Fast Women: A record-setting day at the Boston Marathon

Sharon Lokedi repeats, Jess McClain is the fastest American woman ever in Boston.

Issue 406, sponsored by SOAR

This is a special Boston Marathon newsletter, so I can avoid covering the race a week after the fact. Fast Women will return to its regular once-a-week schedule on Monday.

Sharon Lokedi in the final strides of the Boston Marathon. (Photo by Amy Roberts)

Sharon Lokedi repeats as Boston Marathon champion

Running fast at the Boston Marathon requires a mix of good fitness, strategy, health, and weather, with maybe a little bit of luck mixed in. Marathons are still hard, so plenty of people struggled on Monday, but what seems like a much higher percentage of people than usual walked (or hobbled) away pleased with their races, thanks in large part to the weather cooperating.

In the 60-year history of women racing Boston, there have not been a lot of perfect-weather days—especially not ones that remain perfect throughout the day, for the masses. But 2026, with its temperatures in the 40s and a light tailwind, will go down in history as one of them.

As expected, Sharon Lokedi dominated the race, winning in 2:18:51, the second-fastest winning time ever, behind only her 2:17:22 course record from last year. Kenyan women swept the podium with Loice Chemnung taking second in 2:19:35 in her Boston debut, and Mary Ngugi-Cooper having a great day to take third in 2:20:07.

Last year’s Boston Marathon was unusual in that some of the top seeds went hard from the start, and their competitors took the challenge seriously and followed them. This year’s race still started relatively quickly, but at a pace that much of the pro field could handle. For the first 20 miles, the U.S. runners did most of the leading, with Kodi Kleven, Susanna Sullivan, Annie Frisbie, Carrie Ellwood, Jess McClain hitting some of the key checkpoints at the front.

At halfway, which the leaders hit in 1:11:02, there were still 16 runners in the pack. The course record was safe, but it was a perfect setup for many of the athletes in the field to run personal bests.

The broadcast I watched missed some of the moments in the race that I would have liked to see, but Frisbie did some of her leading in the 17th and 18th miles, and it was around that time that Emily Sisson, Ellwood, and Dakotah Popehn fell off the back of the pack, before they made the turn onto the Newton Hills. And not long after the turn, Kleven dropped back as well.

Just after 30K, Jess McClain went to get her bottle and dropped it, so she did a quick U-turn, grabbed it, and lost only a handful of seconds. It didn’t take her long to reel the leaders back in. She said at the post-race press conference that her gloves got in the way. “I was feeling really good each time that I got the carbs and fuel in,” she said. “So I just knew I needed it, especially going into the Newton hills.”

In the 21st mile, which includes Heartbreak Hill, Lokedi began controlling the pace, and the pack started to fall apart. Frisbie and Ethiopia’s Bedatu Hirpa dropped back first, and then McClain, followed by Mercy Chelangat of Kenya and NAZ Elite. And between 21 miles and 35K (21.7 miles), Lokedi’s pace also caused Ngugi-Cooper and Ethiopia’s Workenesh Edesa to drop back.

At 35K, which they hit in 1:57:20, it was down to Lokedi, Chemnung, and Kenya’s Irine Cheptai. But Cheptai, who was fourth in Boston last year, dropped back soon after. And in the 23rd mile, as she was going through Cleveland Circle, Lokedi dropped Chemnung for good.

I had heard all about what happened in the race before I watched the broadcast, but when I finally had a chance to watch, the thing that struck me most was how quickly Lokedi dropped her competitors when she decided to go. And it’s no wonder they couldn’t stick with her. She split 4:41, 4:49, and 4:36 for miles 22-24, according to data provided by race organizers. There’s a net elevation loss of 198 feet over those three miles, but that’s still flying.

Lokedi was running the race with a borrowed watch. She realized on the bus to Hopkinton that she didn’t have hers, so her coach, Stephen Haas, hunted one down. Because she’s sponsored, it had to be a Garmin. Lokedi said afterward that she could see the paces in kilometers, but she didn’t know how fast she was going. The owner of the watch (former CU runner Stephen Pifer) uploaded Lokedi’s run to Strava.

Lokedi was on another level on Monday, and her closing miles were uneventful but fun to watch. She won by 44 seconds and ran the fourth-fastest time ever by a woman on the Boston course. The only faster performances came last year, when Lokedi (2:17:22), Hellen Obiri (2:17:41), and Yalemzerf Yehualaw (2:18:06) went 1-2-3. After running even half marathon splits of 1:08:46/1:08:36 last year, Lokedi went 1:11:03/1:07:48 this year.

