2022 runner-up Futsum Zienasellassie, Shrader, and Abbabiya Simbassa led the pack, bridging the divide and catching up to Thomson. The quickening of pace diminished the lead group, leaving a pack of 10 with half the race to go. 

As mile 10 came about, Shrader jumped to the lead and started to push the pace. The pack of 10 strung out again, with only Thomson, Korir, Zienasellassie, and Simbassa able to maintain contact. For the next three miles, the five-man pack ran stride for stride, each feeling out when the right time to make a push to the finish would be. With one final turn before the finish, Thomson made the decisive move, surging ahead, using the momentum from the final turn to propel himself into the lead.

Thomson locked his eyes on the finish, pumping his arms wildly, and in the end was able to fend off the field to claim his first USATF title in 1:02:38. A stride behind Thomson, Korir and Zienasellassie battled to the finish for the second year in a row, with Korir able to withstand the kick of Zienasellassie, placing second in 1:02:39.

Zienasellassie carried his momentum from his USATF Marathon Championships victory in December to earn another top three USATF Running Circuit finish, finishing with the same time of Korir in 1:02:39. Simbassa came home fourth overall in 1:02:41, placing just ahead of Shrader, who hung on to take fifth in 1:02:43. Of note, Thomson, Korir, and Shrader will meet again next Saturday on the streets of Jacksonville, Florida, as all three are entered in the USATF 15 km Championships. Scott Fauble finished sixth in 1:02:49, while Tyler McCandless also broke the 63-minute barrier with his seventh-place finish of 1:02:52. Colin Bennie finished eighth in 1:03:08, Colin Mickow took home ninth place in 1:03:22, and Matt McDonald claimed tenth in 1:03:43, all earning points towards the USATF Running Circuit overall standings. 

Unlike the conservative pace of the men’s early miles, the women’s field got off the start line and immediately hit an honest pace. HOKA Northern Arizona elite teammates Lauren Paquette and Tuliamuk jumped to the front, with Paquette in particular pushing the pace. 

As Paquette led the way through the first 5 km, passing through the split in 16:31, she and Tuliamuk built an early ten second lead over the rest of the field. That lead would grow to 50 seconds over the next 5 km, as the duo came through 10 km in 32:45. Paquette did much of the pace setting over the next 5 km, with Tuliamuk just off her shoulder, both coming through 15 km in 49:16, now over a minute and a half clear of the chase pack.  

At this point in the race, Tuliamuk took over the lead, and while for a moment it looked as if the two would continue to run stride for stride, Tuliamuk’s move to the front pushed the pace just enough to where Paquette started to fall off the pace and Tuliamuk built a few second lead over her teammate over the next mile. 

Tuliamuk continued to push, building her lead to 12 seconds with one mile to go. As Tuliamuk came down the final straightaway, she glanced over her shoulder, then charged ahead to cross the finish line with a smile on her face, claiming her seventh USATF title in 1:09:36. Behind Tuliamuk, Paquette held on and finished a fantastic race in second place in 1:09:51.

The two teammates embraced at the finish line and then watched the rest of the top women race to the finish.  Veteran Nell Rojas pulled away from the chase pack of four women over the final two miles of the race, separating herself to easily cross the finish in third place, clocking 1:11:08. Molly Grabill earned a fourth-place finish in 1:11:16, while Jessa Hanson took fifth in 1:11:26. Tuliamuk’s and Paquette’s other teammate in the race, Paige Wood, finished sixth overall in 1:11:32. Rounding out the top ten finishers, Katja Goldring scored a seventh-place finish in 1:12:36. Olympian Molly Seidel finished eighth in 1:13:07, while Bridget Belyeu and Lindsey Bradley finished ninth and tenth in 1:15:05 and 1:15:12. 

The USATF Running Circuit resumes next Saturday, March 4, as the USATF 15 km Championships take place in Jacksonville, Florida, with the Gate River Run hosting the third stop on the circuit

(02/26/2023) Views: 211 ⚡AMP

Who Wore Which Shoes at the New York City Marathon?

The running shoe hype train was high in New York City with a few fast yet-to-be-released shoes in the men’s and women’s elite fields.

For a few miles early in the New York City Marathon, Desi Linden surged into the lead of the women’s elite field. The two-time Olympian and 2018 Boston Marathon champion didn’t think she’d run away and win the race that way, but she was just trying to keep the pace honest.

However, hiding in plain sight on her feet as she was off the front of the pack was a yet-to-be-released pair of orange, white and black Brooks prototype racing shoes. A day later, no one is willing to give up any details of the shoe, except that, like all of the other top-tier racing shoes in both the men’s and women’s elite fields, it features a carbon plate embedded in a hyper-responsive foam midsole. And although it’s all in accordance with World Athletics regulations, it won’t be released in Spring 2024 … so we’ll all have to wait a bit to see what that shoe is all about.

Linden’s shoes weren’t the only speedy outliers among the top 25 men’s and women’s finishers. While Nike, Adidas and ASICS shoes were the most prevalent brands among elite runners, there were several shoes that aren’t yet available to the public.

For example, the first runner to cross the finish line of this year’s New York City Marathon, women’s winner Sharon Lokedi, was wearing a pair of Under Armour Velociti Elite shoes. That’s notable for several reasons—because it was Lokedi’s first marathon, because the shoe won’t become available until early 2023 and because it’s the first podium finish at a major international marathon for a runner wearing Under Armour shoes.

There were also three pairs of yet-to-be-released Hoka Rocket X 2 shoes on the feet of three Hoka NAZ Elite runners — two of whom set new personal best times, Aliphine Tuliamuk (7th, 2:26:18) Matthew Baxter (12th, 2:17:15). Those fluorescent yellow shoes with orange, white and blue accents and blue laces were on the feet of Hoka pros at the Boston Marathon in April and Ironman World Championships in Hawaii in October, but they won’t be released to the public until late February or early March.

Meanwhile, the winner of the men’s race, Evans Chebet, was wearing a pair of Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3, a shoe worn by four other runners in the top 25 of the men’s race and six among the women’s top 25, making it the second most prevalent model among the elites. Oddly, that was the same shoe worn by Brazil’s Daniel do Nascimento, who went out at record-setting sub-2:03 pace on his own, only to crumple to the ground at mile 21 after succumbing to fatigue and cramping.

The most common shoe among the top finishers was the Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2, which was on the feet of 11 of the 50 runners among the women’s and men’s top 25 finishers. There were eight runners wearing either the first or second version of the ASICS MetaSpeed Sky.

Six runners wore Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Flyknit shoes, three wore Nike Air Zoom Alphalfy NEXT% 2. There were two pairs of On Cloudboom Echo 3 in the field, including those worn by Hellen Obiri who finished sixth while running a 2:25:49 in her marathon debut, while three runners wore Puma Fast R Nitro Elite.

And what about actor Ashton Kutcher? He wore a pair of purple Nike Air Zoom Alphafly NEXT% Flyknit shoes and finished in a very respectable 3:54:01.

Matt James, the former lead of the Bachelor, finished in 3:46:45 with Shalane Flanagan as his guide wearing a pair of New Balance FuelCell Comp Trainer shoes. Flanagan wore Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Next% Flyknit shoes, as did Meghan Duggan, an Olympic gold medalist hockey player who ran a solid 3:52:03. Lauren Ridloff, actress from “The Walking Dead,” ran in a pair of Brooks Glycerin 20 and finished in 4:05:48, while Chelsea Clinton, daughter of Bill and Hillary Clinton finished in 4:20:34 wearing a pair of Brooks Ghost 14 and Tommy Rivers Puzey (aka “Tommy Rivs,” a former elite runner who survived a deadly bout of cancer in 2020, wore a pair of Craft CTM Ultra Carbon Race Rebel and finished in 6:13:54.

Here’s a rundown of what was on the feet of the top 25 women’s and men’s finishers in the Big Apple.

1. Sharon Lokedi (Kenya) 2:23:23 — Under Armour Velociti Elite

2. Lonah Salpeter (Israel) 2:23:30 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

3. Gotytom Gebreslase (Ethiopia) 2:23:39 – Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

4. Edna Kiplagat (Kenya) 2:24:16 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

5. Viola Cheptoo (Kenya) 2:25:34 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

6. Hellen Obiri (Kenya) 2:25:49 — On Cloudboom Echo 3

7. Aliphine Tuliamuk (USA) 2:26:18 — Hoka Rocket X 2

8. Emma Bates (USA) 2:26:53 — ASICS MetaSpeed Sky+

9. Jessica Stenson (Australia) 2:27:27 – ASICS MetaSpeed Sky

10. Nell Rojas (USA) 2:28:32 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Flyknit

11. Lindsay Flanagan (USA) 2:29:28 – ASICS MetaSpeed Sky

12. Gerda Steyn (South Africa) 2:30:22 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

13. Stephanie Bruce (USA) 2:30:34 — Hoka Rocket X 2

14. Caroline Rotich (Kenya) 2:30:59  — ASICS MetaSpeed Sky+

15. Keira D’Amato (USA) 2:31:31 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Flyknit

16. Des Linden (USA) 2:32:37 — Brooks Prototype

17. Mao Uesugi (Japan) 2:32:56 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

18. Eloise Wellings (Australia) 2:34:50 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

19. Sarah Pagano (USA) 2:35:03 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

20. Grace Kahura (Kenya) 2:35:32 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

21. Annie Frisbie (USA) 2:35:35 — Puma Fast R Nitro Elite

22. Molly Grabill (USA) 2:39:45 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly NEXT% Flyknit

23. Kayla Lampe (USA) 2:40:42 — ASICS MetaSpeed Sky+

24. Maegan Krifchin (USA) 2:40:52 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

25. Roberta Groner (USA) 2:43:06 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly NEXT% 2

1. Evans Chebet (Kenya) 2:08:41 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

2. Shura Kitata (Ethiopia) 2:08:54 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

3. Abdi Nageeye (Netherlands) 2:10:31 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

4. Mohamed El Aaraby (Morocco) 2:11:00 — ASICS MetaSpeed Sky+

5. Suguru Osako (Japan) 2:11:31 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

6. Tetsuya Yoroizaka (Japan) 2:12:12  — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

7. Albert Korir (Kenya) 2:13:27 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

8. Daniele Meucci (Italy) 2:13:29 — ASICS MetaSpeed Sky+

9. Scott Fauble (USA) 2:13:35 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly NEXT% 2

10. Reed Fischer (USA) 2:15:23 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

11. Jared Ward (USA) 2:17:09 — Saucony Endorphin Pro 3

12. Matthew Baxter (New Zealand) 2:17:15 — Hoka Rocket X 2

13. Leonard Korir (USA) 2:17:29 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

14. Matthew Llano (USA) 2:20:04 — Under Armour Velociti Elite

15. Olivier Irabaruta (Burundi)  2:20:14 — On Cloudboom Echo 3

16. Hendrik Pfeiffer (Germany) 2:22:31 — Puma Fast R Nitro Elite

17. Jonas Hampton (USA) 2:22:58 — Adidas Adizero Adios Pro 3

18. Alberto Mena (USA) 2:23:10 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

19. Jacob Shiohira (USA) 2:23:33 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Flyknit

20. Edward Mulder (USA) 2:23:42 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Flyknit

21. Jordan Daniel (USA) 2:24:27 — Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next% 2

22. Nathan Martin (USA) 2:25:27 — ASICS MetaSpeed Sky+

23. Jeff Thies (USA) 2:25:45 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly NEXT% 2

24. Shadrack Kipchirchir (USA) 2:28:15 — Puma Fast R Nitro Elite

25. Abi Joseph (USA) 2:29:16 — Nike Air Zoom Alphafly Flyknit

(11/27/2022) Views: 350 ⚡AMP
by Outside

Here is everything you need to know ahead of Sunday's TCS New York City Marathon

The world’s top marathoners have assembled in NYC for the 51st running of the TCS New York City Marathon this Sunday, Nov 6. The 2022 race returns to full capacity of 50,000 runners with a stacked field of elites in the men’s, women’s and wheelchair events. Defending champion Albert Korir of Kenya returns to defend the men’s title across the five boroughs and 2022 world champion Gotytom Gebreslase of Ethiopia headlines the women’s field. 

How to watch:

Unless you live on the west coast, the 2022 TCS New York City Marathon will be easy to stream and follow online. The professional women’s field will begin at 8:40 a.m. E.T. and the professional men’s field at 9:05 a.m. E.T. Viewers should note that Daylight Savings Time ends in the early hours of Sunday morning, so viewers need to remember to change their clocks back an hour.

Follow @CanadianRunning on Twitter for live tweets and up-to-date news on the 2022 TCS NYC Marathon. 

Women’s elite field

At only 27, Ethiopia’s Gebreslase has achieved much success in the marathon. In 2021, she won Berlin in her debut and followed it up with a podium finish at the 2022 Tokyo Marathon and world championship gold in Eugene this past July. Gebreslase put her talent on display in Eugene, showing that she can run at a fast pace and hold her own against the world’s best marathoners. She will be the likely favourite to win NYC Sunday.

Lonah Chemtai Salpeter is the fastest woman in the field, with a personal best of 2:17:45 from the 2020 Tokyo Marathon. Salpeter was close to an Olympic medal in Tokyo 2020 but hit a wall late and ended-up 66th. She finally got her hands on a bronze medal in Eugene this summer but was bested by Gebreslase in a late surge. Since worlds and European championships earlier this summer, Salpeter has taken some downtime to prepare for a bid at her second Abbott World Marathon Major title in NYC.

Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat will also be one to watch, with the 2011 and 2013 marathon world champion hoping to extend her record of four World Marathon Major wins to five (Boston 2021, 2017, New York 2010, and London 2014). Kiplagat was awarded the 2021 Boston Marathon title after her compatriot Diana Kipyokei was disqualified due to a positive doping test. 

Many fans of the sport have long awaited the marathon debut of two-time 5,000m Olympic medallist and world champion Hellen Obiri of Kenya. She has gone through a lot of transition this year, switching training groups and moving from Kenya to Boulder, Colo., after worlds to train with On Athletics Club (OAC). It will be interesting to see how the speedy 14:18 5K runner can handle the hilly NYC course, but she could be a dark horse for the win.  

