Running News Daily

Defending Champions, American Record Holders & Global Stars Highlight 2023 B.A.A. Half Marathon Professional Field

The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) announced today a star-studded professional field for the 2023 B.A.A. Half Marathon presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund. Defending champions Viola Chepngeno, Geoffrey Koech, and Jenna Fesemyer all return, while American half marathon record holder Keira D’Amato will take on the challenging course for the first time on Sunday, November 12. The B.A.A. Half Marathon starts and finishes at Franklin Park and runs along the Emerald Necklace Park System.

“As one of the most competitive half marathons in the country, we’re eager to bring many of the best open, wheelchair, and Para athletes in the world to Boston for November’s B.A.A. Half Marathon presented by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund,” said Jack Fleming, President and CEO of the B.A.A. “Nearly 9,000 athletes will take to the roads, led by some of the fastest and most decorated competitors in event history.”

In 2022, Chepngeno (Kenya), Koech (Kenya), and Fesemyer (USA) won the women’s open, men’s open, and women’s wheelchair divisions, respectively, while Marko Cheseto and Jacky Hunt-Broersma (both USA) persevered through rain to finish atop the podium in the Para Athletics Division. To repeat the feat, all will square off against a field that includes national record holders and global medalists.

Senbere Teferi of Ethiopia, the 2022 B.A.A. 5K champion and three-time world championships medalist, looks to continue her winning ways in Boston. She’ll battle Tokyo Marathon champion Rosemary Wanjiru, 2019 B.A.A. 10K winner Fancy Chamutai, world cross country silver medalist Tsigie Gebreselama, last year’s runner-up Bosena Mulatie, and two-time B.A.A. Half Marathon second place finisher Cynthia Limo.

Four Americans who competed at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest in August will toe the line, including D’Amato, Lindsay Flanagan, Susanna Sullivan, and Natosha Rodgers. D’Amato set the national half marathon record of 1:06:39 at this year’s Gold Coast Half Marathon in Australia, and along with Flanagan and Sullivan made up Team USA at the World Championships Marathon. Rodgers raced the 5,000m and 10,000m on the track in Budapest, finishing 14th in the latter event. Rachel Schneider Smith, a 2021 Olympian at 5,000m for Team USA, will be making her B.A.A. Half Marathon debut.

Ten men with sub-61 minute personal bests will line up for the B.A.A. Half Marathon. Abel Kipchumba owns the fastest lifetime best in the field (58:07), while Shadrack Kimining of Kenya, second fastest in the field, placed fifth in 2022. Mohamed El Aaraby (Morocco), Yemane Haileselassie (Eritrea), Pat Tiernan (Australia), and Amanuel Mesel (Eritrea) bring international expertise. The fastest American men’s entrants are Nadir Yusuf (1:03:23), Kevin Koski (1:03:35) and Ryan Cutter (1:03:54) and sub-2:10 marathoner Ian Butler.

Dedham, Mass.-native Brian Reynolds, who set a world record at last year’s B.A.A. Half Marathon in the T62 (lower-limb impairment) category, returns, as does Marko Cheseto (T62) who ran 1:24:54 in 2022. Jacky Hunt-Broersma, last year’s women’s T62 champion, and Liz Willis, a three-time Boston Marathon T62 winner, will compete as well.

In the wheelchair division, Fesemyer set a course record 59:50 in 2022 to become the first women’s wheelchair athlete ever to break one hour in race history. Fellow 2022 women’s wheelchair podium finishers Yen Hoang (second place) and Michelle Wheeler (third) return as well.

James Senbeta and Hermin Garic, veterans of many B.A.A. events, headline the men’s wheelchair field. Garic was victorious at this year’s B.A.A. 10K.

The B.A.A. Half Marathon course runs along the picturesque Emerald Necklace Park System, past landmarks such as the Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Pond, and Franklin Park Zoo, before finishing at White Stadium in Franklin Park. The B.A.A. Half Marathon is a family-friendly event for athletes and spectators of all ages. Free youth events will be offered on race morning within Franklin Park, including races and medals for all. 

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund has partnered with the B.A.A. Half Marathon since 2003 as the race’s presenting sponsor and exclusive charity team. Through this relationship, Dana-Farber runners have collectively raised more than $8 million to support groundbreaking cancer research, and enabled Dana-Farber scientists and clinicians to positively impact the lives of cancer patients around the world. In advance of the 2023 event, 640 Team Dana-Farber athletes have raised $375,000 to date.

(10/18/2023) Views: 600 ⚡AMP

Kenya’s Hellen Obiri highlights field for Beach to Beacon 10K

Kenya’s Hellen Obiri highlights field for Beach to Beacon 10K on Saturday

Obiri, the 2023 Boston Marathon winner and the only woman to win world championships outdoors, indoors and in cross country, will compete at Beach to Beacon for the first time.

Hellen Obiri of Kenya won the women’s division of the Boston Marathon in April. On Saturday, she’ll compete for the first time in the TD Beach to Beacon 10K in Cape Elizabeth. Charles Krupa/Associated Press

Kenya’s Hellen Obiri, the 2023 Boston Marathon champion, highlights a group of elite runners who will compete Saturday in the TD Beach to Beacon 10K road race in Cape Elizabeth, race officials announced Monday.

Obiri – a two-time Olympic silver medalist and the only woman to win world championships outdoors, indoors and in cross country – will compete at Beach to Beacon for the first time. She’ll be joined by fellow Kenyan and two-time Boston Marathon champion Edna Kiplagat.

The women’s division also will feature Keira D’Amato of Virginia, who set an American marathon record (2 hours, 19 minutes and 12 seconds) last year, and Sanford native Rachel Schneider Smith, who competed for the United States in the 5,000 meters at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and placed fifth at last year’s Beach to Beacon.

A trio of Ethiopians – Addisu Yihune, Amedework Walelegn and Muktar Edris, a two-time world champion – are expected to contend for the men’s title. Top Americans in the field include Utah’s Conner Mantz, a two-time NCAA cross country champion, and Biya Simbassa, who placed third at the 2022 Beach to Beacon.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of Beach to Beacon, founded by Cape Elizabeth native and 1984 Olympic women’s marathon champion Joan Benoit Samuelson.

(08/01/2023) Views: 852 ⚡AMP

Gotytom Gebreslase Wins World Marathon Gold in Championship Record

With a strong downhill surge in the 41st kilometer, Gotytom Gebreslase of Ethiopia won the 2022 world marathon title in 2:18:11. The time set a new championship record; the previous mark of 2:20:57 was held by Paula Radcliffe.

Judith Korir of Kenya, who led Gebreslase by half a step for most of the closing miles, finished second in 2:18:18, and Lonah Salpeter of Israel took the bronze medal in 2:20:18.

Sara Hall was the top American finisher, placing fifth in 2:22:10. Emma Bates placed seventh in a personal best of 2:23:18, and U.S. record-holder Keira D’Amato finished eighth in 2:23:34. D’Amato was added to the team at the beginning of the month after Molly Seidel withdrew because of injury. The three ran together through the middle miles until Hall, ninth at halfway, pulled away and started picking off former members of the lead pack.

