Issue 421
Agnes Ngetich breaks the women’s-only half marathon world record
Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich went into the half marathon at the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Copenhagen as a heavy favorite, and she delivered, winning in a women’s only world record of 1:05:15. Veronica Loleo, also of Kenya, ran one of the best races of her career, kicking away from the chase pack to earn silver in 1:06:05, and Florence Niyonkuru also had an excellent day, winning bronze in a Rwandan record of 1:06:08.
Kenya’s Daisilah Jerono finished fourth in 1:06:03, securing the team title for Kenya. Emma Grace Hurley (fifth, 1:06:23), Weini Kelati (sixth, 1:06:35), and Jess McClain (seventh, 1:06:53) took the next three spots and earned silver for the U.S.
Ngetich took the race out hard from the start, and it was fun to see so many women—including all four scoring Americans—hop on the train and essentially say, “Let’s go!” Ngetich broke the race open during the fourth kilometer and no one came close after that, but her aggressive pace set the tone for the race and helped a lot of other women to fast times. Though she finished more than two minutes slower than her personal best, Ngetich shaved one second off of the women’s-only world record that Peres Jepchirchir set in 2020.
I was particularly impressed by Hurley, who managed to hang with the chase pack, in the medal hunt, for about 57 minutes. Though U.S. men’s distance running has never been better, I’ve gotten rather used to the U.S. women struggling to contend in championship distance races in recent years. There are exceptions, but they usually involve warm conditions. It was really fun to see the top three have excellent days in a fast race, especially given all the controversy that surrounded the selection race last March, due to a lead vehicle routing the top runners off course.
In the end, USATF and World Athletics came up with the best solution possible, with the U.S. entering the athletes who likely would have made the team as its scorers, and giving the runners who did technically make the team the opportunity to run as non-scorers. The saga created a lot of noise for those involved, so it was particularly great to see the episode end on such a high note.
Hurley’s time, a 72-second PR, moved her to third on the U.S. all-time list and is a women’s-only American record. Kelati, who holds the outright American record of 1:06:04, broke 67 minutes for the fourth time, and McClain took one minute, 44 seconds off of her personal best and moved to sixth on the U.S. all-time list. It was the first time three U.S. women have broken 67 minutes in the same race. And all of the faster times U.S. women have run have come in mixed-gender, rabbited races.
Ednah Kurgat, the final athlete eligible to score for the U.S., had a solid day as well, finishing 17th in a 14-second personal best of 1:08:11. The other two U.S. women in the race were not allowed to form packs with the other Americans, but that was no problem because they didn’t go out quite as fast. Neither was thrilled with their performance, but Carrie Ellwood finished 17th in 1:09:12 and Annie Rodenfels finished 41st in 1:11:02, with both gaining valuable international experience. The third U.S. athlete who would have been a non-scorer, Molly Born, opted not to line up in Copenhagen. But on September 10, this post from Puma Elite appeared to indicate she was still on track to race the Chicago Marathon.
Former University of North Dakota runner Jadyn Keeler, who just went pro, also faced a challenge in her selection race, when the course at the Edmonton Half Marathon turned out to be a bit long. Running her first accurately measured half marathon, Keeler finished 16th in 1:08:03, shaving 95 seconds off of the Canadian record. (Seeing Keeler have so much success at the distance right out of college makes me wonder what some of the other NCAA athletes could do if they stepped up in distance.)
Morocco’s Fatima Ezzahra Birdaha (ninth, 1:07:33), Eritrea’s Dolshi Tesfu (26th, 1:09:34), Peru’s Sheyla Eulogio Paucar (28th, 1:09:42), Uruguay’s Julia Paternain (36th, 1:10:42), Guatemala’s Viviana Aroche Lopez (37th, 1:10:53), Austria’s Julia Mayer (38th, 1:10:54), Andorra’s Ariadna Fenes (81st, 1:15:03), and Honduras’ Valeria Jazmin Amaya Meija (105th, 1:29:48) also set national records. (Half marathon results | Race highlights)
In the 5K, Ethiopia’s Likina Amebaw earned a convincing win in 14:41, only six days after winning the 5,000m at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship. She ran an aggressive race from the start and began to pull away from Kenya’s Caroline Makandi Gitonga for good just before 4K.
