In a dramatic finish to the women’s race at the New York City Marathon on Sunday 7th November, Peres Jepchirchir pulled away in the final meters to win, just three months after she won gold in the women’s marathon at the Tokyo Olympics.
Jepchirchir finished in 2 hours 22 minutes 39 seconds, just 4 seconds ahead of Viola Cheptoo, also of Kenya. (Cheptoo is Bernard Lagat’s younger sister). Ababel Yeshaneh of Ethiopia finished third. Molly Seidel, who won bronze at the Olympics in August, finished fourth as the top American.
Jepchirchir broke away from countrywoman Viola Cheptoo and Ethiopia's Ababel Yeshaneh in the final mile of the race after the trio ran side by side from the Bronx back down through Manhattan. Jepchirchir, 28, took gold at the Tokyo Olympics marathon in August and came back on a short recovery to win a race once dominated by her hero Mary Keitany, a four-time winner in New York who recently retired from the sport.
Albert Korir won the men’s race at the New York City Marathon on Sunday, finishing in 2 hours 8 minutes 22 seconds for his first major championship. Mohamed Reda El Aaraby, who was 44 seconds behind in second place, became the first Moroccan to finish on the podium in New York since 2009, and Eyob Faniel of Italy was third.
Korir overtook Morocco’s Mohamed El Aaraby and Italy’s Eyob Faniel around the 18th mile and quickly took the drama out of the race's 50th running. It was Korir's first victory in one of the World Marathon Majors and his first time atop any podium since winning the Ottawa Race Weekend Marathon in 2019.
It was a breakthrough performance for Korir, 27, who was the runner-up in New York in 2019. Today, he ran a sound and tactical race against a decorated field that included Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia, the second-fastest marathoner ever and a four-time Olympic medalist. Elkanah Kibet, a Kenyan-born runner who became a U.S. citizen in 2013, was the top American in fourth. Ben True of the United States finished in seventh.
Marcel Hug of Switzerland won the men’s wheelchair race for the fourth time, finishing more than 6 1/2 minutes ahead of the next racer for his first title since 2017. The 35-year-old, born with spina bifida, added yet another prize to a remarkable year that included four gold medals at the Tokyo Paralympics, including in the marathon. He also won the Boston Marathon last month.
Australia's Madison de Rozario won the women’s wheelchair race, holding off past champions Tatyana McFadden and Manuela Schär for her first Big Apple victory. The 27-year-old, who developed transverse myelitis when she was 4, also took gold at this year's Tokyo Paralympic Marathon.