Today’s 5-7-8 is the best team performance by a U.S. squad, male or female, since the marathon world championship was first run in 1983. They succeeded thanks to just the right mixture of aggressiveness and patience.

“I went out with the leaders, but then I could tell it was a little too fast,” Hall said. “So fortunately I had talked to Emma and Keira and been like,‘Hey, I’d love to work with you guys. I don’t want to mess up your mojo, but if we’re together somewhere I’d love to work together.’ So thankfully Emma and I found each other.

"I was checking our splits and we were running plenty fast out there, so I didn’t really want to run faster than that,” Hall continued. “It was awesome to get to work with [Emma] for so much of the race.”

Bates, who was the top American at Chicago last October, said, “My coach and I had decided that I go out in 70-minute pace for the first half. Which I had never done before, that’s close to my PR for the half marathon. We knew I could be in 2:20 range, fitness-wise.

“I went out with Sara. We were planning on working together before the race, so it was great the first lap to be with each other and then the second lap. Sara took off the later portion of the second lap. So proud of her today for going after it. She really pulled me along that first bit.

“I’m very happy,” Bates continued. “I always want more, we always want more. But to be top 10 in the world is something really really cool, especially on U.S. soil. And to run a PR doing it, it’s something that I won’t forget.”

Well past 30K, Hall was still acknowledging cheering spectators (including Olympian and fellow Flagstaff resident Rachel Schneider).

“I think this is the most fun I’ve ever had in a marathon,” Hall said. “I wanted to smile as much as I could early on, ’cause you know its gonna turn to a grimace eventually. But I was even smiling that last lap. I’m really thankful for everyone that turned out, ’cause I knew that this would be so special. I don’t know if I’ll ever get the opportunity to run a championship like this in the U.S. again.”

How the Race Was Won

Within the opening kilometer, it was obvious that the script for yesterday’s men’s marathon—a huge lead pack running cautiously for the first half—would be ignored. Headed by three Kenyans and three Ethiopians, the leaders took off at 2:17 marathon pace. D’Amato started with the pack but dropped back in the fifth kilometer; in the 12th kilometer, a chase pack led by Bates and Hall caught D’Amato, who then tucked in.

Toward the end of the first of three 14-kilometer loops, the chase pack got within 11 seconds of the leaders. Korir then spurted ahead just before an aid station. That reestablished a quicker tempo for the leaders, and the chase pack’s hope of joining the leaders was permanently ended.

The first significant event occurred in the 19th kilometer, when defending champion Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya stepped off the course, apparently looking for tall grass in which to make a pit stop. Sensing an opportunity, Gebreslase and fellow Ethiopian Ababel Yeshaneh surged on a downhill stretch. Subsequent kilometers of 3:05 and 3:09 (an average of roughly 5:00 mile pace) pared the group to four. They passed halfway in 69:01; the chase pack, including the three Americans, hit halfway in 70:17.

Toward the end of the second lap, Korir again surged approaching an aid station. Her teammate Angela Tanui briefly lost contact for the second time, clawed her way back, but was then dropped for good. In the 27th kilometer Yeshaneh started grabbing at her side and was left by the eventual gold and silver medalists.

Korir and Gebreslase ran within inches of each other for most of the third lap; the Ethiopian was usually just off of Korir’s right shoulder. Korir occasionally motioned to her rival to either help with the pace or back off a bit. It was hard to tell who was feeling more feisty or fatigued.

Or at least it was until the overpass over Route I-5. After cresting the summit, Gebreslase leaned into the long, gradual descent toward the finish. She almost immediately had two, then three, then five seconds on Korir. Gebreslase, who won Berlin last fall, had judged her effort perfectly. For the second day in a row, an Ethiopian won the world title in a championship record.

(07/18/2022) Views: 1,143 ⚡AMP
by Scott Douglas

Twelve Olympians will lead star-studded lineup at 50th anniversary of Mastercard New York Mini 10K

Twelve Olympians and five Paralympians will line up in Central Park for the 50th anniversary of the Mastercard® New York Mini 10K, the world’s original women-only road race, on Saturday, June 11, New York Road Runners (NYRR) announced today.

U.S. Olympians Emily Sisson, Molly Seidel, Aliphine Tuliamuk, and Rachel (Schneider) Smith will lead a strong American contingent that will go up against previously announced Olympic, TCS New York City Marathon, and Boston Marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir, United Airlines NYC Half champion and 5K world-record holder Senbere Teferi, and two-time Mini 10K champion Sara Hall.

Sisson will come into the race after claiming her sixth national title last month in an American record 1:07:11 at the USATF Half Marathon Championships. She made her Olympic debut in Tokyo last summer after winning the 10,000 meters at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials, where she broke the 17-year-old Trials record set by Deena Kastor in 2004. She has been very successful in her last three trips to New York, finishing as the runner-up at the United Airlines NYC Half twice and winning the USATF 5K Championships.

“After breaking the American record in the half-marathon, I’m excited to step down in distance and compete in the Mastercard® New York Mini 10K for the first time,” Sisson said. “It will be a privilege to take part in such a powerful event that has paved the way for so many women over the last 50 years.”

Seidel owns a bronze medal from the Tokyo Olympic marathon last year and in her last trip to New York set an American course record and recorded a fourth-place finish at the TCS New York City Marathon. Tuliamuk won the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials and then gave birth to her daughter before running in the Olympic marathon in Tokyo. She will be making her first trip to New York since 2019 and is coming off winning the 25km national title, bringing her national title count to 11. Smith represented the U.S. at the Tokyo Olympics in the 5,000 meters after finishing third in the distance at the U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials.

The deep U.S. women’s contingent also includes American marathon record-holder Keira D’Amato, the top American finisher at the last two Boston Marathons Nell Rojas, 2019 New York Mini 10K runner-up Stephanie Bruce, U.S. national champion Erika Kemp, and the top American finisher at the 2022 United Airlines NYC Half Lindsay Flanagan.

Returning to the event 10 years after her victory will be Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat, a two-time world champion in the marathon who won the 2010 New York City, 2014 London, and 2017 Boston marathons, and was the runner-up in Boston in 2019 and 2021.

“Winning the New York City Marathon 12 years ago changed my life, and now, 10 years after also winning the Mini 10K, I still enjoy my racing and am happy to still be competing at a high level,” Kiplagat said. “NYRR always invites the highest quality fields, so I always like lining up in New York with the best in the world. There are so many inspiring women who have participated in this race over the years who set a positive example for everyone – both runners and non-runners – and I’m lucky to be part of such a prestigious group.”

Last year’s TCS New York City Marathon runner-up and Mastercard® New York Mini 10K runner-up Viola Cheptoo of Kenya and former NCAA 10,000-meter champion Sharon Lokedi of Kenya will contend for the title as well.

The professional wheelchair division will be headlined by two-time Paralympic medalist and three-time Mastercard® Mini 10K defending champion Susannah Scaroni. Since the addition of the professional wheelchair division in 2018, Scaroni is the only athlete to have won the race.