With her two titles in Boston and her 2022 New York City Marathon victory, Lokedi, 32, now has three World Marathon Major wins on her resume. It will be interesting to see if she keeps alternating between Boston and New York or if she goes the Obiri route and tries a flatter marathon at some point. She earned $150,000 for the win.

Some expected Chemnung, 29, to be Lokedi’s closest competitor, based on her 1:03:57 half marathon, and she delivered. After finishing fourth in Chicago last fall, she made her first podium at a World Marathon Major, and earned $75,000.

Ngugi-Cooper, 37, said that after finishing 11th in Boston last year, she wondered if her best days were behind her, but on Monday, she ran her fastest time of her seven appearances in Boston and made it back onto a World Marathon Majors podium for the first time in four years. Despite losing the leaders in the 21st mile, she kept running strong, and in the 35th mile, she caught Cheptai and took over third for good. She earned $40,000.

Behind her, Chelangat was having a breakout race, running 2:20:30 for fourth. I don’t think her performance has gotten the attention it deserves. Because I was out on the course taking photos all day, it took me hours to actually look at the results, but Chelangat’s performance was one of the things that immediately jumped out. Chelangat, 28, won the 2020 NCAA Cross Country title (in March 2021) for Alabama and is the 2022 NCAA 10,000m champion. She won her debut marathon in Ottawa last May, running 2:23:33, but finishing just off the podium in her first Boston Marathon is a really nice step forward for her.

Cheptai might have paid for going with Lokedi for as long as she did. In the last two miles, she faded from third to sixth. McClain closed well and caught her in the final strides to take fifth in 2:20:49 (more on that below) and Cheptai was sixth in 2:20:54. Edesa took seventh in 2:21:52 and Hirpa was 11th in 2:23:58.

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Jess McClain runs in the pack early in the race. (Photo by Amy Roberts)

Jess McClain runs the fastest time ever by a U.S. woman in Boston

Last year, Jess McClain (seventh, 2:22:43) and Annie Frisbie (eighth, 2:23:21) had great days at the Boston Marathon, and this year, both managed to top their performances. McClain took fifth in a PR of 2:20:49 and Frisbie was eighth again, but improved her personal best to 2:22:00.

Shalane Flanagan previously held the fastest time by a U.S. woman on the Boston course, with her 2:22:02 from 2014, and both McClain and Frisbie surpassed that.

Former New Englander Emily Sisson has raced in the city of Boston enough that it’s a little surprising that this was her first Boston Marathon. But she had a strong showing, finishing ninth in 2:22:39. When you’re the American record holder, it’s hard to PR, but she said in an Instagram reel that it felt like a step in the right direction for her after some ups and downs in recent years, and I would agree.

And Carrie Ellwood…I thought she ran one of the most exciting races of the day. She has proven her strength at everything from the 5K to the 25K in recent years, but she just hadn’t put together the kind of marathon she was capable of yet. And she’s been at it for a while. She made her debut in Chicago in 2021, running 2:31:51, and in the four marathons she had run since, she hadn’t been able to improve upon that. But on Monday, she had a massive breakthrough, finishing 10th in 2:22:53 and taking eight minutes, 58 seconds off of her PR. The sixth time’s a charm. I look forward to hearing more of her thoughts on the race and how she pulled it off.

Dakotah Popehn was the next U.S. runner across the line, finishing 12th in 2:24:04. It was clear she wanted more, but it was a 16-second personal best.

Her Minnesota Distance Elite teammate, Elena Hayday, had another one of the great breakthroughs of the day, finishing 13th in 2:24:45. Unlike everyone in front of her, Hayday didn’t go with the lead pack. She trailed the leaders by 65 seconds at halfway, but after 25K, she began to reel in some of her competitors. After spending 2023-25 stuck in the 2:30-2:31 range, Hayday PRed by six minutes, six seconds.

Kodi Kleven also had a huge day, finishing 14th in 2:24:48, and because she spent a decent amount of time leading the race, it left a lot of people wondering who she was. Kleven first made this newsletter when she won the 2021 St. George Marathon in her debut at the distance, running 2:32:45 on the downhill course at age 29. I noted at the time that she ran collegiately for Utah Valley University and then BYU, but suffered from injuries and health issues over the years.