Outside of the top big names, the U.S. will be well represented in NYC by former national record holder Keira D’Amato, who ran both the 2022 Berlin Marathon and World Championships only eight weeks apart, and Aliphine Tuliamuk, who won U.S. marathon Olympic Trials in 2020 and holds a personal best of 2:26:50.

Canadian Running prediction: Gotytom Gebreslase (ETH) – 2:21:42 *CR*

Men’s elite field

Kenya’s Korir has a tough job ahead of him on Sunday as he aims to defend his 2021 NYC Marathon title. In his two trips to the Big Apple, Korir has achieved a lot of success. In 2019, he finished runner-up to his compatriot Geoffrey Kamworor in 2:08:36, then followed it up with a win and 14-second course PB (2:08:22) in 2021 for his first world major win. One thing Korir has going for him is that he is consistent. In his last six of eight races, Korir has dipped under the 2:10-mark, which is a speedy time for New York’s hilly course. 

Korir will face stiff competition from his Kenyan compatriot, 2022 Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet, who will be hoping for a second major marathon win of the year. Chebet, 33, holds the fastest time in the field of 2:03-flat from the 2020 Valencia Marathon.

Ethiopia’s Shura Kitata will be another name to look out for, having finished second in 2018. Since his 2020 win at the London Marathon, Kitata has struggled to reach the podium in his last three races. His last race came in March, where he was sixth at the 2022 Tokyo Marathon in 2:06:12 for fifth. Can Kitata bounce back in NYC?

Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands was second to Eliud Kipchoge in the marathon at the 2022 Olympics and set the Dutch national record of 2:04:56 at the Rotterdam Marathon in April. Nageeye has shown he has the experience to be there late, but it will be interesting to see how he handles the course in his debut.

The U.S. men’s field in New York is one of its best in years, with five sub-2:09 marathoners. The 2016 Olympic bronze medallist, Galen Rupp, will make his NYC debut and lead the way for the Americans with a personal best of 2:06:07. Leonard Korir (2:07:56), Scott Fauble (2:08:52), and Marty Hehir (2:08:59) are three others to keep your eye on. Fauble had a sensational run at the 2022 Boston Marathon, where he placed seventh in a personal best time of 2:08:52.

Canadian Running prediction: Evans Chebet (KEN) – 2:07:43

(11/04/2022) Views: 489 ⚡AMP
by Running Magazine

Big day for American marathons in Chicago with first timer Conner Mantz leading the pack

All eyes were on marathon first-timer Mantz, who many believed would take down the American marathon debut record of 2:07:56 set by Leonard Korir in 2019. Mantz, who owns a half marathon personal best of 1:00:55, crossed the midpoint on pace, 1:03:45. But he wasn’t the lone American at that point—Frank Lara was running stride-for-stride with the former Brigham Young University athlete. 

“Frank’s a tough runner. He’s one of my favorite competitors. He’s somebody who’s willing to get out there and grind,” Mantz said. “I was expecting him to finish with me because we’ve had a lot of races together where we’ve been within a few seconds of one another.”

Unfortunately, Lara faded hard, covering 35K to 40K in a difficult 19:53, but Mantz kept close to record pace. He ultimately fell 20 seconds short, clocking 2:08:16. While disappointed, the 25-year-old said he was grateful for the experience.

Four American men ran sub-2:10, and while their performance didn’t quite replicate 2019 success, the foursome of Mantz, Zachery Panning, Matt McDonald, and Nicolas Montanez all recorded new personal bests.

Mantz earned $15,000 for being the top American finisher—an early nuptial gift, as he gets married next weekend.

(10/09/2022) Views: 362 ⚡AMP

Can Mantz and Sisson set American records on Sunday at the Chicago Marathon

Conner Mantz and Emily Sisson are looking to set American records at the Chicago marathon on Sunday.  Mantz, who comes to his marathon debut with impressive XC and track credentials, has his eye on Leonard Korir’s American debut mark of 2:07:56, which was set in Amsterdam in 2019.

“All of my races and workouts have led up to this distance,” Mantz said. “I get excited thinking about it but I need to remember my first marathon and there are some unknowns.”

Sisson, who set the American women’s record in the half-marathon with a 1:07:11 at the USATF Half-marathon Championships in Indianapolis in May, only has one completed marathon under her belt – a 2:23:08 at London in 2019 (she dropped out of the 2020 Olympic Trials)– but has her eyes on the women’s American record of 2:19:12, which was set this past January by Keira D’Amato in Houston.

“My first marathon experience was really positive, and I really enjoyed it,” Sisson said. “After my first marathon in London I was drawn back to it and really want to see what I can do.

“My main goal is to try to break 2:20. If I’m feeling good and the record is in striking range I’ll take a stab at it. I had a really good buildup without any big setbacks. The weather for the weekend looks great, and I don’t know how many times I’ll have that, so I might as well take a swing at it.”

The temperatures will be in the low-50s at the start of the race and most likely cross the 60-degree mark by the time the men’s and women’s winners will cross the finish line. While it may be a touch humid at the beginning of the race, that isn’t expected to have that much of an effect.

Even more promising is the wind. Chicago is unique among the World Marathon Majors in that much of the course up to the halfway point is run in the core of the downtown area among the tall buildings, which can whip the wind around. It also leaves the potential for the competitors to be dealing with a headwind as they make the final push up Michigan Avenue to the finish.

This year, the predicted 7-12 mph winds will be from the southeast, which could be a bit of an assistance over the final few miles.

The race is set to start at 7:30 AM Sunday, and will be shown locally on NBC and streamed on Peacock.

(10/07/2022) Views: 394 ⚡AMP
by Let’s Run

Kiera D’amato wins the women’s 20k in a record time in her new haven debut

Keira D’Amato sprinted across the finish line. She threw up her arms in celebration as her body ripped through the banner at the line.

The crowd cheered as the announcer declared her time of one hour, four minutes and 59 seconds a course record for the 20k race.  

D’Amato looked left and found her mom, Liane, on the sideline holding a poster designed by D’Amato’s 6-year-old daughter, Quin. She ran over to her mom and embraced her in a hug.

The 37-year-old walked away from running once before, yet she returned to the sport for moments like these.

“I kinda felt like running broke my heart and it wasn’t healed yet. But it was something in getting married and marrying into the D’Amato family, they’re a whole bunch of runners, that I learned how to love running again,” D’Amato said. “It’s with that love that I’m able to do things like this and I feel just so grateful to come out here and be with all these runners today.”

D’Amato won the USATF 20k National Championship Monday morning at the 45th annual Faxon Law New Haven Road Race by beating the course record from 1998 (Colleen De Reuck, 1:07:53). Emily Sisson, who finished behind D’Amato, also beat the former record, finishing Monday in 1:04:35. Monday was D’Amato’s debut in New Haven.

This year’s New Haven Road Race was limited to 4,500 runners across five different events, including the men’s and women’s 20k championship, a half marathon and a 5k.

Also having a standout debut in the 20k Championship was men’s winner Conner Mantz, who finished in 59:08. Mantz was followed by longtime Faxon Law competitor Leonard Korir in 59:13.

“It was a challenging race today,” said Korir, who’s raced in every Faxon Law New Haven Road Race since 2016. “Of course, I wanted to win, nobody wants to be second, but you know what, getting second is also good so I’m happy with that.”

D’Amato, from Midlothian, Va., and Sisson wasted no time separating themselves from the pack to start the women’s 20k. The two stayed together and crossed the Mile 3 mark at 15:31. Three miles later, there was a 300-meter-plus difference between them and the next women’s runner.

Sisson said the two traded off leading each mile until D’Amato began to pull away at Mile 8.

“I was like I’d rather win it than lose so I put a move in, and I could feel her hesitate a little bit so that gave me a lot of energy thinking like if I could just put in a couple more moves, like a quick, hard move, maybe I can take this,” D’Amato said. “It’s exciting, but it’s also terrifying to be in the front, like especially with somebody like Emily right behind you.

“Because I was like if I slow down at all, she’s gonna overtake me so it really kept me honest and kept me fighting through and I found more today than I even knew I had because of her, so I’m appreciative for sure.”

(09/05/2022) Views: 509 ⚡AMP

Rhonex Kipruto and Kibiwott Kandie Added to Fastest Field in Peachtree History

Rhonex Kipruto is returning to Atlanta for two reasons: Vindication and to protect his event record at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race. The 10K world record-holder was announced Thursday by Atlanta Track Club, organizers of the Peachtree, as a late addition to the elite field at Monday’s 53rd Running of the race.

The 2019 Peachtree champion isn’t the only Kenyan superstar joining the field: Also making the trip to Running City USA will be Kibiwott Kandie, whose personal best of 26:50 gives him the second-fastest 10K in the world this year and fifth fastest all time. Kandie, the 2020 World Athletics Half Marathon champion and 2022 Kenyan 10,000m champion, will be making his Peachtree debut.

Kipruto’s winning time of 27:01 here in 2019 is not only the Peachtree record but also the fastest 10K ever run in the United States. To hold on to his event record – and perhaps be the first man to ever break 27 minutes on American soil – he’ll have to battle five other men with road personal bests under 27:15. In addition to Kandie who defeated Kipruto when they raced on the track earlier this month, that speedy group includes Bravin Kiptoo, who was the runner-up to Kipruto, his brother, in 2019.

Kipruto was not planning to race the Peachtree this year. As one of the top-ranked 10,000- meter runners in the world, he was expected to make the Kenyan team for the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, later in July. However, he finished a disappointing sixth in the Kenyan Championships and now hopes to redeem himself by making history on the Fourth of July.

“Chasing after the course record, weather permitting, is on my mind, especially as I failed to make Team Kenya this past weekend,” said Kipruto. “What comes after the defeat is always more important than the defeat itself.”

Kirpruto’s 2019 course record came with a $50,000 bonus for the 50th Running of the Peachtree. This year, the bonus is $53,000 to be split among any men or women in the footrace or Shepherd Center Wheelchair Division who set a record. With two other division record-holders returning – Brigid Kosgei in the women’s footrace and Daniel Romanchuk in the men’s wheelchair division – anyone who sets a record this year may find themselves sharing the purse. There will be plenty of competition. For Kosgei – whose 30:22 course record is also the fastest time ever run in the U.S. – the path to victory has become slightly easier, as Sheila Chepkirui withdrew after finishing second in the 10,000 meters at the Kenyan Championships. However, Irene Cheptai, the 2017 World Cross Country champion who finished 6th in the 10,000m in Tokyo last summer, has been added to the field.

There have been several other notable withdrawals from the elite field. Eight-time Peachtree winner Tatyana McFadden, 2017 Peachtree winner Leonard Korir and 2022 Publix Atlanta Half Marathon winner Nicholas Kosimbei are no longer racing on Monday.

(07/01/2022) Views: 519 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

Americans Leonard Korir and Keira D’Amato Sweep Titles at 2022 B.A.A. 10K

It was an American sweep at the 2022 B.A.A. 10K presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital, with Leonard Korir (28:00) and Keira D’Amato (31:17) winning the professional open divisions and Susannah Scaroni and Hermin Garic capturing the wheelchair crowns. The pace was as hot as the weather, with the wily veteran Korir setting a personal best and Scaroni shattering the wheelchair world record for the distance.

“It feels really nice!” said Scaroni, who won a gold medal at 5,000 meters in the 2020 Paralympics but two weeks later was struck by a car while training. “It’s always great to be at a race where they’re trying to make it world-record eligible.” Scaroni broke the tape in 21:56, shattering Tatyana McFadden’s previous mark of 23:34.

As pleased as she was with the record, Scaroni was also excited to win the race outright. Asked if she had ever been the first wheelchair athlete, man or woman, across the line, she beamed. “Oh no, never! I didn’t expect that at all.”

Winning the men’s wheelchair race was Boston Marathon veteran Hermin Garic, in 22:07. “It feels awesome, coming back to Boston.”

In the men’s open division, a pack of 17, led by Bravin Kiptoo, went through the first mile in a scorching 4:21.

“When I saw the first people were so fast, I knew they were going to pay,” said Korir, a 2016 Olympian who has already won national titles this year at the half marathon and 25K. “It was like suicide. I said, ‘let me just hang in there and strike when the time comes.’”

The men ran the second mile in 4:24, but had slowed to 4:37 by the fifth. By that time, it was Kennedy Kimutai and Korir running neck-and-neck. “With a mile to go, I realized I was feeling so strong. I said, ‘let me just go now.’”

He would surge ahead to win in 28:00, nine seconds faster than the personal best he set on this course in 2014. Kimutai would finish second in 28:07, with Philemon Kiplimo third in 28:09. American Ben True was fourth in the same time; Ben Flanagan, fifth in 28:11, set a Canadian 10K record and also set a national mark through 8K in 22:30.

In the women’s race, D’Amato said that her goal was to race aggressively and go after the pace. Mission accomplished: A pack hit mile 1 in 5:05, but by mile 3 (reached in 15:08) she and Kenya’s Sharon Lokedi were gapping the field. As they battled, they ran mile 4 in 4:29, 30 seconds ahead of their chasers.

“We were battling it out,” said D’Amato, who in January broke the American record for the marathon when she ran 2:19:12 in Houston. “That was a fierce duel. With 1200 [meters] to go, she was breathing really hard and I just went by her.” Lokedi succumbed to the heat and humidity on Charles Street roughly 200 meters from the line and would not finish.

American Emily Sisson finished as runner-up in 32:03, with the 42-year-old Edna Kiplagat, the 2017 Boston Marathon champion, third in 32:09.

Claiming the inaugural B.A.A. 10K Para Athletics Divisions were Adrianne Haslet (1:15:19) and Marko Cheseto Lemtukei (35:44) for T61-T64 (lower limb impairment) classification and Erich Manser (50:49) and Jennifer Herring (45:41) in the T11-T15 (vision impairment) classification. Haslet earned the title on her birthday, and was exuberant at the opportunity to win on the road of Boston.

“To not just be invited to run a race, but invited to compete means that we’re being included among some of the world’s best runners with the world-class B.A.A. as hosts. It can’t get much better than that,” said Haslet.