“The Mastercard New York Mini 10K is a special one to me for so many reasons, and I’m excited at the chance to race on what will be a milestone day for women’s running in Central Park,” Scaroni said. “Not only is the Mini 10K the world’s original women-only road race, but it is also one of the only women-only wheelchair races at the present time, which will hopefully pave the way for future generations of women’s wheelchair racers in the next 50 years.”

Lining up against Scaroni will be U.S. Paralympians Jenna Fesemyer, Yen Hoang, Hannah Dederick, and Eva Houston.

The Mini 10K, which began in 1972 as the Crazylegs Mini Marathon, was the first women-only road race and has gone on to garner more than 200,000 total finishers to date. Former NYRR President Fred Lebow named the race after the miniskirt, which back then was in vogue. A total of 72 women finished the first race, and three weeks later, Title IX was signed into law, guaranteeing girls and women the right to participate in school sports and creating new opportunities for generations of female athletes.

The Mastercard® New York Mini 10K will offer $45,000 in total prize money, including $10,000 to the winner of the open division and $2,500 to the winner of the wheelchair division. The professional athlete races will be streamed live on USATF.TV beginning at 7:40 a.m. ET. Mastercard® will serve as title sponsor of the event for the second time, and as part of its on-going partnership with NYRR will also serve as the presenting sponsor of professional women’s athlete field.

(06/03/2022) Views: 1,401 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

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: 1,261 ⚡AMP

World Record Holders, Olympians, National Champions set to Race B.A.A. 5K

The B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile will make a triumphant return to Patriots’ Day weekend, with professional fields featuring world record holders, Olympians, Paralympians, national champions, and local standouts. Held on Saturday, April 16, the B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile will kick-off festivities leading up to the 126th Boston Marathon on April 18.

“The B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile are two events entrenched in the fabric of Boston Marathon weekend, and each features a field which will lead to fast competition,” said Tom Grilk, President and Chief Executive Officer of the B.A.A. “With three years having passed since our last in-person edition of these races, we’re eager to return to the roads to crown champions.”

In the B.A.A. 5K, Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi will make her Boston road racing debut. A two-time Olympian and two-time World Athletics Championships silver medalist, Teferi holds the women’s-only 5K world record of 14:29. She’ll be up against recently crowned American marathon record holder Keira D’Amato, 2021 U.S. Olympians Emily Sisson and Rachel Schneider, reigning U.S. 5K national champion Weini Kelati, and B.A.A. High Performance Team member Erika Kemp. The B.A.A. 5K course and American record of 14:50 –set by Molly Huddle in 2015—could very well be in jeopardy.

On the men’s side, 2019 B.A.A. 10K champion David Bett and 17-time NCAA champion Edward Cheserek, both of Kenya, will square off against New Zealand 5,000m indoor national record holder Geordie Beamish and 2021 U.S. Olympians Mason Ferlic and Joe Klecker. Stanley Kebenei, a World Athletics Championships finalist in the 3000m steeplechase, will also be part of the strong American charge. The B.A.A. 5K course and American record is 13:20, established by Ben True in 2017.

Boston Marathon wheelchair division champions Marcel Hug, Daniel Romanchuk, and Joshua Cassidy will all compete in the B.A.A. 5K less than 48 hours in advance of racing the 126th Boston Marathon. Vanessa de Souza, Shelly Oxley-Woods, and Jenna Fesemyer are top women’s wheelchair entrants.

Following the B.A.A. 5K, the B.A.A. Invitational Mile will take center stage on Boylston Street. U.S. Olympian, Bostonian, and reigning indoor 1,500m national champion Heather MacLean will race for the first time on the three-lap course that finishes at the Boston Marathon finish line. Among her competitors are B.A.A. High Performance Team member Annie Rodenfels, 2019 runner-up Emily Lipari, and Great Britain Olympian Katie Snowden. MacLean and Rodenfels won’t be the only Massachusetts residents toeing the line, as Belmont High School standout Ellie Shea will race among the professionals. Shea ran 9:08.54 for 3,000m during the indoor season, a time that stands as No. 5 on the all-time high school list and is a Massachusetts state record.

Shane Streich, fresh off an indoor American record at 1,000m, will lead the American men in the B.A.A. Invitational Mile along with 3:54 miler Colby Alexander. Neil Gourley of Great Britain is entered, as are Canadian William Paulson, the 2019 Pan-Am 1500m bronze medalist, B.A.A. racing team member Kevin Kelly of Ireland, and local standout James Randon of Rhode Island.

A complete professional field list for the B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile can be found below. Preceding the professional divisions of the B.A.A. Invitational Mile will be a scholastic mile and middle school 1K featuring student-athletes from the eight cities and towns along the Boston Marathon route. Entries for the high school and middle school events will be available on race weekend.

 

2022 B.A.A. 5K WOMEN’S FIELD (NAME, COUNTRY, ROAD 5K PB, TRACK 5000M PB)

Carmela Cardama-Baez, Spain, N/A, 15:25.41 (NR)

Kim Conley, USA, 15:29, 15:05.20

Keira D’Amato, USA, 15:08, 16:09.86

Emily Durgin, USA, 16:05, 15:24.19

Annie Frisbie, USA, 16:35, 16:05.78

Sammy George, USA, 15:53, 15:19.66

Tori Gerlach, USA, 15:56, 15:44.13

Marielle Hall, USA, 15:08, 15:02.27

Elly Henes, USA, N/A, 15:03.27i

Emma Grace Hurley, USA, 16:13, 15:57.23

Katie Izzo, USA, 16:00, 15:41.33

Weini Kelati, USA, 15:18, 14:58.24

Erika Kemp, USA, 15:45, 15:10.10

Melissa Lodge, USA, N/A, 15:53.81i

Sharon Lokedi, Kenya, 15:48, 15:13.04i

Betty Sigei, Kenya, N/A, 15:37.80

Emily Sisson, USA, 15:38, 14:53.84

Rachel Smith (Schneider), USA, N/A, 14:52.04

Emma Spencer, USA, 16:41, 16:04.95

Susanna Sullivan, USA, 16:35, 15:42.59i

Senbere Teferi, Ethiopia, 14:29 (WR), 14:15.29

Abbey Wheeler, USA, N/A, 15:40.67i

 

2022 B.A.A. 5K MEN’S FIELD (NAME, COUNTRY, ROAD 5K PB, TRACK 5000M PB)

Eric Avila, USA, 13:55, 13:18.68

Geordie Beamish, New Zealand, N/A, 13:12.53i (NR)

David Bett, Kenya, 13:54, 13:06.06

Ben Blankenship, USA, 13:56, 13:33.07

Robert Brandt, USA, N/A, 13:19.11

Sam Chelanga, USA, 13:43, 13:09.67

Edward Cheserek, Kenya, 13:29, 13:04.44

Adam Clarke, Great Britain, 13:42, 13:39.21

Graham Crawford, USA, 13:54, 13:22.68i

Aaron Dinzeo, USA, 14:25, 13:58.37

Brandon Doughty, USA, N/A, 13:39.06

Mason Ferlic, USA, 13:52, 13:24.94

Sydney Gidabuday, USA, 13:53, 13:22.66

Eric Hamer, USA, 14:43, 13:29.60

Brian Harvey, USA, 14:01, 14:13.93

Stanley Kebenei, USA, 13:53, 13:45.87

Joe Klecker, USA, N/A, 13:06.67

Kasey Knevelbaard, USA, 13:56, 13:24.98i

Lawi Lalang, USA, 13:30, 13:00.95

Matt McClintock, USA, 13:49, 13:47.68

Tim McGowan, USA, 14:11, 13:54.20

Reuben Mosip, Kenya, 13:34, 13:50.80a

Charles Philbert-Thiboutot, Canada, 14:04, 13:22.44

Brian Shrader, USA, 13:57, 13:29.13

Zouhair Talbi, Morocco, N/A, 13:18.17i

Aaron Templeton, USA, 13:48, 13:39.39

Josef Tessema, USA, 14:05, 13:22.28.