She won St. George two more times, in 2024 and 2025, and lowered the course record to 2:28:42 last October. (The race has a net elevation loss of 2,517 feet.) I came to associate her name with downhill races, but she’s also done some strong trail racing. She ran Boston in 2:37:25 last year, and then took a step forward, running 2:29:18 to finish eighth at CIM in December.

Her run on Monday was a breakout performance. Given her racing history, I was not surprised that she felt at ease on the downhills of the Boston course. Her first half split—1:11:02—was also a PR. She’s coached by Ed Eyestone and is another athlete benefiting from the Run Elite Program’s support of athletes in Utah. (Runner’s World has more about her here.)

In her second marathon, Amanda Vestri finished 15th in a personal best of 2:24:49. She clearly had mixed feelings about her performance, but it’s another step in the right direction.

NAZ Elite’s Paige Wood ran 2:26:34, her fastest time since becoming a mom and only 32 seconds off of her PR, to finish 17th. And Madey Dickson was the 10th American across the line and 18th among the women, running 2:28:12, a 45-second personal best.

Until Monday, Nell Rojas’ 2:24:51 was the 10th-fastest time a U.S. woman had ever run on the Boston course. Here’s the new list, and kudos to Joan Benoit Samuelson for hanging in there, despite all of the technological advancements we’ve seen in the past 43 years.

All-time top 10 times by U.S. women in Boston
1. Jess McClain 2:20:49 (2026)
2. Annie Frisbie 2:22:00 (2026)
3. Shalane Flanagan 2:22:02 (2014)
4. Emma Bates 2:22:10 (2023)
5. Des Linden 2:22:38 (2011)
6. Emily Sisson 2:22:39 (2026)
7. Joan Benoit Samuelson 2:22:43 (1983)
7. McClain 2:22:43 (2025)
9. Carrie Ellwood 2:22:53 (2026)
10. Jordan (Hasay) Hogan 2:23:00 (2017)

L-R: Dakotah Popehn, Carrie Ellwood, Jess McClain, Mary Ngugi-Cooper, Izzi Batt-Doyle, Irine Cheptai, and Kodi Kleven lead the way through Wellesley. (Photo by Amy Roberts)

Additional Winners

• Great Britain’s Eden Rainbow-Cooper won the wheelchair division in 1:30:51, Switzerland’s Catherine Debrunner took second in 1:32:59, and Tatyana McFadden was third in 1:36:43. Rainbow-Cooper also won Boston in 2024, and she is still only 24 years old. Switzerland’s Manuela Schär, who finished fourth this year, holds the course record of 1:28:17 from 2017, but Rainbow-Cooper’s time is the second-fastest ever by a woman on the Boston course.

• The following athletes won their age groups: Sara Hall (40-44, 2:31:55), Lisa Weightman (45-49, 2:32:41), Juliet Hershey-Beatty (50-54, 2:56:16), Tania Tasaka (55-59, 3:03:00), Lisa Veneziano (60-64, 3:00:37), Tomoko Yamada (65-69, 3:15:31), Jennifer Kellett (70-74, 3:41:01), Sharlet Gilbert (75-79, 4:16:30), Diane Leonard (80+, 4:32:37).

• And these athletes won their respective categories in the Para Athletics division:
  T62/T64; T42/T44 (Lower-limb impairment): Kelly Bruno, 3:14:09
  T20 (Intellectual impairment): Esmee Anne De Meulmeester, 3:20:15
  T45-T47 (Upper-limb impairment): Caroline Reilly, 3:29:49
  T11/T12 (Vision impairment): Jessie Waterman, 3:50:41
  T13 (Vision impairment): Caitlin Lee, 3:44:17
  T35-T38 (Coordination impairment): Cristina Burbach, 3:43:54
  T61/T63/T43 (Lower-limb impairment): Meghan Bradshaw, 4:03:37

• The winner of the nonbinary division was Winter Parts, who ran 2:30:04.

Des Linden and her husband, Ryan Linden, approach halfway.