Approximately 5,146 participants crossed the finish line of today’s B.A.A. 10K. Brigham and Women's Hospital, the B.A.A. 10K’s presenting sponsor and exclusive fundraising partner, fielded a team of more than 350 fundraising runners. Since 2016, more than 2,100 runners and 180 teams have raised $1.2 million to fuel life-giving breakthroughs at Brigham and Women’s Hospital through the B.A.A. 10K.

The third and final event of the 2022 B.A.A. Distance Medley will be the B.A.A. Half Marathon presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fun on Sunday, November 13. Registration is currently open within the B.A.A.’s online platform, Athletes’ Village.

(06/27/2022) Views: 493 ⚡AMP

Boston Marathon Champions & National Record Holders Headline Professional Field for 2022 B.A.A. 10K

The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) has announced a star-studded field for the 2022 B.A.A. 10K, presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital, to be held on Sunday, June 26. Evans Chebet, the 2022 Boston Marathon men’s open division champion, will return to Boston, while recently crowned American half marathon record holder Emily Sisson will lead the women’s field on the roads of Back Bay. Four-time B.A.A. 5K champion and American 5K record holder Ben True will also make his B.A.A. 10K debut.

The B.A.A. 10K starts and finishes on Charles Street adjacent to Boston Common and Boston Public Garden, and is widely regarded as one of the fastest 10K races in the world. Registration remains open at www.baa.org, while athletes interested in supporting Brigham and Women's Hospital, the B.A.A. 10K’s presenting sponsor and exclusive fundraising partner, are encouraged to visit www.runbwh.org/10k.

“We’re excited to continue to showcase the world’s most accomplished runners at our B.A.A. events,” said Mary Kate Shea, the B.A.A.’s Director of Professional Athletes and Technical Support. “We’re looking forward to cheering on all participants as they race towards the finish.”

The B.A.A. 10K women’s race brings together Boston Marathon champions Des Linden (2018) and Edna Kiplagat (2017), American record holder Sisson, 2017 B.A.A. 10K winner Joan Chelimo Melly, 2022 Boston Marathon top American Nell Rojas, 2016 USA Olympian Marielle Hall, and USA 15K runner-up Emily Durgin.

Sisson, a Providence College graduate and 2021 Olympian, ran 1:07:11 on May 7 to win the USATF Half Marathon Championships in a new national record. She’s also the defending USA 15K champion.

“Breaking the American record in the half marathon was very exciting and I'm now looking forward to switching things up and racing different distances,” said Sisson. “The 10K is a fun and different challenge and I always love racing in Boston.”

Additional international entrants include Biruktayit Degefa of Ethiopia, who has won a quartet of American road races this spring, and Kenya’s Sharon Lokedi, who placed third at the 2022 B.A.A. 5K in April. From the B.A.A. High Performance team are Erika Kemp and Abbey Wheeler; Kemp is a two-time national champion.

In the men’s race, Chebet looks to become only the second Boston Marathon champion to win the B.A.A. 10K, joining the likes of 2011 winner and course record holder Geoffrey Mutai. Chebet stormed to his first Boston Marathon victory in 2:06:51 on April 18.

“After winning the 2022 Boston Marathon, I’m excited to return to the city to run the B.A.A. 10K with a world class field,” said Chebet. “Boston feels like a second home to me now.”

Challenging Chebet from Kenya are David Bett, the reigning 2019 B.A.A. 10K winner; Kennedy Kimutai, the fastest man in the field with a 27:09 lifetime best; Bravin Kiptoo, the 2019 African junior 10,000m champion; and Nicholas Kosimbei, winner of this year’s Cherry Blossom 10 Miler in Washington, D.C. Brothers Jake and Zane Robertson, a dynamic pair from New Zealand who have lived and trained in Kenya, will also race. Recent Iowa State graduate and NCAA champion Wesley Kiptoo will make his Boston road racing debut.

Maine-native Ben True will return to familiar territory, having won the B.A.A. 5K four times, including a national-record setting run of 13:20 in 2017.  Fellow American contenders include Olympians Leonard Korir and Shadrack Kipchirchir, Princeton, Mass.-native Colin Bennie, and a quartet of B.A.A. High Performance Team members in Jerrell Mock, Matt McDonald, Jonas Hampton, and Paul Hogan. Korir enters the B.A.A. 10K hot off a pair of national title wins at the USATF Half Marathon and USATF 25K Championships in May.

In the wheelchair division, Jenna Fesemyer, the 2022 B.A.A. 5K women’s winner, Susannah Scaroni, the 2022 Boston Marathon runner-up, and 2020 Paralympian Yen Hoang are entered. Scaroni earned a gold medal on the track at the 2021 Paralympic Games in the 5000m, and is the fastest women’s wheelchair marathoner in U.S. history. James Senbeta and Hermin Garic are the top men’s wheelchair entrants.

For the first time in race history, Para Athletics Divisions will be offered for athletes with upper-limb, lower-limb, and visual impairments. Among the entrants confirmed include Marko Cheseto Lemtukei, Chaz Davis, and Liz Willis, each of whom won Para Division titles at April’s 126th Boston Marathon. Jacky Hunt-Broersma, who ran 104 marathons in 104 consecutive days for a Guinness World Record, and local Para athlete Adrianne Haslet are also entered.

In addition to racing, top professional athletes will participate in the first-ever B.A.A. 10K Fest & Field Day on Saturday, June 25, one day prior to the race. From 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. at Boston Common, 10K Fest & Field Day will feature youth fitness activities, games, appearances by professional athletes, running clinics, and more. Participants will also be able to pick-up their participant shirts and bib numbers at 10K Fest. Additional details will be available on baa.org in the coming weeks.

Registration for the 2022 B.A.A. 10K, presented by Brigham and Women’s Hospital, is currently open through the B.A.A.’s online platform Athletes’ Village. All participants who enter will receive an adidas participant shirt, unique bib number, and finisher medal. Additional participant information can be found on baa.org. The race will start at 8:00 a.m. ET on Sunday, June 26 on Charles Street adjacent to Boston Common and Boston Public Garden.

Brigham and Women's Hospital, the B.A.A. 10K’s presenting sponsor and exclusive fundraising partner, will again field a team of fundraising runners. Since 2016, more than 2,100 runners and 180 teams have raised $1.2 million to fuel life-giving breakthroughs at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Learn more and register at www.runbwh.org/10k.

On June 1, the B.A.A. will celebrate Global Running Day with a special pop-up location at the Boston Marathon Finish Line between 3:00-6:00 p.m. Runners can take a picture with the Boston Marathon trophy, receive giveaways, refreshments, and more! RSVP for the free event on our Facebook page, and log miles throughout the day as part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors Global Running Day Challenge. Visit https://bstnmar.org/GRD22 to sign up for free, track your miles, and print a bib to wear as you join a global community of athletes around the world logging miles.

2022 B.A.A. 10K WOMEN’S FIELD (NAME, COUNTRY, ROAD 10K PB)

Joan Chelimo Melly, Romania, 30:14^

Edna Kiplagat, Kenya, 31:06*

Sharon Lokedi, Kenya, 31:06

Mary Munanu, Kenya, 31:20

Biruktayit Degefa, Ethiopia, 31:23

Emily Sisson, USA, 31:47

Emily Durgin, USA, 31:49

Diane Nukuri, USA, 31:49

Lanni Marchant, Canada, 31:49

Vibian Chepkirui, Kenya, 31:49

Nell Rojas, USA, 31:52

Erika Kemp, USA, 32:18

Laura Thweatt, USA, 32:20

Elaina Tabb, USA, 32:40

Rachel Schneider Smith, USA, 32:47

Abbey Wheeler, USA, DB (32:53.50 10,000m)

Grayson Murphy, USA, 32:55

Fiona O’Keeffe, USA, 32:57

Katie Kellner, USA, 33:05

Des Linden, USA, 33:06*

Taylor Werner, USA, 33:35

Marielle Hall, USA, 33:36 (31:05.71 10,000m)

Allie Hackett, USA, 35:17

Jesca Chelangat, Kenya, DB (15:16 5K)

Courtney Hawkins, USA, DB (37:59.99 10,000m)

^ = Previous B.A.A. 10K Champion

* = Previous Boston Marathon Champion

 

2022 B.A.A. 10K MEN’S FIELD (NAME, COUNTRY, ROAD 10K PB)

Kennedy Kimutai, Kenya, 27:09

Bravin Kiptoo, Kenya, 27:12

Philemon Kiplimo, Kenya, 27:23

Zane Robertson, New Zealand, 27:28

Jake Robertson, New Zealand, 27:28

Wesley Kiptoo, Kenya, N/A (27:37.29 10,000m)

Ben True, USA, 27:51

Nicholas Kosimbei, Kenya, 27:52

John Dressel, USA, N/A (27:57.51 10,000m)

David Bett, Kenya, 28:08^

Dominic Korir, Kenya, 28:08

Leonard Korir, USA, 28:09

Shadrack Kipchirchir, USA, 28:12

David Nilsson, Sweden, 28:13

Tsegay Tuemay, Eritrea, 28:13

Bethwell Yegon, Kenya, 28:24

Reuben Mosip, Kenya, 28:28

Paul Hogan, USA, N/A (28:49.55 10,000m)

Johannes Motschmann, Germany, 28:51

Alex Masai, Kenya, 28:53

Colin Bennie, USA, 28:55

Futsum Zienasellassie, USA, 29:03

Matt McClintock, USA, 29:02

Jacob Thomson, USA, 29:07

John Raneri, USA, 29:19

Evans Chebet, Kenya, 29:30*

Jerrell Mock, USA, 29:36

Aaron Dinzeo, USA, 29:37

Matt McDonald, USA, 29:38

Diego Estrada, USA, 29:41

Fabiano Sulle, Tanzania, 29:53

Jonas Hampton, USA, 30:15

Tim McGowan, USA, 30:17

Connor McMillan, USA, 30:20

Josh Kalapos, USA, N/A (14:33.88 5,000m)

^ = Previous B.A.A. 10K Champion

* = Previous Boston Marathon Champion

 

(06/01/2022) Views: 681 ⚡AMP

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).

(05/05/2022) Views: 504 ⚡AMP

Emily Sisson, Nico Montanez Take 2022 USATF 15-K Titles in Jacksonville

Emily Sisson and Nico Montanez scored convincing wins today at the 45th Gate River Run in Jacksonville, Fla., the traditional home of the USATF 15-K Championships.  Sisson, who represents New Balance, successfully defended her 2021 title in 47:28, collecting her fifth national title across all distances and surfaces.  Montanez, who trains with the Mammoth Track Club and represents Asics, clocked 43:10 to collect his first national title in any discipline.

While both athletes earned $10,000 in prize money, Sisson won an additional $5,000 for winning the race’s gender challenge.  The women were given a six-minute head start and Sisson crossed the finish line one minute and 42 seconds ahead of Montanez.

In typically humid Florida conditions, Sisson led the elite women’s race right from the gun.  In the early kilometers she had company from both Emily Infeld (Nike) and Emily Durgin (adidas), but by the 5-kilometer mark (15:38) she already had a six-second lead.  Running her first race since placing tenth in the 10,000m at the Tokyo Olympics last August, Sisson found herself in the same position as last year: running alone and against the clock.

“It’s my first race back from Tokyo, so it’s just good to push my body that hard,” Sisson told Chris Nickinson of USATF.tv in her post-race broadcast interview.  “I haven’t done that in so long now.”

Sisson, 30, who lives in the Phoenix area but has been training recently at high altitude in Flagstaff, Ariz., checked her watch a few times as she clicked off her kilometers in the 3:10 range.  Her splits were showing that she had a chance at Shalane Flanagan’s American record of 47:00 set at the same race in 2014.  But ascending the 141 foot (43m) high Hart Bridge which begins at about 13 km, Sisson lost too much time and had to settle for the #4 USA performance ever, behind only Flanagan and Olympic bronze medalist Deena Kastor who ran 47:15 in 2003 and 47:20 in 2007.

“It felt good to get out there and hoping this is a good springboard for the rest of the year,” Sisson added.

Emily Durgin was a clear second in 49:17 and Emily Infeld got third in 49:46.

Nico Monatanez Gets 1st National Title

Montanez, 28, who is coached by Andrew and Deena Kastor, stayed tucked-in to the men’s lead pack for nearly the entire race.  Two-time Olympic medalist Galen Rupp (Nike) led for more than two thirds of the race, splitting 5-K in 14:27 and 10-K in 28:52 with steeplechaser Hilary Bor (Hoke One One) on his heels.  Montanez waited for the incline on Hart Bridge before attacking the field.  He quickly opened a big lead.  Montanez said that his move wasn’t spontaneous.

“It wasn’t a moment like that where I’m like, oh, I had the lead and time to go,” Montanez said in his post-race broadcast interview.  “This thing was planned, it was maneuvered, it was thought out, it was prayed for.  This is something that has been on my mind.  This is Andrew and Deena Kastor, both of my coaches.  This is their recipe.”

Montanez crested the bridge with none of the other men still within striking distance and was able to enjoy the final kilometer to the finish.  Behind him, Leonard Korir, a 2016 Olympian, out-sprinted Bor for second place, although both men were given the same time: 43:14.  Rupp, who is also running the United Airlines NYC Half on March 20, faded in the last two kilometers and finished seventh in 43:31.

Todd Williams’s championships, race and national record of 42:22, which was set in 1995, stood up yet another year.

The Gate River Run was never cancelled due to the pandemic.  It was held on March 7, 2020, just before the initial pandemic shutdown, and race director Doug Alred was able to stage the race in 2021 early in the USA mass-vaccination process by cutting the field size in half to about 6700 finishers and employing social distancing.  The event has hosted the USATF Championships since 1994.

The Gate River Run is part of the USATF Running Circuit.  The next event is the USATF 1 Mile Road Championships to be held in Des Moines, Iowa, on April 26

(03/06/2022) Views: 568 ⚡AMP

Fast times at the USATF Half Marathon Championships

The final stop on the 2021 USATF Running Circuit presented by Toyota did not disappoint, as Keira D’Amato and Conner Mantz came away victorious at the USATF Half Marathon Championships presented by Toyota in Hardeeville, South Carolina.

As the women’s race got underway, D’Amato, Allie Kieffer, and Natosha Rogers jumped to the front, putting a six-second gap on a chase trio of Erika Kemp, Makena Morley, and Lauren Paquette, coming through the 5 km split in 16:04.

