By Amy Tennery
NEW YORK, Nov 1 (Reuters) – Kenyan Sheila Chepkirui took back her New York City Marathon crown in two hours, 24 minutes and 36 seconds on Sunday, while Sweden’s Andreas Almgren (2:06:01) won the men’s race in his debut over the distance.
The 2024 champion Chepkirui was running all by herself when she crossed the line, two years after she held off compatriot Hellen Obiri, who finished third, a second slower than American Jess McClain (2:24:42).
The half-marathon world champion Almgren finished 13 seconds ahead of Italian Yemaneberhan Crippa, while Kamohelo Mofolo (2:06:26) of Lesotho was third.
Defending champion Obiri and Chepkirui broke away from the lead pack with about four miles to go and Obiri ran on her opponent’s heels for much of the final stretch of the course, hoping for more magic after breaking the course record last year.
Obiri had appeared all but assured of second spot on the podium, but let the silver medal slip through her fingers in the final moments, as McClain came out of nowhere to sprint past her and cross the line a second faster.
“The last mile was really tricky and I had to be patient because I knew Hellen was really strong,” said Chepkirui. “I had to really push up to the finish line.”
Marathon debutant Almgren looked to be a veteran over the distance as he hung in with a crowded lead pack through the famously demanding and hilly course.
He pulled away from the defending champion Benson Kipruto with one mile left and waved his arms as he coaxed more cheers from the crowd after building a comfortable lead.
“When Benson starting picking up the pace with 5k left I just thought, ‘I’ve got the legs today’,” said Almgren, who cruised through the final metres. “You can’t ask for a better debut… I’m about to start crying.”
There was a lot of anticipation surrounding Almgren’s arrival in New York and he lived up to the hype as he became the first European man in three decades to triumph across the five boroughs, and said he planned to tackle the 26.2 miles again.
“It’s better than anything I could have ever imagined,” he said.
The race kicked off under pristine conditions the morning after Halloween, as bleary-eyed partygoers staggered back to their apartments while runners made the journey to the starting line for the year’s final major.
In the men’s wheelchair race, Swiss Marcel Hug snared his eighth New York win through a thrilling sprint finish with rival Daniel Romanchuk, crossing the line a second ahead of the American in 1:28:14.
Hug’s compatriot Catherine Debrunner had no drama in the women’s race, crossing the line in 1:40:02, while Tatyana McFadden (1:48:28) finished second after outlasting fellow American Susannah Scaroni (1:48:32).
Scaroni lined up on Staten Island after giving birth in August and her baby son Jonah was on hand for a celebratory photo after she crossed the finish line.
(Reporting by Amy Tennery in New YorkEditing by Christian Radnedge)
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