Other Boston Marathon Notes

• Des Linden was the top woman from the mass start, running 2:35:49 and finishing 30th among the women. It’s a remarkable accomplishment given that it came only nine days after she finished the Marathon des Sables, a 250+ kilometer stage race across the Moroccan Sahara. But put Linden on the Boston course and she knows what to do. She paced her husband, Ryan, until the Newton hills (and grabbed a beer along the way) before taking off. She didn’t need a qualifier for the 2028 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, because she has already qualified by virtue of being a member of the 2016 U.S. Olympic marathon squad, but now she has one. I enjoyed her recap of her race on the latest episode of Nobody Asked Us.

• By my count, 21 U.S. women ran under the 2028 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifying time of 2:37:00 in Boston, and I believe eight of them were new qualifiers: Carrie Ellwood, Paige Wood, Erin Del Giudice (24th, 2:33:54), Monica Hebner (29th, 2:35:11), Linden (sort of), Olivia Taber (32nd, 2:36:37), Katie Florio (33rd, 2:36:38), and Marybeth Chelanga (35th, 2:36:45). According to USATF, that brings the total number of women who have hit the qualifying standard to 134.

• At last year’s Boston Marathon, Great Britain’s Calli Hauger-Thackery finished sixth in 2:22:38. This year, she ran 2:43:58, 22 weeks into her pregnancy. She said the first half was a rollercoaster ride, with two stops at medical tents to deal with a trapped nerve, but the second half went much better. This Runner’s World story has more detail about her run. She has gotten more media attention for running pregnant than she likely would have for earning another top 10 finish. So not only is supporting pregnant pros the right thing to do, it can also be a good business decision.

• When I saw that 609 women broke 3:00 this year, I knew that had to be a record, so I decided to make another graph. The previous record, set last year, was 385. The weather definitely played a role, but that’s a pretty ridiculous jump. (The results from 2000 and earlier are kind of a pain to access, so I had to put some real work in here!)

• It was also a historic day for the pros. Until this year, there have been only 33 sub-2:23 performances in the history of the race. But this year, a record-breaking 10 women dipped under 2:23.

• A total of 29,025 runners officially finished the race, including 12,579 women and 106 nonbinary runners.

• The oldest finisher of this year’s marathon was Carol Wright, 84, who ran 5:44:39, more than 12 minutes faster than last year. Because there’s only an 80+ age group and qualifying time (5:20), it gets significantly harder to qualify for Boston as time goes on. All of the other 60+ age groups get an additional 15 minutes every five years. So this is my official petition to add an 85-89 age group and qualifying time! If Wright can finish the race next year, and no new players enter the scene, she could become the oldest woman to officially complete the race. (Katherine Beiers finished the 2018 Boston Marathon, which featured some of the worst weather in the race’s history, when she was 85, but her finish wasn’t fast enough to be considered official.)

• Sharon Lokedi and John Korir threw out the first pitches at the Red Sox game on Tuesday night. I appreciated that Lokedi’s coach posted a video of her practicing in the streets of Boston ahead of time.

• I enjoyed WCVB’s post-race interview with Lokedi, in which she mentioned being spurred on by a little girl along the course who yelled, “You’ve got this, ladies,” and texting with Hellen Obiri before the race.

• Breanna Sieracki, who was hoping to break 2:30, experienced some of the worst chafing of all time, and still managed to finish the race in 2:53:55.

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I am extremely thankful for Amy Roberts’ help covering the race again this year. She got some incredible shots from the women’s lead vehicle. I’ve shared some of them here, and many more on Instagram. And I am so grateful to the B.A.A. for giving her that access. I went through all of Amy’s photos before I watched the broadcast, and I felt like I had already seen almost everything.

I spent 4+ hours out on the course on Monday taking photos of all of the fast women I could spot. I really noticed the increased depth among the women in the mass race. I had only three people in my tracker (Des Linden, Suni Williams, and Carol Wright), and I was happy to spot them all, and I also had a bonus Chelsea Clinton sighting. My sister very kindly helped me out again this year and I definitely would have missed Williams, whose bib wasn’t visible when she went by, without her help. Marathon spectating should be its own sport. I still have 18,000 photos to sort through (do not recommend) so I will slowly be reliving all of it, eventually.

What a year, though. In my many years of attending the Boston Marathon, I don’t remember ever experiencing better weather on race day. (I missed the 2011 race.) And it’s just incredible how much deeper the women’s field has become.

Thanks again to SOAR for supporting Fast Women this month. There’s still time to enter their giveaway. And thanks to all of you who support this newsletter via Venmo and Patreon, this newsletter would not exist without you.

Alison