The lead trio would run together until mile five, when D’Amato pushed the pace and was able to gap Rogers and Kieffer. D’Amato grew her lead quickly, coming through 10 km in 32:05, 12 seconds ahead of Kieffer, who had a nine-second lead on Rogers.

D’Amato would continue to grow her lead, running nearly a minute ahead of Rogers and Morley, who were running second and third. Kieffer sat in fourth a couple seconds back of the duo, as was Paquette.

Over the next 5 km, D’Amato grew her lead to 1:34 over Rogers and Dakotah Lindwurm, who ran a tremendous 10th and 11th mile to move up into the chase, while Paquette started to pull ahead of Morley for fourth.

With the finish line in sight, D’Amato pushed the pace once last time, crossing the finish line with her arms raised and a smile on her face, finishing the half marathon distance in 1:07:55.

Rogers held off the late-race push from Lindwurm to place second overall in 1:09:36, having yet another fine USATF Half Marathon Championship performance. Lindwurm ran an excellent back half of the race to take third in 1:09:40, just ahead of Paquette, who ran to a fourth-place time of 1:09:46, her debut at the half marathon distance.

Morley held on over the final miles to place fifth in 1:09:57, edging out Erika Kemp, who placed sixth in 1:10:38. Kieffer faded a bit in the later stages of the race, but still place seventh overall in 1:10:44, while Maggie Montoya ran 1:11:21, Susanna Sullivan ran 1:11:58, and Jessie Cardin crossed in 1:12:08, as the trio took eighth through tenth.

While D’Amato ran a dominating performance to win Sunday, there was another race within a race, with Kemp and Morley battling for the 2021 USATF Running Circuit title. As the final race of the 2021 USATF Running Circuit season, Kemp entered Sunday’s action with a nine-point lead over Morley. 

Early on Sunday, it seemed as though Morley might pull away and claim the overall title, but Kemp’s strong finish helped her outlast Morley. Kemp’s sixth-place effort claimed her the overall USATF Running Circuit title with 62.5 points, just ahead of Morley’s 55 points. Emily Durgin finished with 49 points to place third overall, while Lindsay Flanagan and Annie Frisbie earned fourth- and fifth-place finishes with 34 points and 30 points.

A large group led the men’s race early Sunday morning, with all of the pre-race top contenders in tow. Reigning NCAA Division 1 cross country champion Mantz led the way early, as Sam Chelanga, Lawi Lalang, and Augustus Maiyo also ran up front, as the pack found hit a groove, running 4:40 mile pace for the early miles.

As the men came through 10 km, Mantz continued to lead, with Chelanga, Maiyo and Morgan Pearson off his shoulder. Over the next 5 km, Pearson and Mantz would take turns pacing, while Maiyo and Chelanga right behind with Lalang. 

As the lead group passed through mile 10, Lalang started to drop off, while Clayton Young and Nico Montanez moved up. The pace continued to ratchet down, as the group formed a single file line, with Mantz and Pearson pushing ahead.

With a mile to go, it was now a three-man race, with Mantz, Chelanga and Montanez running together. Chelanga tried to push the pace and break up the group, but Mantz hung tough and wouldn’t concede any ground to Chelanga.

In a furious kick to the finish, Mantz showed his championship-level form, pulling away from Chelanga to claim his first USATF title, crossing the finish in 1:00:55 in his debut over the half marathon distance. 

Chelanga took home second place in 1:00:59, a strong finish to his 2021 USATF Running Circuit season, as Montanez placed an impressive third in 1:01:13, his second top three finish on the USATF Running Circuit season and less than two months after placing seventh at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. 

Clayton Young, who won the USATF 15 km Championship title, the first race of the USATF Running Circuit season, finished fourth overall on Sunday in 1:01:18. Futsum Zienasellassie had another strong performance to take fifth in 1:01:21, as Maiyo finished well to take sixth in 1:01:33.

Olympian Leonard Korir took home seventh in 1:01:43, just ahead of Pearson, who claimed eighth in 1:01:47. Frank Lara and Lawi Lalang rounded out the top ten crossing the finish in 1:02:19 and 1:02:49, respectively.

While he didn’t race Sunday, Abbabiya Simbassa claimed the 2021 USATF Running Circuit overall title with 77 points, well ahead of the rest of the field, after claiming two USATF victories and two runner-up efforts during the 2021 USATF Running Circuit season.

Chelanga’s runner-up finish in Hardeeville gives him 48 points and a second place finish in the overall USATF Running Circuit standings, followed closely by Young, who claimed third with 47.5 points. Montanez finishes fourth on the season with 37 points, while Fred Huxham places fifth on the season with 30 points.

(12/05/2021) Views: 692 ⚡AMP

Ben Flanagan wins 85th Manchester Road Race, Weini Kelati wins women's race and sets new record

What a dominating performance by Weini Kelati!

The 24-year-old runner native of the African country of Eritrea shattered the course record with a time of 22 minutes 55 seconds to win the women’s division of the Manchester Road Race. Kelati, who lives in Flagstaff, Ariz., finished 18th overall.

“It’s amazing!” Kelati told FOX61 News after crossing the finish line on Thursday morning. “The energy … When I hear the people cheering, it helps me to run fast.”

Kelati, who won the women’s national 5K road championship in New York City on Nov. 6, started off the race strong. She quickly got away from the pack in the women’s division and ran the 4.748 miles practically by herself.

She beat the previous course record of 23 minutes 57 seconds in the women’s division – set by Buze Diriba in 2017 – by more than a minute.

Second place in the woman’s race was Keira D’Amato from Midlothian, Virginia. Edna Kiplagat from Longmont, Colorado rounded up the top three.

“Thank you to the people cheering for us,” Kelati said. “It’s amazing.”

In the men’s race, winner Ben Flanagan, 26 of Canada, clocked in at a time of 21 minutes 23 seconds, beating second-place Leonard Korir by more than 12 seconds.

Flanagan, who lives in Charlottesville, Virginia, took the lead after the Highland Street hill, at about the 2-mile mark, and ran alone the rest of the way.

“I feel amazing,” he told FOX61 News after the race. “I knew I was in pretty good shape, but this time of year, you really don’t know what to expect, it’s so early in training. So, to come out here and take the win at a historic race like this is a huge privilege. I am so happy.”

He was about six seconds off the pace of the course record for the men’s division (21:15) set by Edward Cheserek in 2018.

Flanagan, who is a two-time winner of the Falmouth Road Race (2019, 2021), was running his second Manchester Road Race. He is the first Canadian male to win since Christian Weber in 1990.

Sam Chelanga, the 2013 Manchester winner, won the King of the Hill title at the top of Highland Street hill. He came in third overall.

“You do it right here (in Manchester),” Flanagan said of the crowds. “It was electric. As soon as I took the lead, the last two miles, the crowd just fueled me the whole time … it was so exciting.”

More than 8,700 runners hit the racecourse this year. The race was held virtually last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

(11/25/2021) Views: 940 ⚡AMP
by Lucia Suarez Sang

Drew Hunter and Weini Kelati Will lead fields for Thursday’s Manchester Road Race

The elite fields for Thursday’s Manchester Road Race in Manchester, Conn., have been finalized, race organizers reported this morning.  The classic Thanksgiving Day race, founded in 1927, will return to its usual 4.748-mile, hilly loop with the start and finish on Main Street after being held virtually last year.  Among the hundreds of “Turkey Trots” to be held in the United States on Thursday, Manchester is the only event with a truly top-class elite field.  Organizers expect 8,700 runners to answer the starter’s gun at 10:00 a.m. EST.

“Our elite runner coordinator, Jim Harvey, has done a brilliant job of assembling excellent fields of elite runners for our return to Main Street and the celebration of our 85th Manchester Road Race this year,” said Dr. Tris Carta, president of the Manchester Road Race Committee, through a statement.  “It is going to be a very exciting road race.”

The women’s contest will feature an interesting match-up between USA 5-K champion Weini Kelati and 2:22 marathoner Keira D’Amato.  Both American women will be running Manchester for the first time.

Also likely to contend for the win are Kenyans Edna Kiplagat, the two-time world marathon champion, and Monicah Ngige, most recently fourth at the Boston Marathon.  Also entered are Britain’s Amy-Eloise Markovc, the 2021 European indoor 3000m champion, and Americans Taylor Werner, the 2019 NCAA Championships 5000m runner-up, and Katie Izzo, fourth at the 2019 NCAA Championships in the 10,000m.  In all, ten women have track or road 5-K personal bests under 16 minutes.  Kiplagat was the Manchester winner in 2019.

Drew Hunter, the newly-crowned USA 5-K road running champion, leads the men’s field and will be making his Manchester debut.  Hunter’s biggest challengers will likely be 2:07 marathon Leonard Korir, veteran Sam Chelanga, and two-time Falmouth Road Race champion Ben Flanagan, a Canadian.  A total of 14 men have sub-14:00 5000m personal bests.

Thursday’s race has a generous $47,800 prize money purse, and the top-3 men and women will receive $7,000, $4,000 and $3,000, respectively.

Behind the elites, 75 year-old Amby Burfoot will run Manchester for the 59th consecutive year (he ran virtually in 2020 using the race’s traditional course).  Burfoot, the 1968 Boston Marathon champion, won the Manchester Road Race nine times from 1968 through 1977.  Should he finish the race on Thursday he will earn sole ownership of the record for most total Manchester finishes at 59.

Thursday’s races will be broadcast on the Connecticut Fox affiliate, Fox 61.  Their coverage will be streamed live and free globally at fox61.com at 10:00 a.m. EST.

The complete elite fields are below with 5000m personal bests.

WOMEN

–Weini KELATI (USA), 14:58.24

Amy-Eloise MARKOVC (GBR), 15:03.22

Aisling CUFFE (USA), 15:11.13

Taylor WERNER (USA), 15:11.19i

Katie IZZO (USA), 15:13.09i

Monicah NGIGE (KEN), 15:16 (road)

Edna KIPLAGAT (40+/KEN), 15:20 (road)

Sarah INGLIS (GBR), 15:24.17

Fiona O’KEEFFE (USA), 15:31.45

Tristin VAN ORD (USA), 15:53.44

Emeline DELANIS (FRA), 16:02.54

Keira D’AMATO (USA), 16:09.86

Annmarie TUXBURY (USA), 16:17.45

Emily SETLACK (40+/CAN), 16:26.31

Whitney MACON (USA), 35:36 (road 10-K)

MEN

–Sam CHELANGA (USA), 13:04.35i

Leonard KORIR (USA), 13:15.45

Drew HUNTER (USA), 13:17.55

Ben FLANAGAN (CAN), 13:20.67

Donn CABRAL (USA), 13:22.19

Jordan MANN (USA), 13:27.68i

Blaise FERRO (USA), 13:31.54

John DRESSEL (USA), 13:36.29

Alex OSTBERG (USA), 13:42.44

Mo HREZI (LBA), 13:42.80

Matt McCLINTOCK (USA), 13:47.68

Alfredo SANTANA (PUR), 13:48.10

Joey BERRIATUA (USA), 13:49.16

Julius DIEHR (USA), 13:56.79

Tai DINGER (USA), 14:09.41

Brendan PRINDIVILLE (USA), 14:10.96.

(11/24/2021) Views: 850 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

Olympians, champions and top americans will lead fields for 2021 Asics Falmouth Road Race

Falmouth Road Race, Inc., organizers of the 49th Annual ASICS Falmouth Road Race, one of America’s premier running events of the summer season, today announced the men’s, women’s, and wheelchair open fields for this year’s race. Defending champions Leonard Korir and Sharon Lokedi lead an accomplished field of Olympians, World Champions and top Americans participating in the August 15, 2021 race.

WOMEN’S OPEN DIVISION

Lokedi, a Kenyan elite and 10-time All American at the University of Kansas, will race 2019 runner-up Sara Hall, who has won 11 U.S. national titles from the mile to the marathon. Hall recently finished sixth at the U.S. Olympic Trials 10,000m and won the AJC Peachtree Road Race, which hosted the National 10K Championships. The duo is joined by Edna Kiplagat, a Boston, London and New York City champion as well as a two-time World Athletics Marathon Championships gold medalist. 

Twelve-time All American and NCAA DI 10,000m champion Emma Bates and 2021 Olympic marathoner Molly Seidel will also participate. Bates is gearing up for a fall marathon and Seidel will run, alongside her sister Isabel, as a post-Olympic celebration.  

Accomplished women racing the leaders include Jordan Hasay, an 18-time All American and multiple podium finisher at the Boston and Chicago Marathons; former Falmouth champion and three-time Olympian Diane Nukuri; NCAA 10,000m champion Natosha Rogers; young talent Iveen Chepkemoi; Emily Durgin who finished runner-up at the AJC Peachtree Road Race with a 31:49 personal best, and Taylor Werner the recent USATF National 6K champion.

Many of the women in the field raced in the 5,000m and/or 10,000m at the recent U.S. Olympic Track Trials including Rogers, Durgin, Werner, Erika Kemp, Makena Morley, Jaci Smith, Fiona O’Keefe,  and Paige Stoner.

MEN’S OPEN DIVISION

The 2019 podium of Leonard Korir, Stephen Sambu, and Edward Cheserek return. Korir, an Olympian, became the first American man to win the Falmouth Road Race since 1988. He has 10 USATF national titles and holds the fastest-ever marathon debut by an American (2:077:56). 

Sambu looks to add an impressive fifth Falmouth Road Race title to his name. A road running star, Sambu set the 8K world record at the B.A.A. 10K, a race he has won twice. He is also a four-time champion of the Shamrock Shuffle. Edward Cheserek, the most decorated NCAA distance runner of all time with 17 NCAA Division I titles, ran for the University of Oregon. At Boston University in 2018, Cheserek ran the indoor mile in 3:49.44, which at that time was the second fastest indoor mile in history.  