(03/30/2022) Views: 1,722 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

130 athletes named on the team to represent the United States at the Tokyo Olympic Games

World outdoor record-holders Sydney McLaughlin, Ryan Crouser and Keni Harrison are among the 130 athletes named on the team to represent the United States at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

The squad includes 13 medalists from the 2016 Games in Rio and six defending world champions from Doha. Experienced headliners include five-time Olympians Allyson Felix in the 400m and Abdi Abdirahman in the marathon, while the youngest athlete on the team is 17-year-old Erriyon Knighton, who twice broke the world U20 200m record last month at the US Olympic Trials.

JuVaughn Harrison won both the long jump and high jump at the Trials in Eugene and he will be among the athletes contesting two events in Tokyo as he has been selected for both disciplines.

Other athletes announced on the team include world indoor 60m hurdles record-holder Grant Holloway, who was just 0.01 shy of breaking Aries Merritt’s world 110m hurdles record of 12.80 in Eugene, plus former world 400m hurdles record-holder Dalilah Muhammad, the second-fastest ever 200m sprinter Gabby Thomas and multiple global long jump gold medalist Brittney Reese.

USA team for Tokyo 

WOMEN

100m: Teahna Daniels, Javianne Oliver, Jenna Prandini

200m: Anavia  Battle, Jenna Prandini, Gabby Thomas

400m: Allyson Felix, Quanera Hayes, Wadeline Jonathas

800m: Athing Mu, Raevyn Rogers, Ajee' Wilson

1500m: Heather MacLean, Cory McGee, Elle Purrier

5000m: Elise Cranny, Rachel Schneider, Karissa Schweizer

10,000m: Alicia Monson, Karissa Schweizer, Emily Sisson

Marathon: Sally Kipyego, Molly Seidel, Aliphine Tuliamuk

3000m steeplechase: Emma Coburn, Val Constien, Courtney Frerichs

100m hurdles: Christina Clemons, Gabbi Cunningham, Keni Harrison

400m hurdles: Anna Cockrell, Sydney McLaughlin, Dalilah Muhammad

20km race walk: Robyn Stevens

High jump: Tynita Butts-Townsend, Vashti Cunningham, Rachel McCoy

Pole vault: Morgann LeLeux, Katie Nageotte, Sandi Morris

Long jump: Quanesha Burks, Tara Davis, Brittney Reese

Triple jump: Tori Franklin, Jasmine Moore, Keturah Orji

Shot put: Adelaide Aquilla, Jessica Ramsey, Raven Saunders

Discus: Valarie Allman, Kelsey Card, Rachel Dincoff

Hammer: Brooke Andersen, Gwen Berry, DeAnna Price

Javelin: Ariana Ince, Maggie Malone, Kara Winger

Heptathlon: Erica Bougard, Annie Kunz, Kendell Williams

4x100m: English Gardner, Aleia Hobbs, Gabby Thomas (plus others selected in individual events)

4x400m: Kendall Ellis, Lynna Irby, Kaylin Whitney (plus others selected in individual events)

MEN

100m: Ronnie Baker, Trayvon Bromell, Fred Kerley

200m: Kenny Bednarek, Erriyon Knighton, Noah Lyles

400m: Michael Cherry, Michael Norman, Randolph Ross

800m: Bryce Hoppel, Isaiah Jewett, Clayton Murphy

1500m: Matthew Centrowitz, Cole Hocker, Yared Nuguse

5000m: Paul Chelimo, Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid

10,000m: Grant Fisher, Woody Kincaid, Joe Klecker

Marathon: Abdi Abdirahman, Jake Riley, Galen Rupp

3000m steeplechase: Hillary Bor, Mason Ferlic, Benard Keter

110m hurdles: Devon Allen, Grant Holloway, Daniel Roberts

400m hurdles: Rai Benjamin, David Kendziera, Kenny Selmon

20km race walk: Nick Christie

High jump: JuVaughn Harrison, Shelby McEwen, Darryl Sullivan

Pole vault: Sam Kendricks, KC Lightfoot, Chris Nilsen

Long jump: Marquis Dendy, JuVaughn Harrison, Steffin McCarter

Triple jump: Chris Benard, Will Claye, Donald Scott

Shot put: Ryan Crouser, Joe Kovacs, Payton Otterdahl

Discus: Mason Finley, Reggie Jagers, Sam Mattis

Hammer: Daniel Haugh, Rudy Winkler, Alex Young

Javelin: Michael Shuey, Curtis Thompson

Decathlon: Steven Bastien, Garrett Scantling, Zach Ziemek

4x100m: Kenny Bednarek, Cravon Gillespie, Micah Williams (plus others selected in individual events)

4x400m: Elija Godwin, Vernon Norwood, Trevor Stewart (plus others selected in individual events)

MIXED

4x400m: Shae Anderson, Bryce Deadmon, Wil London, Taylor Manson (plus others selected in individual events).

(07/07/2021) Views: 1,790 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

Galen Rupp and Aliphine Tuliamuk will tune up Sunday’s USATF 10 km Championships

U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon winners Galen Rupp and Aliphine Tuliamuk headline Sunday’s USATF 10 km Championships presented by Toyota, as both athletes eye winning another U.S. title, while tuning up for the Olympic Games in Tokyo, which get underway later this month.The USATF 10 km Championships, hosted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race are the third stop on the 2021 USATF Running Circuit presented by Toyota. 

Sunday’s contest in Atlanta offers Rupp, along with fellow Olympic qualifiers Jacob Riley and Abdi Abdirahman, a chance to test their fitness before departing for Tokyo. Rupp is coming off a strong sixth place finish at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track and Field in the 10,000m, where he contended for a top three finish for much of the race. Rupp is in fine form and comes to Atlanta as the pre-race favorite.For Riley and Abdirahman, both of whom have had very quiet 2021 seasons, Sunday is even more important to get a quality racing effort before their marathon race in Tokyo on August 8.

