Kenya’s Sheila Chepkirui on Sunday won the women’s race of the New York City Marathon, with a time of two hours, 24 minutes, 36 seconds.
Chepkirui outran his compatriot and two-time winner, Hellen Obiri, in the final 150 meters to win the race for the second time, after her first victory in 2024.
Chepkirui told ESPN, after the race, “The last mile was really tricky. I had to be patient because I knew Hellen was really strong, so I had to really push up to the finish line.”
Meanwhile, America’s Jessica McClain came second, six seconds behind Chepkirui, to become the first U.S. woman to finish in the top three since Shalane Flanagan achieved the feat in 2018.
In the men’s race, Sweden’s Andreas Almgren, who has had a successful career running half marathons and the 10,000 meters, won the title in his debut at 26.2 miles, with a time of two hours, six minutes and one second.
Italy’s Yemaneberhan Crippa came second, 13 seconds behind Almgren, while Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho finished third.
After his victory, Almgren, said, “I’ve probably never felt so emotional after a race ever. With 5k left, I felt like I had the legs today. I saw I had a pretty big gap [near the end of the race] and thought: ‘OK, just enjoy these last few hundred meters ’ because this is not something a lot of people get to experience. This is my first marathon. I didn’t know how I was supposed to feel.”