Chasing the trio are 2018 Falmouth Road Race champion and 2018 NCAA 10,000m winner Ben Flanagan, of Canada, and Ben True, who holds five national titles, set a 5K national record at the 2017 B.A.A. 5K and recently finished fourth in the 10,000m at the U.S. Olympic Trials. Fresh from a two second 1-2 finish at the 2021 AJC Peachtree Road Race, Sam Chelanga, a six-time USATF National Champion, and Fred Huxham are in the field, as are B.A.A. 10K champion David Bett, 2018 Falmouth runner-up Scott Fauble and top 5,000m runner Emmanuel Bor. 

Many of the men running the ASICS Falmouth Road Race competed at the 2021 U.S. Olympic Track Trials including Korir, Chelanga, Bor, True, Biya Simbassa, Jacob Thomson and Frank Lara.

(07/27/2021) Views: 913 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

The Bix is back: Race returns with resounding success

The crack of a starting pistol sent a scribble of smoke upward, queuing upbeat dance club music.

Miles away, a barber shop quartet serenaded with harmonic tones.

Palmer College of Chiropractic members dressed as vertebrae snaked their way up the infamously steep Brady Street.

Good Samaritans sprinkled cooling droplets of mist and rushed to the aid of an overheated runner.

A volunteer raked a neat pile of thousands of discarded water cups out of the road.

"These 14,000 cups have gotta go somewhere," Jen Broders said.

Post-race Jello shots were downed and accompanied by dives onto a front-lawn water slide.

Runner, walkers, past Olympians, pint-sized entrepreneurs, Marilyn Monroe look-alikes and "short-legged, no-talent" family members, friends and supporters packed the streets of downtown Davenport on Saturday morning for the 47th annual Quad-City Times Bix 7. More than 9,750 people registered for Bix races, according to race officials, marking the first time participation has dipped below 10,000 since 1986 (not counting last year's virtual Bix).

"Since last year's race ended, we've been planning for a very different race because our plans have changed on a monthly, weekly and daily basis," Bix 7 Race Director Michelle Juehring said.

The 53-year-old became race director in 2020 after the retirement of former longtime Race Director Ed Froehlich. She guided the race through its virtual version during the COVID-19 pandemic and was in the midst of preparing for her first full-blown Bix as its director.

Through all the changes COVID-19 forced in 2020, planning for the 2021 race was not without lingering pandemic-induced difficulties.

"We didn't know if the race would be open to all contestants until, basically, the last week in June, first week of July," Juehring said. "I am very grateful to have a whole race, but the road to getting here has forced us to be flexible and change."

Shade become prime real estate along the race course for bystanders. The temperature at race time was 78 degrees, tied for the third-hottest in Bix history, with 82% humidity and a 9-mph wind.

Though the start-time temperature was reasonable, the mercury shot up quickly and so did the action inside the medical tent. By 9 a.m., the temperature had climbed above 80 degrees. By 10:30 a.m., the mercury reached 85 degrees, at which time 36 people had been treated in the medical just past the finish line, one of whom was transported to the hospital. Another 10 runners were taken from the course to the hospital. Craig Cooper, spokesman for Genesis, said Saturday evening that one person had been admitted to the hospital but all others taken to Genesis had been treated and released.

Beat the Elite runner Doug Boleyn, 53, was the first patient escorted into the medical tent. Innovation officer at Genesis Health System, Boleyn was treated by colleagues from Genesis, which staffs the medical tent with dozens of volunteer doctors, nurses, aids and others. He was treated and released. 

The hot, hazy and muggy conditions, though, didn’t slow former Olympian Leonard Korir, 34, of Colorado Springs, Colo., who won his third Quad-City Times Bix 7 with a time of 32 minutes, 48 seconds, edging 25-year-old Frank Lara, of Boulder, Colo. Forty-one-year-old fellow Olympian Edna Kiplagat of Kenya won the women’s division.

“To win it three times, I’m so grateful,” said Korir, who credited his experience and training for his third top finish at the Bix 7.

As runners slogged through the heat and crowds on Kirkwood Boulevard, a gray tarp, continuously sprayed with a hose, offered brief refreshment for those brave enough to jump on.

Watching over the scene, resting on a lawn chair with Happy Birthday balloons tied to the back, was a large photo Sean Troncao's mother smiling.

he loved the Bix, Trancao said. It was one of her favorite days of the year. This year the Bix fell on her birthday weekend, so the family chose to celebrate at the Bix and bring her back to the event she loved so much.

"It just felt fitting to make sure she could join us," Trancao said.

Tom and Linda Hughes arrived on McClellan Boulevard at 6:15 a.m. Saturday to reserve their usual spot for their large family to watch the road race, and to promote organ donation through the Iowa Donor Network.

The group wore matching T-shirts featuring a photo of Tom's sister, the late Mary Ellen Smith. Smith used to run the Bix every year and was killed several years ago in a pedestrian-truck crash. Upon her death, all of her organs were donated.

Jerry Spaeth, Carl Anderson and Ken Stark stood on the side of the road enjoying a drink or two and cheering on Stark's wife, who he said has been running the Bix 7 for 22 years.

"I ran it for 15," Anderson said. "Now I stand here and drink beer." 

 

(07/25/2021) Views: 800 ⚡AMP

Woody Kincaid Wins the Men’s 10,000 Meters at the Olympic Track and Field Trials

In the first track final of the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials, Woody Kincaid, Grant Fisher, and Joe Klecker earned spots on Team USA heading for Tokyo.

Kincaid, 28, finished in 27:53.62, by virtue of a blistering final 400 meters, which he covered in 53.47. His Bowerman Track Club teammate Fisher, 24, was less than a second behind in 27:54.29, and Klecker, also 24, of the new On Athletics Club in Boulder, ran 27:54.90.

Ben True, 35, finished in hard-luck fourth place; he couldn’t match the closing kick of the three Olympians and crossed the line in 27:58.88. True, who has never made an Olympic team, will be the alternate.

The race opened up with a fast pace, because most of the field did not have the 27:28 Olympic qualifying standard they need—along with a top-three finish—to earn a trip to the Games. This race was the last chance for them to run the standard.

Conner Mantz of BYU, Robert Brandt of Georgetown, and Frank Lara of Roots Running ran up front for the first two miles, but by halfway, reached in 13:56, the pace slowed, leaving no hope for anyone without the standard to get onto the team. Lopez Lomong dropped out, grabbing his right leg, as did Eric Jenkins, leaving only five men with the standard in the field.

The big crowd in the early miles was distracting for Kincaid. “My confidence was the lowest 10 laps in, that’s when the doubts really crept in,” he said in a press conference after the race. But as the miles clicked off, the pace slowed, and he made his way to the front, he felt better. “With four laps to go, this is what I had practiced in my mind over and over. I’m going to get into third or fourth position, just like practice, and that’s what happened.”

Kincaid said his last lap was the easy part: “It’s just everything you’ve got,” he said. “Getting there, in a position to win, is the hard part.”

He had praise for his teammate, Fisher, whom he runs with every day. “It’s a shame that I like him so much, because I have to race him all the time,” Kincaid said.

Kincaid said he plans to race the 5,000 meters and if he makes the team in that event, he’ll do both the 10,000 meters and 5,000 meters at the Games.

Fisher was soaking in the moment. “I’ve dreamed about this moment, but even now it doesn’t feel real,” he said in the post-race press conference. “I don’t even know how to describe it, but I’m just so happy.”

Klecker, the third-place finisher, had his collegiate career at the University of Colorado shortened by the pandemic. “This means a lot,” he said. “I mean I had my NCAA career cut short. I never won an NCAA title, but making an Olympic team makes up for that.”

He is the son of Janis Klecker, a 1992 Olympian in the marathon for the U.S. Her advice? Candy. “She told me that the night before she made an Olympic team, she ate a Snickers bar, and I followed that to a tee and it worked out,” Klecker said.

True said he was turning his attention to the 5,000 meters later in the meet, but he has plenty of other things to look forward to. His wife is expecting their first child on July 15, and he’ll make his marathon debut this fall.

Galen Rupp, who already is representing the U.S. in the marathon, finished sixth in 27:59.43.

It is the first Olympics for Kincaid, Fisher, and Klecker. The event represents a changing of the guard—the top three are a complete turnover from the 2016 squad, when Rupp, Shadrack Kipchirchir, and Leonard Korir were the Americans who went to Rio in the event.

(06/19/2021) Views: 729 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World

Paul Chelimo is chasing the American indoor 5,000m record this Thursday

If the Olympic silver medalist Paul Chelimo accomplishes his goal, he stands to be the first American man to run under 13 minutes in the indoor 5,000m.

The track meet is being staged by the American Distance Project with strict COVID-19 mitigation protocols, which means there will be no spectators, coaches or competitors outside the American Distance Project’s training group bubble.

The race is being held with the goal of chasing the Olympic and U.S. Olympic Trials qualifying time, as well as Galen Rupp’s seven-year-old indoor record of 13:01.26.

According to a press release on LetsRun.com, the meet will consist of just a 5,000m and a 10,000m race for both men and women, and will be held on Virginia’s new 200-metre hydraulically banked indoor track.

Athletes will also be using the Light Speed Pacing System, which is a wireless LED pacing that assists runners with setting target paces. Other athletes in the impressive field include Leonard Korir (13:15.45), and NCAA Champions Lawi Lalang (13:00.95 outdoor) and Anthony Rotich (13:31.95), among others.

Chelimo is currently ranked sixth in the world in the men’s outdoor 5,000m and owns a PB of 12:57.55, which he set in 2018. Should he achieve his goal of breaking Rupp’s indoor 5,000m American record, that will put him in the top 10 in the world at the indoor event, along with world record-holder Kenenisa Bekele (who ran 12:49.6 in 2004), Haile Gebrselassie (12:50.38 from 1999) and four other men who have run under 13 minutes in the indoor 5,000m.

In order to run under 13 minutes, Chelimo’s pace will have to be less than 2:36 per kilometre, or 31 seconds per lap of the indoor track. With that in mind, the American record is certainly a lofty goal, but Chelimo must be in good shape if he’s planning on going after it.

In a short season that has been packed with incredible performances, this would be yet another record to add to the books, and the eyes of the track world will certainly be watching on Thursday to see if Chelimo gets the job done.

(03/03/2021) Views: 728 ⚡AMP
by Brittany Hambleton

Asics The New Title Sponsor of Falmouth Road Race

ASICS has committed to a multi-year title sponsorship of the Falmouth Road Race, one of America's most iconic summer running events. The 7-mile road race, held each August on a coastal route from Woods Hole to Falmouth Heights on Cape Cod, had New Balance as its title sponsor from 2011 through 2019. The event was not held as an in-person road race in 2020 due to the pandemic.

"This partnership represents so much more than a sponsorship," explained ASICS Fitness Apps' general manager Alex Vander Hoeven through a statement. "It is a true example of how a world class event such as the Falmouth Road Race can collaborate with ASICS's global suite of products and digital services. We look forward to being on the course come race day and are honored to be part of the greater Falmouth Road Race community."

The Falmouth Road Race was founded in 1973 by the late Tommy Leonard, a bartender at the old Eliot Lounge in Boston. About 100 runners started that year in front of the Captain Kidd restaurant in Woods Hole and finished at old the Brothers 4 club in Falmouth Heights adjacent to Falmouth Heights Beach. Organizers use the same course today.

Some of the greatest distance runners in history have won the Falmouth Road Race including Khalid Khannouchi, Catherine Ndereba, Lynn Jennings, Benson Masya, Joan Samuelson, Bill Rodgers, Frank Shorter, and Grete Waitz. The 2019 champions were Leonard Korir of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Sharon Lokedi of Kenya. The 2019 race had 11,534 finishers.

"Our partnership is new, but we have long played host to ASICS athletes who have added much to our events," added Scott Ghelfi, president of the Falmouth Road Race, Inc., board of directors. "We look forward to having ASICS as a title partner that shares our commitment to health, wellness, and giving back to our community."

The 2021 ASICS Falmouth Road Race is scheduled for Sunday, August 15, pending approval from the Town of Falmouth.

(01/15/2021) Views: 1,250 ⚡AMP
by David Monti

Rupp and Tuliamuk will be running the marathon at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Galen Rupp and Aliphine Tuliamuk booked their spots to the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games after churning out impressive victories at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials Marathon in Atlanta on Saturday (29).

Contested in chilly and windy conditions on a challenging undulating course, the goal was straightforward: finish in the top-three and an Olympic berth would be yours.

Rupp, who won the 2016 trials race in his debut over the distance and then went on to take Olympic bronze in Rio, used that experience to his advantage.

The Portland, Oregon, native broke from early leader Brian Shrader in the 16th mile, with Augustus Maiyo, Atlanta Track Club member Matt McDonald and Abdi Abdirahman in tow. That leader's group remained intact until mile 20 where Rupp put in a surge that created a three second cushion on Maiyo and McDonald, with Abdirahman another four seconds back.

Soon thereafter, the battle for the win was over as Rupp surged away, first to a 17 second lead after 21 miles, a lead he extended to 29 a mile later. He was a solitary figure when he crossed the line in 2:09:20, forced to wait nearly a minute to see who'd be joining him in Tokyo.

Jacob Riley, running sixth and 11 seconds behind the chase group at mile 23, fought his way into contention over the next two miles to eventually finish second in 2:10:02. Abdirahman held off Leonard Korir to finish third in 2:10:03 and punch his ticket for a fifth Olympic appearance at age 43.

"It's incredible. I feel relief almost more than anything," said Rupp, who has raced just twice since his fifth place finish at the Chicago Marathon in October 2018. Sidelined by a major foot injury, he returned to action in Chicago last October but didn't finish. "It's been a long year and a half.

Tuliamuk wins the waiting game. In contrast, 11 women were in contention for win when they reached the half in 1:14:38 before the pack began to string out by mile 16. There, Kellyn Taylor, debutante Molly Seidel and Tuliamuk formed the leading triumvirate, with Laura Thweatt, Des Linden and Sally Kipyego running another second back.

That pack remained until the 21st mile when Tuliamuk and Seidel decided to take command. Running together, they built a seven second lead over Kipyego a mile later, and extended it to 22 seconds by mile 23. Tuliamuk then broke away in the 25th mile to finish unchallenged in 2:27:23, seven seconds ahead of Seidel.

Kipyego, who won Olympic 10,000m silver for her native Kenya in 2012 and becames a US citizen last year, took the third spot in 2:28:52, 11 seconds ahead of one of the pre-race favourites, Des Linden.