While both are strongest over the marathon distance, a top five finish for either athlete is not out of the question in Atlanta.While Rupp enters as the pre-race favorite, Clayton Young is having a strong 2021 campaign. Young currently leads the USATF Running Circuit standings with 18 points, having won the USATF 15 km Championships, his first USATF title, back in March. Young followed up the winning effort with an eighth place showing at the USATF 1 Mile Road Championships in Des Moines.Veterans Colin Bennie and Sam Chelanga are also top three contenders.

Bennie, who placed sixth at the USATF 15 km Championships and ninth in Atlanta last year at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon, seems ready to challenge for his first USATF title, while Chelanga is in fine form coming off an eighth place showing in the 10,000m at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track and Field in Eugene.Other notable entries include 2016 Olympian Jared Ward, 2020 U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Marathon fifth place finisher Augustus Maiyo, 2018 USATF 10 km Championship runner-up Haron Lagat, and veteran Elkanah Kibet.

On the women’s side, Tuliamuk is entered and ready to run her first race since she qualified for the Olympic Games in February 2020. Tuliamuk, who became a mother back in mid-January, is in fine form and ready to show she’s primed for Tokyo.Tuliamuk’s top competition should come from Sara Hall. The ten-time USATF champion finished third at the USATF 10 km Championships in 2018.

This year, she’s coming off a tremendous sixth place effort in Eugene at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track and Field. Hall is arguably the most versatile American distance runners, a title contender at almost any distance, and Sunday she should be at the front pushing the pace once again.Stephanie Bruce, who won the 2018 USATF 10 km Championship title, looks to add another national title to her resume.

The Flagstaff-based runner placed 13th in the 10,000m at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track and Field, while also having run 1:09:55 for a half marathon win back in late-April.

Not to be overlooked, Emily Durgin is having a tremendous season. Durgin placed third at the USATF 15 km Championships earlier this season and sits a mere five points behind USATF Running Circuit overall leaders Emily Sisson and Rachel Schneider. Durgin placed ninth in the 10,000m at the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Track and Field last month, in addition to a 1:09:47 third place effort in a half marathon in late-January.

Diane Nukuri is showing fine form this season, coming off a tenth place finish at the USATF 15 km Championships, while Allie Kieffer finished fourth at the 2018 USATF 10 km Championships and is a seasoned veteran capable of a top five finish.

Add Maegan Krifchin, Joanna Thompson, Whitney Macon, and Bridget Lyons Belyeu to the mix and this race has both talent and depth, which should make for a thrilling morning of racing in Atlanta on Sunday.

(07/03/2021) Views: 1,383 ⚡AMP
by Usaft

Former University of Wisconsin athlete Alicia Monson qualifies for Olympics in the 10,000 m

Taking the lead in the fifth lap and never letting up, Emily Sisson won the 10,000 in 31:03.82 on June 26 at the U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials. Despite a start temperature of 85 degrees, Sisson broke the 17-year-old Trials record of 31:09.65, set by Deena Kastor in 2004.

Karissa Schweizer moved from third to second in the final lap, finishing in 31:16.52, and Alicia Monson claimed the third team spot in 31:18.55.

Monson, 23, who runs for On Athletics Club in Boulder, Colorado, also made her first Olympic team. She was wobbly in the final few laps, and after the medal ceremony, she collapsed and started vomiting and had to go to the hospital as a precaution, according to her coach, Dathan Ritzenhein.

“She’s the toughest person, the quietest, toughest person you could imagine,” he said. “I think she’s one of the next greats. She showed it today.”

Schweizer also qualified for the 5,000-meter squad on Monday, and she said she was exhausted in the day’s heat. It is unclear whether Schweizer plans to run both events in the the Olympics. If she gives up her 5,000-meter spot, Abbey Cooper will be named to that team. If she gives up her 10,000-meter spot, Niwot native Elise Cranny, fourth in 31:35.22, and Rachel Schneider, fifth in 31:42.92, are eligible to run the 10K in Tokyo.

Cranny and Schneider, however, are also already on the 5,000-meter team. So if Schweizer, Cranny, and Schneider all decide to skip the 10K, then Sara Hall, sixth in 31:54.50, will run the 10K in Tokyo.

(06/28/2021) Views: 1,382 ⚡AMP
by Colorado Runner

Emily Sisson Secures First US Title & Olympic Berth with a 10K Masterpiece

EUGENE, Ore. — The spirit of Molly Huddle lives on. Last week, Huddle announced her withdrawal from the 2020 US Olympic Trials, her 36-year-old body no longer able to generate the speed or smoothness that had carried her to five straight US 10,000-meter titles and an American record. But on a sunny Saturday morning at Hayward Field (82 degrees in Eugene at start), Emily Sisson delivered a run her erstwhile training partner would have been proud of, methodically squeezing the life out of the women’s 10,000-meter field to win in a meet-record of 31:03.82 despite 86-degree temperatures.

Actually, we know Huddle was proud of the effort

A Huddle comparison is selling Sisson short, however. This was dominance at a level we are unaccustomed to seeing at an Olympic Trials, particularly in an event in which 13 women in the field entered with the 31:30 Olympic standard. Only seven Americans (including Sisson) have ever run faster than her 31:03.82 today, achieved in the morning sun and without the aid of pacemakers. Her 12.70-second margin of victory left her almost a full straightaway clear of runner-up Karissa Schweizer.

Sisson had sealed the victory by building a 30-meter lead with three laps to go and would only pick it up from there, going 71.47-71.25-69.26 to close out a 15:14.67 final 5k and 4:44.45 final 1600. Schweizer took second in 31:16.52 to make the Olympic team at a second distance (she also made it in the 5k on Monday), while Alicia Monson gave On Athletics Club another Olympian by taking third in 31:18.55.

The top five women in this race will all be running in Tokyo — the top three in the 10k and fourth- and fifth-placers Elise Cranny and Rachel Schneider in the 5k.

Sisson lapped everyone in the field save for the top seven. The last person she lapped — in the final 100 meters — was none other than 2016 Olympian and 2015 world championship bronze medallist Emily Infeld, who stuck with the lead pack for 6k.

The Race

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsYzi04MOQ4&feature=emb_title

The race had been shifted to a 10 a.m. start to avoid the hot weather (forecast to reach 100 degrees when this race would have originally been run at 6:44 p.m.), though the conditions were still hot and sunny when the gun was fired. Sisson took the lead just before two kilometers, dropping the pace from 78’s and 78’s to consistent 75’s, whittling the pack to 10 by 5k (15:49.15). Sisson would continue tightening the noose all the way home. She dropped the pace to 74’s just after halfway, which was enough to drop former New Mexico teammates and new US citizens Weini Kelati and Ednah Kurgat, as well as 2016 Olympian Infeld by four miles.

By 6800, Schneider, Hall, and 2012 Trials runner-up Natosha Rogers had been dropped as well, leaving a four-woman battle for three spots between Sisson, Cranny, Schweizer and Monson. After running consistent 74’s, Sisson let a 75 slip in for her 18th lap. From there, however, Sisson’s pacing was masterful: each of her final seven laps was faster than the one that preceded it. A 72.58 fifth-to-last lap gave her a 10-meter gap with a mile to go, and with 41 starters, it became hard to keep up with who was where as Sisson had been lapping multiple runners per lap. She would press on to win in dominant fashion, while Schweizer, who trailed Monson by 3.5 seconds at the bell, would use a big last lap (68.81, fastest in the field) to take second, with Monson safe in third, over 16 seconds up on Schweizer.