"It was amazing," said Tuliamuk, a native of Kenya, who became a US citizen in 2016. "When we broke away, I kept saying 'Molly, let's go'. I knew it wouldn't happen by itself."

Seidel, who qualified for the trials by virtue of a 1:10:27 win at the Rock ’n’ Roll San Antonio Half Marathon in December, suffered from eating disorders and injury during and since her successful college career at Notre Dame where she took NCAA titles in cross country and indoors and outdoors on the track. She wasn't an unknown in Atlanta but was considered a long shot.

"I didn't think I was going to be here," she said. "I'm still in shock right now."

(02/29/2020) Views: 1,312 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

Galen Rupp and Jared Ward, who placed first and third at the 2016 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon lead the way Saturday, headlining a deep and talented men’s field that brings together the best of the best

The U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon are the second stop on the 2020 USATF Running Circuit. The top three finishers Saturday will represent the United States as the Olympic Games in Tokyo this summer. Fans can tune-in for the live broadcast beginning at 12:00pm ET on NBC or NBC Sports Gold, with the men’s race beginning at 12:08pm ET and the women’s race starting at 12:20pm ET. 

While Rupp had to drop out of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in October, he still enters Saturday’s race as the prohibitive favorite. Rupp ran the top qualifying mark at the Prague Marathon in 2018, finishing in 2:06:07, while earning fifth at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon that fall in 2:06:21. In addition to earning bronze in the marathon at the Olympic Games in Rio, finishing second at the Boston Marathon in 2017 and winning in Chicago in 2017, Rupp has unmatched big-race experience against the field.

The Portland-based runner recently ran a tune-up half marathon in Arizona, finishing in 1:01:19, proving he’s in excellent shape. Not to be outdone, Ward also has some impressive finishes to his name after finishing third in Los Angeles four years ago.

The Utah-based standout placed sixth at the Olympic Games in Rio and has consistently shown his ability to finish well up the results at major events. 

Ward ran to an eighth-place effort at the Boston Marathon last spring, finishing in 2:09:25, while earning top American status at the TCS New York City Marathon in November with a sixth-place effort. Recently running 1:01:36 at the Aramco Houston Half Marathon and finishing as the top American gives Ward plenty of momentum heading into Atlanta. On paper, Leonard Korir is the next top challenger.

While Korir has only run one marathon, it was a great performance. At the Amsterdam Marathon last fall, Korir ran the second fastest qualifying mark of Saturday’s field, placing 11th overall in 2:07:56, making him the top American performer over the distance in 2019. Along with his success on the USATF Running Circuit, as well as on the track, Korir certainly has the ability to push for the win. Next up is Scott Fauble.

The HOKA ONE ONE Northern Arizona Elite star has proven himself time and time again the past two years, quickly rising the ranks of American marathoning. Fauble placed seventh at the TCS New York City Marathon in 2018, finishing only four seconds behind Ward, while placing as the top American at the Boston Marathon in 2019 in 2:09:08, while beating Ward. 

The trio of Jacob Riley, Jerrell Mock and Parker Stinson are also prime to put themselves in contention over the final miles, pushing for a spot on the Olympic team. The trio finished ninth, tenth and eleventh at the 2019 Bank of America Chicago Marathon. Riley has the most experience of the group and his 2:10:53 effort in Chicago rank him as one of the top five fastest in the field Saturday.

Two other notable top contenders are Elkanah Kibet and Shadrack Biwott. Kibet has quietly become one of America’s best marathoners, having placed 11th at the Boston Marathon in 2019 and eighth at the 2018 Boston Marathon. Owning a personal best of 2:11:51, he ranks well in Saturday’s field.

The trio of Matt Llano, Andrew Bumbalough and Chris Derrick are also looking to make an Olympic-sized result Saturday. Bumbalough enters with a 2:10:56 best coming at the 2019 Bank of America Chicago Marathon.

Another trio of incredibly experienced veterans are also entered and will be looking to make one more push for an Olympic berth. Bernard Lagat, Abdi Abdirahman and Dathan Ritzenhein are all American distance running legends. Each has qualified for at least three Olympics and represented the United States extremely well on the world stage.

(02/26/2020) Views: 1,349 ⚡AMP
by Scott Bush

So what US marathoners are going to come out on top at next weekend’s Olympic Trials

The three Olympic women’s berths from next Saturday’s US marathon trials in Atlanta look to be up for grabs among at least five challengers. Besides Desiree Linden, who placed seventh in Rio, there are Jordan Hasay, who was third in Boston last year, Emily Sisson, who was sixth in London in her 26-mile debut, Molly Huddle, a two-time track Olympian, and Sara Hall.

Amy Cragg, who placed ninth in Rio and would have been a contender, has been battling Epstein-Barr virus and withdrew this week.

Linden, the former Boston Marathon victor who’s bidding to make her third team, already has committed to competing here in April. If she qualifies for the Games, she’ll be running three marathons in just over five months.

On the men’s side, Galen Rupp, who won bronze in 2016, is the decided favorite, with Jared Ward (sixth in Rio), Leonard Korir, and Scott Fauble, last year’s top domestic finisher in Boston, also in the mix.

The Atlanta loop course, which will finish in Centennial Olympic Park, is a hilly challenge and will be more so if the midday temperature is in the 70s, as it often is on that date. That’s still cooler than it’s likely to be in Sapporo (average temperature 78), the former Winter Games site where the races were moved to avoid Tokyo’s sauna (87).

(02/23/2020) Views: 1,893 ⚡AMP

A look at who's got a shot at making the American Olympic marathon squad

The U.S. Olympic Trials are less than three weeks away. The fields are finalized, the tapers are starting soon and runners and fans are anticipating one of the most exciting trials yet.

Here’s a look at which runners we think are most likely to place in the top three and be named to the U.S. Olympic squad after the February 29 race in Atlanta.

Women’s field.- The favorites to make this Olympic team are Sara Hall (Asics), Des Linden (Brooks), Molly Huddle (Saucony) and Emily Sisson (New Balance). Hall has been extremely consistent over the past year, running personal bests in both the marathon and the half (a 2:22:16 in Berlin and a 1:08 in Houston just a few weeks ago). Linden is a gamer and someone who shows up no matter the conditions. She’s also an Olympic marathon veteran.

Huddle and Sisson are training partners who have helped each other improve over the marathon distance. Huddle has been a staple on the American distance scene for years (she’s a multi-time American record holder) and Sisson is the rising star who has flourished alongside Huddle. The pair own 2:23:08 (Sisson) and 2:26:33 (Huddle) marathon personal bests and know how to show up on race day. But the knock on Sisson is that she’s only run one (albeit, fantastic) marathon, and inexperience could be her downfall.

Our best bet for the top three, in order, is: Hall, Huddle, Linden.

The dark horses.-  Jordan Hasay (Nike) and Amy Cragg (Nike) are the dark horses. We just haven’t seen enough to know where these two runners are at. Hasay’s most recent result is a DNF from the Chicago Marathon. Admittedly, her training group had just folded and her former coach was charged with doping infractions, so her racing conditions weren’t ideal. But Hasay hasn’t even gotten on a start line since then.

As for Cragg, she’s the 2017 World Championship medallist and 2016 Olympian over the distance. Cragg’s results are few and far between over the past two years, but she put it all together at the Tokyo Marathon in 2018 to run a 2:21:42–one of the fastest American times in history. Both Hasay and Cragg boast the best personal bests of the bunch, but with no indication of fitness, it’s impossible to predict where they’ll end up in 20 days’ time.

Men’s field.- The favorites in the men’s race are Galen Rupp (Nike), Leonard Korir (Nike), Scott Fauble (Hoka) and Jared Ward (Saucony). Rupp was almost a dark horse, due to his poor resume from the past year, but on Saturday he clocked a 1:01:19 in a tune up half-marathon in Arizona. So he’s in good shape.

As for the other three, all hold personal bests from 2019 around the same time. Korir’s is 2:07:56 from Amsterdam and Fauble and Ward’s are both from Boston 2019 at 2:09:09 and 2:09:25. Among these three it’s really a toss-up, based on past performances, as to who makes the team.

Our best bet for the top three, in order, is: Rupp, Ward, Korir.

The dark horses.- The dark horses in this event are the masters men: Bernard Lagat (Nike) (45) and Abdi Abdirahman (Nike) (42).  Like in women’s marathoning, the men are also proving that age is just a number on the race course. Lagat and Abdirahman have both recently clocked 2:11 and 2:12 marathons and are in the conversation for the team if they have a good day in Atlanta.

(02/11/2020) Views: 1,693 ⚡AMP
by Madeleine Kelly

Leonard Korir and Sara Hall defend their national titles at the Faxon Law New Haven 20K

A few weeks ago, Leonard Korir became the first American man in three decades to win the Falmouth Road Race.

He’s still on a roll – on Monday, Korir pulled away after the third mile at the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race to win his third 20K USATF championship on a cooler than usual Labor Day in 59:06.

Korir, 32, of Colorado Springs won the race in 2016 and 2018 and was edged by Galen Rupp, an Olympic bronze and silver medalist, in 2017.

“I’m feeling very, very good,” Korir said. “I had a good race in Falmouth. That gave me motivation that my fitness is good, so I said, ‘Let me go again to this race and maybe push myself to know if I’m consistent.’”

Sara Hall of Flagstaff, Ariz., defended her women’s title, winning the 12.4-mile race in 1:06:47.

“It was so fun to be out here again,” said Hall, 36. “This race is really tough. Last year, I couldn’t even run marathon pace. It’s really encouraging to be able to run a good amount faster. I have my sister and her kids out there cheering, they live right on the course. That gave me a big boost.”

It wasn’t as humid as it usually is for the day of the annual race, with temperatures in the low 70s.

“Compared to last year, today was better,” Korir said. “It was just windy.”

Moath Alkhawaldeh of Amman, Jordan won the accompanying half-marathon (1:08:48) and Myriam Coulibaly of New York City was the women’s winner (1:31:33). Glastonbury’s Matthew Farrell won the 5K in 15:07 and Emily Stark of New Haven was the women’s winner (18:03).

Everett Hackett of Hartford was the top state finisher in the 20K (14th, 1:01:45) and Annmarie Tuxbury of New Hartford was the top female finisher (12th, 1:11:15).

Luke Puskedra, who retired from running competitively in the spring to open a real estate business in Eugene, Oregon but decided to come and run New Haven, and Parker Stinson, the national 25K record holder, led a large pack in the 20K early on but Korir took the lead after the pack went through the third mile in 14:11 and he just kept extending the lead.

“I saw them take off and it was like, ‘All right, I’ll see you guys,’” Puskedra said, laughing, who finished 23rd in 1:03:06.

Korir went through the halfway point in 29:21 and the trailing pack was over 30 seconds behind him but although he had a big lead, he was still not on pace for the race record (57:37 set by Khalid Khannouchi in 1998).

“It’s tough,” Korir said of the record. “You have to have good weather and no wind coming on your face.”

(09/02/2019) Views: 1,888 ⚡AMP
by Lori Riley

Katy and Tyler Jermann got married last summer, they train together and now are set to Run the Faxon Law New Haven 20K

They are on the same running team in Minnesota. They run the same races. They are a little competitive with each other.

“We get a little competitive with our times,” Tyler said.

Tyler gives Katy a 35-second-per-mile handicap.

“If it’s anything under a half-marathon, she wins, usually,” he said. “Anything longer, I win.

“We’ve been doing it for a year or two. Katy had a big injury two years ago but she’s on the comeback. We had to adjust the conversion. It started off as a minute [per mile] but now it’s not fair anymore.”

So Katy, 27, may have the edge at Monday’s Faxon Law New Haven Road Race, which is the 20K USATF national championship (8:30 a.m. start, New Haven Green).

“I’m usually stronger at the marathon distance,” said Tyler, 27, who won the 50K national championship in 2017. “20K is a bit out of my wheelhouse.”

Both are training for the New York City Marathon in November and both have qualified for the Olympic Marathon Trials Feb. 29 in Atlanta.

Katy qualified in her marathon debut in Houston in January, running a negative split (78 minutes the first half and 75 the second) to go under the “A” standard (2:37) for the trials, finishing in 2:33:41. It turned out to be a great day for the Jermanns as Tyler also ran under the men’s “A” standard (2:15) with a personal best of 2:13:29. Both finished ninth in their respective races.

“It was great,” Katy said. “I loved it. I was very conservative. I wanted to make sure I could walk away from the marathon knowing that I loved it and wanted to do more and felt confident about the distance.”

It was Tyler’s 13th marathon and his fifth attempt at trying to get the “A” standard.

The two met while running at Iowa State, where Katy was a Big 12 champion in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters, but they didn’t really become friendly until after graduation. They reconnected at a training camp in Flagstaff, Ariz., started dating in January of 2017 and were married last summer.

They live outside of Minneapolis and train with Team USA Minnesota.

“We have the same running schedules and the same workouts,” Katy said. “We can do our warmup together with the team. Then he goes and does his run and I do mine.

“It’s neat to be able to share our stories. If I was tired and he was also, it’s nice to have that camaraderie – like it’s normal to feel tired today. It’s nice to go through that together.”

Tyler’s half-marathon personal best is 1:03:31; Katy’s is 1:10:27. She hopes to be in the top three at New Haven. Last year’s winner Sara Hall is the favorite in the women’s field, while two-time men’s winner Leonard Korir is the favorite to win the men’s title. Korir became the first American since 1988 to win the Falmouth Road Race earlier this month.

(08/31/2019) Views: 1,796 ⚡AMP
by Lori Riley

Leonard Korir becomes first American man to win the Falmouth Road Race since 1988

History was made this morning when Leonard Korir became the first American since 1988 to win the men’s division of the Falmouth Road Race. It was an exciting end to the 47th annual race that saw plenty of fog and muggy temperatures.

Four-time winner Stephen Sambu came in second and Edward Cheserek placed third.

In previous races at the event, Korir finished second in 2016 and 2017 and third last year and 2015.

Leonard Korir pulled ahead of four-time champion Stephen Sambu with less than two miles to go.

Korir, of Colorado Springs, Colorado, finished second behind Sambu, of Kenya, in 2017. This year, Korir dominated the end of race and completed the 7-mile course in 32 minutes, 11 seconds.