For the record, Schweizer said she plans on running both the 5k and 10k in Tokyo.

Quick Take: Total masterclass

Sisson has had some great performances in her career (she’s made two Worlds teams at 10k, won two USA road titles, and won two NCAA titles), but she had never had one like this.

Not only did she make her first Olympic team and win her first USATF track title, she put on a wonderful performance. She took the lead after the mile and never gave it up. She started clipping off 75-second laps (5:00/mile) through halfway. That whittled the lead pack down to 10. Then she upped the ante again, lowering the pace to roughly 74s through 8k. That made it a four-woman race for the three Olympic spots. Then she started running 72s or better and it was game over.

Quick Take: Redemption for Sisson, who used the extra year to her advantage

When we spoke to Sisson a month ago, she admitted that had the Trials been held as scheduled in 2020, she likely would not have been in contention to make the team. Her body felt broken after dropping out of the Olympic Marathon Trials on a brutal Atlanta course, and after a stellar 2:23 debut in London in 2019, she struggled to make sense of the result.

“Usually I’m good at moving on from bad races, but I struggled with that one,” Sisson.

It didn’t help that, after COVID postponed the Trials, there was nothing to move on to.

But eventually, Sisson was able to get back on track (she praised her husband, her former Providence College teammate Shane Quinn, for his support) and work back to incredible fitness. In December, she ran 67:26 to miss Huddle’s American record in the half marathon by one second, and she looked strong in her three track 5k’s this spring, running 14:55, 14:53, and 14:59. She had never broken 15 minutes prior to this year. Her plan today was to play to her strength and make it a fast race, as she knew she was in the best shape of her life.

“There were some workouts where I had to ask [my coach Ray Treacy] to repeat my splits, like what did I just run?” Sisson said.

QT: Alicia Monson pushed her body to the brink (and to the hospital) to make her first Olympic team

The newly-formed On Athletics Club (editor’s note: On Sponsored the Road to the Trials on LetsRun.com) got its second 10k Olympian at the Trials as Alicia Monson finished 3rd to make the team, joining teammate Joe Klecker who was 3rd in the men’s 10k on the first night of the Trials.

Coach Dathan Ritzenhein had been very bullish on Monson heading into the Trials, but how would she perform on the biggest stage and in the heat? Superbly well. While Monson was overtaken by Karissa Schweizer on the final lap, she was the last athlete to get broken by Sisson.

However, the effort really took its toll.

After the race, Monson did not look well. She eventually was resting in the shade in the bowels of the stadium, and was brought back out for an interview by NBC’s Lewis Johnson, where Schweizer helped support her. Monson said in the interview, “I have never gone to that point in a race before and I’ve always kind of wanted to. I think today was a good time to do that.”

Monson was able to go to the victory stand and do the award ceremony for the top 3, but the heat was still taking its toll.

Later as first reported by Sarah Lorge Butler, it was revealed that Monson collapsed after the medal ceremony and started vomiting and was taken to the hospital.

Ritzenhein told LetsRun he believes Monson will be okay, adding “she is just the toughest person I’ve ever met.” For anyone who remembers Ritzenhein’s all-out racing style, that is high praise indeed. Ritz even said she’d be available for an interview after she left the hospital. That definitely is a LetsRun.com first.

Quick Take: Sisson & Monson’s all-in bets pay off

When USATF switched the schedule to put the women’s 10k after the women’s 5k, athletes who qualified in both had a choice to make. If you thought your best shot to make the team was in the 10k, would you double — and perhaps wear yourself out with a heat and final in the 5k — or give yourself only one shot to make the team and focus on the 10k?

Both Sisson and Monson (and their coaches) felt their best shot was in the 10k and both decided to skip the 5k entirely. That paid off when both made the team today.

But both Schweizer and Cranny decided to attempt the double, and that decision worked out nicely for them as well, as Schweizer made the team in both events and Cranny was the US champ in the 5k. All four women are first-time Olympians.

Quick Take: Sara Hall’s Olympic dream is denied yet again, but she achieved her career-best Olympic Trials finish in 6th

Some great US runners over the years have failed to make an Olympic team. Chris Solinsky, the #2 US man ever at 5,000 and 10,000, never made an Olympic team, and Sara Hall, the 2nd-fastest US women’s marathoner ever at 2:20:32, may also end up with that label. Hall, 38, finished 6th in today’s race in 31:54.50, which was a career-best finish for her at the Olympic Trials.

Sara Hall at the Olympic Trials

2004 – 11th in 5000

2008 – 9th in 1500

2012 – 8th in steeple

2016 – DNF in marathon, 14th in 5000

2020 – DNF in marathon, 6th in 10,000

“I made all the right moves I needed to, I just didn’t have it. You know, those girls are really strong,” said Hall after the race. “Sisson, I’m really happy for her… I’m so happy she made the team, she’s so deserving… I respect all those women so much… I thought I had a shot at this team but at the same time that’s my highest Olympic Trials finish… I’m thankful I was able to do that today.”

Hall said she was rooting for her fellow marathoner Sisson — the US’s 8th fastest marathoner in history at 2:23:08 — to make the team.

“Emily’s run was so impressive, I didn’t doubt that she could do this… living in Phoenix, I’m pretty sure we’re all gonna wish we were living in Phoenix like she is… I was rooting for her so much because of the disappointment in Atlanta that was similar to mine,” said Hall, who said she’ll be announcing a fall marathon soon.

Saying Hall won’t make the team in 2024 may not be wise. The date for the 2024 marathon trials isn’t set yet, but they might be less than 2.5 years away and Hall is running better than ever. Bernard Lagat made an Olympic team at 41 in 2016. Hall will be 40 when the 2024 Olympic Marathon Trials take place. Of course, the difference is Lagat had been on many teams before.

Regardless of whether she makes a team, Hall’s late-career transformation has been incredible. At the 2016 Trials, Hall had pbs of 32:44 for 10k and 2:30:06 for the marathon. Now her pbs are 31:21 and 2:20:32.

Quick Take: Sisson handled the heat like a pro

At the last Trials, Sisson said she was “pretty out of shape and I actually overheated.” She handled the heat with ease today. That may be because she lives in Phoenix, Arizona (although she hasn’t been there since March, spending her buildup in Flagstaff and then Providence).

She wore sunglasses during the race but they weren’t hers. She often runs with glasses in Phoenix but didn’t have any today, so she just borrowed her husband’s pair before the race.

Quick Take: Emily Durgin has a strong run in 9th

The top 8 spots were all filled by people with the Olympic standard of 31:25. The first person without the standard was 9th placer Emily Durgin of Under Armour. No one in today’s race ran a PB, but Durgin came the closest. When her collegiate career at UConn came to an end in 2017, she had pbs of 16:00.93/33:49. Now she’s improved them to 15:24/32:22 and she ran 32:25 for 9th.

(06/27/2021) Views: 993 ⚡AMP
by Let’s Run

Elise Cranny Makes Her First Olympic Team, Wins 5,000 Meters

With a blistering last lap in 63.73 seconds, Elise Cranny of the Bowerman Track Club outkicked her teammate Karissa Schweizer and won the 5,000 meters in 15:27.81. 

Schweizer was second in 15:28.11. Rachel Schneider, who trains in Flagstaff, Arizona, was third in 15:29.56. All three are making an Olympic team for the first time.

Abbey Cooper, who ran 15:07 in her preliminary heat on Friday, faster than the Olympic standard and her fastest time since 2015, finished fourth. She’ll be the Olympic alternate. 

Given the warm weather in Eugene, Oregon—the temperature was 94 degrees—the race got off to a slow start. With a mile to go, the pace quickened considerably, shaking up the pack. With three laps remaining, the first four had separated themselves from the rest and there was no doubt the Olympic team would come from that group.

“It was pretty hot out there,” Cranny said. “It was a bit tactical and slow in the beginning.” The plan, she said, was to stay out of trouble and then “slowly squeeze it down.”

Schweizer’s take on the race plan: “With a mile to go, we were going to make it hurt,” she said. 

Rachel Schneider looked around and realized four people were remaining and she had to beat only one of them. “We visualized this race quite a bit in a whole bunch of different scenarios,” she said. “I felt super confident I could go with whatever move, whenever it was made in the race.” 

She downplayed the role of the weather: “It didn’t play a part at all,” she said. “Everyone is racing in the same conditions. During the warmup, I wore an ice vest. Outside of it, don’t worry about it.”

Cranny and Schweizer, who holds the American record in the 3,000 meters, are regular training partners of Shelby Houlihan. During 2020, Houlihan and Schweizer ran the two fastest American times ever for the 5,000 meters at an intrasquad race in Portland: Houlihan ran 14:23.92, the American record, and Schweizer ran 14:26.34. 

On June 14, days before the start of the Trials, Houlihan announced she had tested positive for nandrolone, a banned substance, back in December. She subsequently appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which ruled against her. The ruling kept her out of the Olympic Trials.

Despite the distraction of the Houlihan test, the Bowerman Track Club has had a good meet so far. On the first night of competition, Woody Kincaid and Grant Fisher made the team in the men’s 10,000 meters. 

Earlier in the day today, Sean McGorty, Cranny’s boyfriend, raced the preliminary heats of the men’s steeplechase. He had to stop midway through to adjust his shoes and fell into last place. But he made his way back up through the pack and was able to advance to the final on time. 

Cranny, doing her warmup for the 5,000 meters, was too nervous to watch him race. At one point she looked out and saw him in last. Other teammates in the 5,000 meters, Gwen Jorgensen and Vanessa Fraser, came to tell her the good news when he had advanced to the final.  Bowerman teammate Karissa Schweizer finished second, and Rachel Schneider was third.

(06/22/2021) Views: 1,342 ⚡AMP
by Runner’s World (Sarah Lorge Butler)

Murphy, Purrier St Pierre and Nilsen among the winners on day of surprises in Eugene

With mayhem all around on the fourth day of action at the US Olympic Trials, two-time world pole vault champion Sam Kendricks is relieved to be going to Tokyo. Two other winners of global titles – world 800m champion Donavan Brazier and 2011 world 1500m champion Jenny Simpson – will not be heading to the Games.

“A gold medal brings golden handcuffs,” Kendricks said. “Wherever we go somewhere it’s a world champion, and they expect a world champion’s effort. People follow in your wake when you’re ahead of the game.”

Clayton Murphy stayed ahead on Monday night (21) in Eugene.

He ran an evenly split world lead of 1:43.17 to win the men’s 800m, showing the form he had as 21-year-old to earn Olympic bronze in Rio in 2016. It was an emphatic response to those who were unsure he would ever recapture that.

That 800m – plus a historic pole vault competition won by Chris Nilsen and a front-running 1500m by Elle Purrier St Pierre – were the highlights of day four ahead of two rest days.

Shockingly, Brazier faded to last in the 800m and will miss a second successive Olympics. He was a pre-trials favourite in 2016, at age 19, coming off a 1:43.55 and NCAA victory, but he failed to get out of the first round then.

This time, NCAA champion Isaiah Jewett bolted ahead and built a lead with an opening lap of 50.60. Brazier crossed the 400m in 51.00 and attempted to reduce that gap on the final backstretch.

“I think I made a move a little too early and paid the price for it in the last 200,” he said.

Murphy, fifth at the midpoint at 51.67, said afterwards that he executed a perfect plan. He caught and passed Jewett, covering the second lap in 51.50. He said he had a “pretty serious hamstring issue” a few days before the trials but overrode it with adrenaline. He also overrode pre-trials form charts leaving him out of the requisite top three.

“It is hard not to read the middle-distance preview,” he said. “I kind of just accept it. As long as I handle it the right way, it is only motivation.”

Jewett was second in a PB of 1:43.85 and Bryce Hoppel, fourth at the 2019 World Championships, finished third in 1:44.14. Brazier eased to the finish in 1:47.88.

USA is sending “a pretty damn good team” to Tokyo, Murphy asserted. Jewett and Hoppel now sit at fourth and seventh on the 2021 world list, respectively.

“I think this is the most special moment in our sport,” said Murphy. “It is the most pure way to pick a team. This is what all those workouts pay off.”

Murphy and Brazier are qualified to run in the 1500m, but both said they probably would not. Brazier did not elaborate but said he was not running at 100 percent.

Jewett said his night was not over. He had a 10-page paper due for a course at the University of Southern California because a teacher had not granted his request for an extension.

Nilsen, an 18-year-old at the 2016 trials, said his goal then was to have his photo taken with Kendricks. In 2021, his 5.90m vault was enough to beat Kendricks and KC Lightfoot, second and third at 5.85m.

Matt Ludwig and Jacob Wooten were fourth and fifth at 5.80m, making this the first national competition ever featuring five men over 5.80m and 11 over 5.70m. It was also the first US meet ever to have three over 5.85m.

“This’ll go down in history as the hardest team ever to make,” Kendricks said.

The team in the women’s 1500m was also hard to make. An early stumble startled Purrier St Pierre, who on the spot decided to push the pace and led all the way thereafter.

Her time of 3:58.03 broke a trials record of 3:58.92 that Mary Slaney held for 33 years. Cory McGee was second in 4:00.67 and Heather MacLean, Purrier St Pierre’s training partner, was third in 4:02.09 as the top three all ran PBs. Shannon Osika was less than a tenth behind in 4:02.18.

Purrier St Pierre grew up on a dairy farm in rural Vermont and runs on dirt roads with her dog. She was shaken by the bumping to start the race.

“I couldn’t believe I’d just been shoved off the track,” she said. “After that, I thought I’d just go for it.”

Simpson, 34, the 2016 Olympic bronze medallist, was aiming for a fourth Olympics but finished 10th in 4:07.76. Coincidentally, she was Purrier St Pierre’s roommate in Doha.