Sambu finished second in 32:29, while Kenya's Edward Cheserek, a former 17-time NCAA champion with Oregon, was third in 32:30.

In the women’s elite division, Sharon Lokedi, a recent Kansas graduate from Kenya, crossed the finish line first and America’s Sarah Hall came in second.  Sharon, the 2018 NCAA champion at 10,000 meters clocked 36:29, holding off American Sarah Hall (36:34). Kenya's Margaret Wangari, the 2012 Falmouth champion, was third (36:43).

(08/18/2019) Views: 1,884 ⚡AMP

Kenyan Stephen Sambu will be looking for his fifth Falmouth Road Race title this Sunday

After coming up a little short in his bid to become the first person to ever win five Falmouth Road Race titles after claiming four in a row from 2014 to 2017, Kenyan Stephen Sambu aims to make history once again on Sunday, August 18, in the 47th running of the Falmouth Road Race.

Sambu fell shy of the feat when Canadian Ben Flanagan shocked the field last year to become the first North American to win the race in 30 years. Sambu faded to a fourth place finish in the 2018 race.

With Flanagan out of action with an injury, Sambu is considered the favorite, along with his friend Leonard Korir, of the United States, to take the crown. Sambu and Korir battled in one of the most memorable finishes in race history in 2017, with Sambu edging his buddy down the final hill in the Falmouth Heights to take the crown.

Americans Sara Hall and Des Linden will return for the 47th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race to highlight the women's field.

Sambu won the New Balance Falmouth Road Race every year from 2014-2017, becoming the first four-time winner of the men’s open division in race history. The runner-up in two of those victories was Korir, a 2016 Olympian at 10,000 meters, who will represent the US this fall at the IAAF World Championships. In 2017, Korir nearly denied Sambu his place in the history books in a fight to the finish that saw both athletes awarded the same time.

Sambu and Korir will be challenged by a tough international field that includes Thomas Ayeko of Uganda, who finished seventh in the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships; David Bett of Kenya, who won the B.A.A. 10K in June; and Silas Kipruto of Kenya, winner of the 2019 Cooper River Bridge Run.

Massachusetts native Colin Bennie, who was the top American at the AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4, and Scott Fauble, a top contender to make Team USA at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials in February and the Falmouth runner-up last year, should be in the hunt.

(08/14/2019) Views: 1,803 ⚡AMP
by Rich Maclone

Stephen Sambu of Kenya and Leonard Korir of the U.S., Sara Hall and Des Linden will return for the 47th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race

Stephen Sambu of Kenya and Leonard Korir of the U.S., who together staged an epic battle to the finish line in 2017, and Americans Sara Hall and Des Linden will return for the 47th running of the New Balance Falmouth Road Race, organizers announced today.

The fields for the Wheelchair Division presented by Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Cape Cod and the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile will be announced next week.

Sambu won the New Balance Falmouth Road Race every year from 2014-2017, becoming the first four-time winner of the men’s open division in race history. The runner-up in two of those victories was Korir, a 2016 Olympian at 10,000 meters who will represent the U.S. this fall at the IAAF World Championships. In 2017, Korir nearly denied Sambu his place in the history books in a fight to the finish that saw both athletes awarded the same time.

Sambu and Korir will be challenged by a tough international field that includes Thomas Ayeko of Uganda, who finished seventh in the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships; David Bett of Kenya, who won the B.A.A. 10K in June; and Silas Kipruto of Kenya, winner of the 2019 Cooper River Bridge Run. Massachusetts native Colin Bennie, who was the top American at the AJC Peachtree Road Race on July 4, and Scott Fauble, a top contender to make Team USA at the 2020 Olympic Marathon Trials in February and runner-up here last year to Canadian Ben Flanagan, should be in the hunt.

Flanagan’s season has been cut short by injury, but he will return to Falmouth to speak on a Past Champions panel at the Health & Fitness Expo, hand out gift bags at bib pickup and run with a group of local youth.

In the women’s open division, Hall – who finished second here in 2015 – comes in as the reigning USA 10K champion, and in her long career has won U.S. titles at distances ranging from the mile to the marathon. Fellow American Des Linden, a two-time OIympian and the 2018 Boston Marathon champion, will make her Falmouth competitive debut after running with the pack here last year in celebration of her Boston victory.

“It’s beautiful,” said Linden of the course after her 2018 run. “It helps you forget it’s really hard. Some really impressive things have been done on this course. It’s cool to cover it, and it would be really fun to race it.”

They will face a deep women’s field, highlighted by a trio of Kenyans: 2012 New Balance Falmouth Road Race Champion Margaret Wangari, 2018 NCAA 10,000-meter champion Sharon Lokedi and Iveen Chepkemoi, who recently finished second in the Boilermaker 15K in Utica, N.Y.  Also challenging will be two athletes from Great Britain: Lily Partridge, the 2018 national marathon champion, andTish Jones, who will compete in the marathon at the 2019 World Championships. 

Allie Kieffer, who finished fifth in the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon; Melissa Dock, the top American woman here last year who competed for Team USA at the 2019 Bolder Boulder;Molly Seidel, the 2015 NCAA 10,000-meter champion; and Nell Rojas, winner of the 2019 Grandma’s Marathon and daughter of Ric Rojas, who competed for Harvard and at one time held the 15K world record, round out a solid American lineup.

Three-time winner Caroline Chepkoech of Kenya will not return to defend her title.

First prize in the men’s and women’s open division is $10,000, part of a total $126,000 prize purse for Race Week events, which include the Aetna Falmouth Elite Mile the evening before the 7-miler. In addition, the men’s and women’s winners will seek to prevail in “The Countdown.”

A beat-the-clock handicap race, “The Countdown” features a finish-line clock that starts when the first woman breaks the tape, counting down the number of minutes and seconds the winning man has to beat, according to a pre-determined formula. If the clock runs out before he crosses the line, the victorious woman wins a $5,000 bonus; if it doesn’t, the winning man takes home the money. The time to beat this year is 3 minutes and 35 seconds.

(08/08/2019) Views: 1,936 ⚡AMP

Everything you need to know about the 2019 Bix 7 men's field

Last year, for the first time ever, a male runner from Ethiopia won the Quad-City Times Bix 7, overcoming the legion of Kenyan runners who always populate the field.

This year it might be time for a break-through from another African nation: Tanzania.

Gabriel Geay, a 22-year-old runner from the country directly to the south of Kenya, must be regarded as one of the favorites to prevail in the annual 7-mile jaunt through the streets of Davenport.

He already has had a phenomenal year on the U.S. road racing scene, winning the Lilac Bloomsday 12k and Bay to Breakers 12k in May and crossing the finish line first in the Utica Boilermaker 15k little more than a week ago. He also had top-five finishes in perhaps the two biggest 10ks around: The Peachtree Road Race and Bolder Boulder.

Geay first came to U.S. as a 19-year-old in 2016 attempting to run Olympic qualifying times for 10,000 meters and 5,000 meters. He narrowly missed in both but decided to stick around and run a few road races, and claimed his first big victory at Peachtree. He came back the following year to win Bolder Boulder and Lilac Bloomsday.

With the withdrawal of three-time Bix 7 champion Silas Kipruto from the field, there now is only one runner entered in the men’s field who has competed in the Davenport race as an elite invitee.

Kenya’s Kenneth Kosgei placed 12th in his only visit here a year ago.

Kipruto was seeking to break the Bix 7 record for most top-five finishes by a men’s runner — he has done it six times — but he informed race officials last week that he would not run because of a lack of fitness.

The Bix 7 men’s championship has been won seven times by a runner named Korir.

John Korir won a record five times (in 1998, 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2004) and Leonard Korir did it twice (2013 and 2015).

This year’s race will include Kenya’s Dominic Korir. Korir (no relation to the previous Bix champs), who may be better suited to the hilly course than almost anyone.

Dominic Korir trains at high altitude in Colorado Springs and in April he won the Horsetooth Half-marathon, a race that begins with a grueling 1.8-mile climb up something called Monster Mountain.

It sounds even more imposing than the Brady Street Hill.

Jarius Birech will be among the most experienced Kenyans in this year’s Bix 7 field.

He’s just not that experienced in races in which he isn’t required to leap over hurdles and bound across small pools of water. Birech, 26, was the top 3,000-meter steeplechase runner in the world in 2014, winning the African championships and taking the silver medal in the Commonwealth Games that year. He twice has run the steeplechase under eight minutes, a feat that’s only been accomplished 38 times in history.

But he just now is starting to become more involved in events other than the steeplechase.

He has shown promise, however. Birech won a major cross country race in Italy earlier this year and also won the Crescent City Classic 10k on a very flat course in New Orleans.

(07/26/2019) Views: 1,707 ⚡AMP

Leonard Korir and Stephanie Bruce won the USATF Half Marathon titles in Pittsburgh

On a cool, damp Sunday morning in the City of Champions, Leonard Korir, 32, from Colorado Springs, CO and Stephanie Bruce, 35, from Flagstaff, AZ won the USATF Half Marathon titles, clocking 1 hour, one minute, 53 seconds and 1:10:44, respectively. Against top U.S. fields, Korir earned his 9th national title and second USATF Half Marathon title, and Bruce earned her second national title.

In the men’s 32nd national half marathon championship, Stanley Kebenei, Korir and Andrew Colley took an early lead with fast mile splits of 4:41 and 4:42 at Miles 3 and 4. At nine miles, Korir made his move and took a lead, followed slightly behind by Kebenei.

Korir kept a 4:45 minute per mile pace until the end, breaking the tape four seconds ahead of Kebenei at 1:01:53 and securing the 10th fastest half marathon championship performance of all time. Colley finished in third at 1:03:11.

“I like how Stanley pushed the pace early on and kept the race honest,” said Korir, a 2016 U.S Olympian. “I knew I had a good push at the end. We are teammates, so I was glad to help him get a personal best.”  

In the women’s 23rd national half marathon championship, the leading pack of six runners included Sara Hall, Bruce, Katy Jermann, Bethany Sachtleben, Samantha Palmer and Emma Bates.

At mile 5, Bruce, Hall and Bates pushed the pace and broke from the pack. At Mile 12, Bruce made her move and with her final push was able to finish in 1:10:44, the 9th fastest female half marathon championship performance of all time. Hall finished in second with a time of 1:11:04, and Bates took third with a time of 1:11:13.

“Running with Sara and Emma today, we made it like a boxing match,” Bruce said. “Everyone took turns at the lead, and we were pushing each other.”

(05/06/2019) Views: 1,804 ⚡AMP

Shadrack Kipchirir, won the 42nd Gate River Run Clocking 43:41, edging Stanley Kebenei and two-time defending Gate champion Leonard Korir for his first win in the event

The redemption portion of the event was delivered by Kipchirchir, who had paid his dues in the run. He finished second twice, 2016 and ’18, beaten by the two men who he edged Saturday. 

"I mean those guys … I was sick of them," Kipchirchir said. "Three years ago. Kebenei beat me by a microsecond. Then two years ago, Lenny outkicked by microseconds. Today I wanted to come and knock them in their head. That was my main aim."

Kebenei won the 2016 run in 44:37, just 2 seconds in front of Kipchirchir. Korir (43:23) won the 2018 Gate by 1 second over Kipchirchir. Korir was trying to become just the fifth male runner to win the event three consecutive years.

Six elite runners were within two seconds of each other with a mile to go on the Hart Bridge, Martin Hehir, Frankline Tonui, Kipchirchir, Kebenei and Korir.

Six elite runners were within two seconds of each other with a mile to go on the Hart Bridge, Martin Hehir, Frankline Tonui, Kipchirchir, Kebenei and Korir.

(03/09/2019) Views: 1,909 ⚡AMP

Olympian Leonard Korir is aiming to become only the fourth man to win the Gate River Run three years in a row

The two-time defending champion headlines the elite men’s field entering Saturday’s 42nd annual Gate River Run through downtown Jacksonville, the national 15-kilometer championship for USA Track and Field.

With one more victory, the 32-year-old Leonard Korir can join a select club as winners of three straight men’s titles. Only Todd Williams (1994-96), Meb Keflezighi (2001-04) and Ben True (2013-15) have previously accomplished the feat.

Race director Doug Alred said he’s hoping to see a tight contest, and he feels the odds this year are good.

“It’s not that exciting when one person just runs away with it,” he said. “If the leaders can just stay together onto the Hart Bridge, that would be great.”

So far, that’s been the case in Korir’s past two victories. His 2017 win was the event’s closest finish ever, edging Shadrack Kipchirchir to the finish line by a fraction of a second.

Despite his record in Jacksonville and his international achievements at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, there’s reason to believe that Korir is far from a lock to repeat Saturday.

Unlike 2017 and 2018, he did not win the USATF cross country championships, held this time in Tallahassee on Feb. 2. Instead, he took third, while Kipchirchir beat him out by five seconds.

In addition to Kipchirchir, 2016 champion Stanley Kebenei returns, coming off a fifth-place finish in the cross country finals.