Simpson conceded it was “hard to believe” she had not made the team; she had been on every Olympic or World Championships team since 2007.

“The sport goes on without you,” she said. “You don’t make the Games, and the Games are fine and they go on without you.”

With temperatures soaring past 32C, Elise Cranny won the 5000m in 15:27.81. Karissa Schweizer was second in 15:28.11 and Rachel Schneider third in 15:29.56. Abbey Cooper, who met the Olympic standard by running 15:07.80 in the heats on Friday, was fourth in 15:31.05.

In the absence of the injured Christian Taylor, Will Claye took the triple jump with 17.21m (0.1m/s). Donald Scott was second at 17.18m and Chris Bernard third at 17.01m. “My sights have always been on the gold medal,” Claye said. "I want to win whether Christian is there or not. I feel for Christian. A year ago, I was going through the same thing.”

Curtis Thompson had the four longest throws of the competition and won the javelin with 82.78m.

Roy Jordan for World Athletics

(06/22/2021) Views: 1,302 ⚡AMP
by World Athletics

Eric Avila and Rachel Schneider both won the first national titles of their careers on Wednesday

The U.S. road mile championships took place in Des Moines, Iowa, on Wednesday evening, and the winners in both the men’s and women’s races won the first national titles of their careers. 

Eric Avila took the men’s crown, surging to a 3:58.96 finish, and Rachel Schneider won the women’s race in 4:30.26. The races kicked off the Drake Relays, which will run until Saturday. 

Avila’s first win 

Before Wednesday, Avila’s best result in a national championship race came in 2019 at the USATF Outdoor Track and Field Championships. This event was also in Des Moines at Drake University’s stadium, where the mile races finished on Wednesday (the races started on the Drake campus before entering the stadium for the final 600m). Avila ran to a fifth-place finish in the 1,500m in 2019, running 3:45.93. 

Now, at the age of 31, Avila has his first national title, and he won it in impressive fashion. The men’s race started with a quick opening split of 54.69 from Jeff Thies, who got out to an early two-second lead after the first lap. Thies remained at the front of the race for the next two laps, and although he extended his lead to five seconds after the 800m mark, he faded significantly in the latter half of the race, and his lead was cut to two and a half seconds with one lap to go. Thies closed the race with a 66-second 400m, opening the door for Avila and the rest of the field. 

Avila had the fastest last lap of the race, closing in 55.72 seconds to just edge out Craig Engels for the win. Engels finished in second in 3:59.24, and Clayton Murphy rounded out the podium in 3:59.52. Despite his early-race heroics, Thies faded to 10th place. 

Schneider’s national crown 

Wednesday’s race was also the first USATF championship of Schneider’s career, but she had gotten closer than Avila did to a national title in years past. In 2015, she placed fifth in the 1,500m at the national championships in Oregon, and in 2018, again in Des Moines, she finished fourth in the 1,500m and second in the 5,000m. A year later, she returned to Drake University to race the 5,000m once more, finishing in fourth and earning a spot on the American world championship team. She competed in Doha, Qatar, at the world championships, where she finished in eighth in her heat.

Schneider has had a good career, but a national crown had always eluded her. That changed on Wednesday when she ran an impressive and dominant race in the mile. After the first lap, she was in second place, but only one second behind early leader Anna Shields. By the halfway mark, Schneider had grabbed the lead, and she didn’t let it go, opening up a one-second gap between her and eventual second-place finisher Shannon Osika. Schneider crossed the line in 4:30.26, with Osika just behind her and Heather Kampf in third.

(04/23/2021) Views: 1,197 ⚡AMP
by Ben Snider-McGrath

Impressive International field will be racing at the Prefontaine Classic at Stanford

World 5000m and cross-country champion Hellen Obiri will be making her sixth appearance at the Prefontaine Classic. She set meeting records at 1500m in 2013 and 2014, then won the 5000m in 2016.

The Kenyan, who won the 5000m IAAF Diamond League title in 2018, is undefeated this year and won the 3000m at the opening leg of the IAAF Diamond League in Doha earlier this month in a world-leading 8:25.60.

Multiple world record-holder and five-time world indoor champion Genzebe Dibaba has won all three of her past Pre Classic appearances and her 14:19.76 victory in 2015 is the fastest 5000m ever run in the US.

Sifan Hassan won the 1500m Diamond League trophy in 2015 and followed it with world indoor gold over the same distance in 2016. The Dutch athlete is one of the most versatile runners in history, boasting an 800m PB of 1:56.81 and a half marathon PB of 1:05:15. She also holds the European 5000m record and the world 5km record.

Olympic 10,000m champion and world record-holder Almaz Ayana will be competing in the US for the first time. The Ethiopian won the 2015 world 5000m title, 2016 5000m Diamond Trophy and 2017 world 10,000m title, but missed all of last year with a knee injury.

Obiri, Dibaba, Ayana and Hassan are among the seven fastest women of all time at 5000m, but this will be the first time they have all raced one another at any distance.

The addition of world and Olympic 800m champion Caster Semenya adds further interest. Although she has contested the distance in low-key domestic races in South Africa, this will be her first international 3000m race.

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey and Senbere Teferi, ranked eighth and ninth respectively on the world 5000m all-time list, are also in the field. Gidey is a two-time world U20 cross-country champion, while Teferi earned world silver medals at 5000m and cross country in 2015.

The field also includes two-time Ethiopian champion Fantu Worku, versatile Kenyan Caroline Chepkoech Kipkurui, world U20 cross-country champion Beatrice Chebet, 2017 world cross-country bronze medallist Lilian Kasait Rengeruk, double European indoor silver medallist Konstanze Klosterhalfen, 2016 European 5000m and 10,000m champion Yasmin Can, European 1500m bronze medallist Laura Weightman, six-time NCAA champion Karissa Schweizer and USA’s Rachel Schneider.

(05/22/2019) Views: 2,290 ⚡AMP
by IAAF

Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha won the 5,000 easily at Payton Jordan invitational last night clocking 13:10 along with other top performances

The big names at the Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford's Cobb Track and Field stadium in Palo Alto, Calif. all got wins last night. 

Clayton Murphy won the 1500 (3:37.59) comfortably, Jessica Hull won the 1500 (4:12.08).

 Allie Ostrander the steeple, Jenny Simpson got the win (15:21) over Rachel Schneider in the 5,000.

Yomif Kejelcha won the 5,000 easily (13:10 for him, 13:17 for 2nd) and Sifan Hassan’s 10,000m debut (31:18) was a success.

Ben True won the 10k (27:52) but no one got the Worlds standard.

New Balance professional Jenny Simpson won the women's 5,000 meters in her outdoor season opener in 15:21.12.

Simpson, who last ran an outdoor 5,000 in August of 2013 in Switzerland in a personal-best 14:56.26 after capturing the USATF title that year, was competing at Payton Jordan for the first time since winning the 1,500 in 2010 in 4:08.11.

Simpson ascended to No. 3 in the world this year in the 5,000, also achieving the IAAF World Championships standard.

(05/03/2019) Views: 1,806 ⚡AMP