(03/08/2019) Views: 2,092 ⚡AMP

Eric Kiptanui, Leonard Korir and Zane Robertson headline the Delhi Half Marathon

Eric Kiptanui will be the star attraction at the 14th edition of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon (ADHM) to be held on October 21. Kiptanui, from Kenya, has already notched up two impressive half marathon victories this year — winning the high-quality Lisbon and Berlin races. He will be accompanied on his first trip to India by his training partner Daniel Kipchumba. Two-time Tata Consultancy Services World 10K winner Alex Korio — whose best of 58:51 was set in the 2017 Copenhagen Half Marathon — has been a regular participant in Procam International events in recent years and has run the ADHM twice in the past, last in 2015. Representing Ethiopia will be two men, Leul Gebresilase and Feyisa Lilesa, who are better known as marathon runners but who can still boast of outstanding half-marathon credentials. Adding to the considerable global interest in the race, USA’s Leonard Korir and New Zealand’s Zane Robertson are also in the men’s elite field. (09/22/2018) Views: 1,592 ⚡AMP

Leonard Korir and Sara Hall Winners at Faxon Law New Haven 20K

The last two years, Leonard Korir had churned furiously toward the finish line of the Faxon Law New Haven 20K road race, stride for stride with a fellow competitor. In 2016, he outkicked Sam Chelanga to win the USATF 20K national championship. Last year, he sensed that Galen Rupp might have been tiring due to his marathon training but Rupp had one last lean in him and edged past Korir at the tape. But Korir was injured at the start of the year, and he’s still coming back. He wasn’t particularly confident in his kick. And so there was no finish line drama Monday, at least for the men’s race. Instead, Korir pulled away from Haron Lagat and Kiya Dandena on a long downhill in East Rock Park around Mile 10 and won his second 20K national championship in 1:00:17. Lagat finished second in 1:00:29 and Dandena third (1:00:34). There was a kick finish in the women’s race, though, with Sara Hall outlasting Allie Kieffer in the final straightaway. Hall won in 1:09:04, Kieffer was second (1:09:20) with Emma Bates third (1:09:42). Timothy Grogean of Woodbury won the half-marathon (1:10:59), and Rolanda Bell of Laurelton, N.Y., was the top female (1:23:57). Matthew Farrell of Glastonbury was the 5K winner (15:19), and Jennifer Sober of Jupiter, Fla., was the women’s winner (18:19). It was a hot, humid day, and times were slower.  “Today was so hot,” said Korir, 31, of Colorado Springs. “We were sweating until you can’t sweat anymore.” (09/03/2018) Views: 1,556 ⚡AMP

Strong filed at Labor Day Road Race with notable athletes competing like Sara Hall and Leonard Korir

The 2018 Faxon Law New Haven Road Race, host of the USATF 20K National Championship, boasts a number of the country’s top runners. The event takes place on Labor Day, Sept. 3, on the New Haven Green.

Some of America’s top distance runners will compete for a prize purse of over $40,000. New Haven has hosted the USATF 20K National Championship since 1992. Past Faxon Law New Haven 20K champions Janet Cherobon-Bawcom, Meghan Peyton and Aliphine Tuliamuk head the women’s race field.

Georgia’s Cherobon-Bawcom won the 2011 race and finished 12th in the 10,000 meters at the 2012 Olympics. New Mexico’s Tuliamuk, the 2016 20K champion, will also be competing for the top spot. She now holds nine national road race titles. Peyton (Tualatin, OR.) was the 20K winner in 2013.

She has competed at the 2012 and 2016 USA Olympic Team trials and has been a member of four USA National Teams. Another notable athlete competing on Labor Day is California’s Sara Hall. Hall is a 2017 USATF Marathon champ and placed third at last year’s New Haven 20K.

New York’s Allie Kieffer is also expected to finish near the top. She was sixth in last year’s Faxon Law New Haven 20K and was fifth in last year’s New York City Marathon.

Currently, Colorado’s Leonard Korir is the men’s favorite. He won the 2016 race and lost in a lean to Galen Rupp in last year’s race. Korir competed in Rio Olympics in the 10,000. Korir will be challenged by Colorado’s Sammy Kosgei, Connecticut’s Donn Cabral, North Carolina’s Christo Landry and Massachusett’s Tim Ritchie.

(08/25/2018) Views: 2,197 ⚡AMP

Canada’s Ben Flanagan pulls off the win in a crazy sprint to the finish at the New Balance Falmouth Road Race

It was a crazy sprint to the finish as 23-year-old Ben Flanagan (photo) wins the New Balance Falmouth Road Race this morning.  Scott Fauble (US) was second clocking 32:23, Leonard Korir was next in 32:28.  Stephen Sambu who keeps coming back to defend his men’s title in the 7.1 mile race finished fourth with 32:32.  The lead pack passed 10k at 28:50.  But Ben’s speed gave him the win.  On June 7th the University of Michigan senior won the 10000m at the NCAA Championships clocking 28:34 taking 39 seconds off his PR.  His last 400 meters there being 56.9 seconds.  Last year’s winner Stephen Sambu, from Kenyan who last year became the first man to win Falmouth four times, always sends Snapchat pictures of himself with the ocean backdrop to friends. He also spends some downtime on the beach. But above all, he said the camaraderie with the community, especially host families, keeps him giddy to return each year. “I feel like I’m home,” Sambu said during Friday morning’s media event. “They take you in like they’re your own kids. “I’ll be coming back even if I lose.” When asked about going for five straight wins and another $10,000 first prize, Sambu said he’s feeling some pressure, knowing that it won’t be easy. “Everybody is expecting me to win,” said Sambu.  “I’m ready, I’m feeling good. I don’t give up. I just fight until the end. I can lose, but I don’t lose easily.”  He was close but not close enough this year.  We are sure he will be back.  He just loves it too much!  (08/19/2018) Views: 1,827 ⚡AMP

Kenya’s Stephen Sambu has sights on his fifth Falmouth Road Race Win

The last four years the New Balance Falmouth Road Race has been won by Stephen Sambu. The  30-year-old Kenyan is coming back in quest of a fifth-consecutive victory, organizers anonounced today. Seeking to make some history of her own will be Caroline Chepkoech, who last year became the first woman to defend her Falmouth title since fellow Kenyan Lornah Kiplagat won three straight from 2000-2002. Not only is the 24-year-old Chepkoech hoping to win her third straight, but she is also aiming to break Kiplagat’s 18-year-old course record of 35:02. In the men’s race, Sambu will face a stiff challenge from a pair of U.S. Olympians, Leonard Korir and Lopez Lomong.  Korir, a 2016 Olympian at 10,000 meters and an eight-time U.S. champion on the roads and cross country, was runner-up to Sambu here in both 2016 and 2017; last year, the finish was so close that both men were given the same time. Lomong, a two-time Olympian and one of the “Lost Boys of Sudan,” was the U.S. flagbearer in 2008 and recently won the U.S. 10,000-meter title, becoming the only American man in history to win national titles at both 1500 meters and 10,000 meters on the track. He will be making his Falmouth debut. Among the other top Americans are Haron Lagat, runner-up in the USA 10 km Championships on July 4; Christo Landry, a six-time national champion on the roads; Scott Fauble, fourth at 10,000 meters in the 2016 Olympic Trials; and Martin Hehir, fifth this year at the USA Cross Country Championships and third in the USA 15 km Championships. (08/08/2018) Views: 1,510 ⚡AMP

Belay Tilahun wins the Bix 7, the first time an Ethiopian has won this race

Belay Tilahun of Ethiopia wins the Quad-City Times Bix 7. Tilahun finished second in 2016. Margaret Muriuki of Kenya captured the 2018 women's Quad-City Times Bix 7 on Saturday.  Belay Tilahun pulled away in the final mile to claim the victory, In a winning time of 32:37, Tilahun became the first runner from Ethiopia to win the Bix 7. “I’m very happy,” Tilahun told KWQC after beating NCAA 10K champion Ben Flanagan and 2016 U.S. Olympian Leonard Korir down the final stretch. Kipruto finished fifth and Mekonen crossed the line a few seconds later in sixth-place. Tilahun became the first Ethiopian man ever to win the Bix 7 after several near-misses in the past. Reigning NCAA 10,000-meter champion Ben Flanagan recorded the highest finish ever by a Canadian in the race, crossing the line in second place. Andrew Colley of Blowing Rock, North Carolina, took fourth, the highest an American has placed in an international field at Bix since Meb Keflezighi was third in 2013. It’s the highest a native-born American has finished since Ken Martin won the race in 1991. Colley was one of four Americans in the top 10. It’s the first time that has happened since that same 1991 race. But all of them were mere footnotes to Tilahun, who showed interviewers with hand gestures how he navigated the incessant hills of the course and was able to convey the fact that it helped him to have run Bix once before. Ethiopians have been very close to winning the Bix 7 in the past. Tilahun was second behind three-time winner Silas Kipruto in 2016 and Solomon Deksisa took second the year before that. In one of the strangest episodes in Bix history, Ethiopia’s Maregu Zewdie was leading coming down 4th Street in the 2008 Bix but stopped after crossing under the skywalk at the Davenport RiverCenter, thinking that was the finish line. Kenya’s Edward Muge zoomed past him to win. He had a small lead on Flanagan and the rest of the pack coming down Kirkwood in the fifth mile of the race when he decided to just take control. In what seemed little more than a blink of the eye, he opened about a 7-second margin over Flanagan. Stream TypeLIVE Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% 0:00 Fullscreen   00:00 Mute“I don’t know if surprised is the word but I was impressed,’’ said Flanagan, who just completed his college career at the University of Michigan last month. “I knew coming in here there was a lot of really experienced runners who knew the course well. That was very evident by that move. (07/30/2018) Views: 1,724 ⚡AMP

USATF Half Marathon Championships in Pittsburgh

Some of the nation’s best runners will descend on the City of Champions on Sunday, May 6 for the 2018 USATF Half Marathon Championships. Headlining this year’s field are the defending USATF Running Circuit Champions Leonard Korir and Aliphine Tuliamuk. For the first time, the UPMC Health Plan Pittsburgh Half Marathon, part of the 10th annual DICK’S Sporting Goods Pittsburgh Marathon weekend of events organized by P3R, will host a national road championship race. Korir, 31, a U.S. Olympian in 2016, recently set a half-marathon personal record of 59 minutes, 52 seconds - the third fastest time by an American. The 2017 USATF Half Marathon Champion has had previous success on Pittsburgh roads, winning the EQT Pittsburgh 10 Miler in both 2014 and 2016. (04/05/2018) Views: 1,779 ⚡AMP

Huddle and Korir ran away from the fields at the River Gate Run this morning

In her final race before next month’s Boston Marathon, Molly Huddle put on a dominating display in the women’s race at the USATF 15 km Championships (River Gate Run in Jacksonville Florida) while fellow Olympian Leonard Korir repeated as men’s champion Saturday morning. With the women starting six minutes ahead of the men, with an equalizer bonus on the line, Huddle and fellow frontrunners Jordan Hasay and Molly Seidel shot to the lead, running by themselves well ahead of the rest of the field. With the finish in sight, Huddle raised her arms in victory, crossing the line in 47:50. Running her own Boston Marathon tune-up, Hasay came in second with a mark of 48:40, well ahead of Seidel, who earned third in 49:20. (03/10/2018) Views: 1,706 ⚡AMP

Last year's Gate River Run men's finish was the closet in race history

For the first time since 2014, both reigning champions - Leonard Korir for the men, Jordan Hasay for the women - return to defend their crowns at the Gate River Run Saturday March 10. “People always like to pull for the winners,” race director Doug Alred said. History leans against a Korir-Hasay double repeat, something that’s happened at the Gate River Run only in 1986-87 (Arturo Barrios and Grete Waitz) and 2001-03 (Meb Keflezighi and Deena Drossin). Given Korir’s current form, though, he’s the clear men’s favorite. A 31-year-old U.S. Olympian who was born in Kenya and now runs with the U.S. Army Distance Project, Korir made his First Coast debut a memorable success last year by edging Shadrack Kipchirchir last year in the closest finish in race history. (03/09/2018) Views: 2,028 ⚡AMP

Leonard Korir and Jordan Hasay going after course records at Gate River Run

The 2018 Gate River Run, which also serves as the USA Track and Field 15K National Championship, will be held on Saturday, March 10, in Jacksonville, Florida. The championship will feature $60,000 in prize money with $10,000 awards for the first place male and female finishers. The reigning men’s and women’s champions are returning to defend their titles: Olympian Leonard Korir (43:22), running for the US Army World Class Athlete Program (WCAP) and Jordan Hasay (49:28), representing The Nike Oregon Project. Other elite runners include Molly Huddle, Sam Chelanga and Ryan Vail. The course records to beat are: men’s 42:22 was set in 1995 by Todd Williams, women’s 47:03 set in 2014 by Shalane Flanagan. (03/02/2018) Views: 1,888 ⚡AMP

Korir and Lagat lead USA team for IAAF World Half Championships

National cross-country champion Leonard Korir and 2-time world champion Bernard Lagat will lead the US team at the IAAF Trinidad Alfonso World Half Marathon Championships Valencia. At the end of last year Korir became the second-fastest US man ever for the half marathon when clocking 59:52 in Delhi. Lagat, who has won numerous global medals on the track both indoors and outdoors, recorded a PB of 1:02:00 at the recent Houston Half Marathon to secure his place on the team for Valencia. USA Men's Team: Samuel Chalanga, Diego Estrada, Leonard Korir, Bernard Lagat, Jared Ward. (02/09/2018) Views: 1,446 ⚡AMP
USA Teams

Korir Outsprinted Rupp to win USATF XC Championships

At the USATF Cross Country Championships meet today in Tallahassee, Florida. Leonard Korir out kicked Galen Rupp to win by 1.2 seconds to become the champion for the second year in a row. Korir posted 29:16.6 over the 10k course and Rupp 29:17.8. Rupp had only run one cross country race (in 2011) since winning an NCAA title in 2008. Stanley Kebenel was third in 29:31.4 and Evan Jager fourth in 29:31.5. For the women Emily Infield won in 33:18.7 with Molly Seidel right behind in 33:22.1. Stgephanie Bruce was third 33:34.2. (02/03/2018) Views: 1,477 ⚡AMP

Fast Times For American Men at Houston Half Marathon

America’s Sam Chelanga placed 6th with a 27-second personal best of 60:37 at the Houston Half Marathon Sunday. He’s now #4 on the all-time U.S. list, behind only Ryan Hall, Leonard Korir, and Dathan Ritzenhein. Chelanga’s training partner Haron Lagat made an even bigger breakthrough to finish 10th in 61:01. Running in his first half in 10 years, the 34-year-old Lagat, who was previously best known as a steeplechaser ran 61:01 for 10th, a four-minute PR good for #9 on the all-time U.S. list. (01/14/2018) Views: 1,273 ⚡AMP

Lilesa, descends on Houston Half Marathon

Ethiopia’s Feyisa Lilesa will be targeting a record third triumph on Sunday. The Olympic marathon silver medallist came close to achieving a hat-trick of titles last year, but was just beaten on the line by USA’s Leonard Korir. Korir won’t defend his title, but Lilesa – who set the course record of 59:22 in 2012 – still faces a formidable field which contains five other men with sub-60-minute PBs. (01/12/2018) Views: 1,279 ⚡AMP