The battle for the final two medals was a good one, as Gitonga fought to hold on to second place, and Australia’s Rose Davies and South Africa’s Tayla Kavanagh worked together to reel in Ethiopia’s Aleshign Baweke, who ran in third much of the way. Gitonga narrowly held her ground, earning silver in 14:48, and Davies kicked her way to the bronze medal, in an Oceanian record of 14:50. Kavanagh ran one of the best races of her career to take fourth in 14:51 and Baweke was fifth in 14:53.
Allie Ostrander was the top U.S. finisher, taking 12th in a personal best of 15:10, and Courtney Frerichs finished 17th in 15:25. Led by Amebaw, Ethiopia dominated the team competition. (5K results | 5K highlights)
In the mile, France’s Agathe Guillemot shadowed the runners around her for most of the race. With just under 30 seconds remaining, Guillemot moved past Ethiopia’s Freweyni Hailu and kicked to her first world title in a pending European record of 4:22.74, surpassing the pending mark that Jemma Reekie set 13 days earlier. Hailu, who doubled at the previous week’s World Athletics Ultimate Championship, took second in 4:24.35, and Kenya’s Mirriam Cherop had a strong run to earn bronze in 4:25.71.
Though Guillemot, 27, is consistently in the hunt in 1500m finals at major championships, this was the biggest win of her career, and she was clearly thrilled, hamming it up for the cameras afterward. And I appreciated this video of her celebratory jump into the port of Copenhagen, which has to be rather chilly at this time of year. It’s fun to see anyone enjoy winning as much as she did.
It was also great to see Denmark’s Annemarie Nissen, a member of the M11 Track Club, run the best race of her career and take fourth (4:26.78) in front of a home crowd. Americans Addy Wiley (4:31.02) and Gracie Hyde (4:31.92) took 10th and 11th, respectively, and combined with Yared Nuguse (second, 3:52.33) and Vincent Ciattei (eighth, 3:54.62) to win team gold ahead of Australia and Kenya, based on total time for all four runners. (Mile results | Race highlights)
Kazimierska puts an exclamation point on her season, Hodgkinson debuts her speedsuit, and questions remain about the future of Athlos
I managed to watch most of the World Athletics Road Running Championships live, despite much of it being in the middle of the night in the U.S. But Athlos’ London debut took place on a Friday afternoon in the U.S., and I had more important overlapping commitments, so I ended up watching most of the broadcast on double speed later that evening. As a result, I can’t really weigh in on the pacing of the meet or the vibes.
From a distance, on high speed, it seemed great. I appreciated that the broadcast made it feel like more of a sporting event, where the outcome of the races mattered, this year, and some of the matchups were quite good.
It was exciting to get to watch most of the same athletes face off in the mile for a third weekend in a row. It looked like Great Britain’s Georgia Hunter Bell might finally get the best of Poland’s Klaudia Kazimierska, but coming up the homestretch, Hunter Bell drifted wide in an attempt to hold off Kenya’s Dorcus Ewoi, and she ended up opening up a path for Kazimierska to kick to the win.
The last two weeks of Kazimierska’s track season were incredible. She swept the Diamond League final, the World Ultimate Championship, and Athlos, earning $275,000 in prize money in the process. Because the focus at Athlos was on racing, I didn’t realize until writing this two days later that her winning time was 4:19.43, with Hunter Bell running 4:19.54 and Ewoi running 4:19.85. Nikki Hiltz, the lone American in the field, finished fourth in 4:22.27.
The other middle-distance event, the 800m, felt more like an exhibition, because Great Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson was in a class of her own. She showed up in a one-of-a-kind, full-length, hooded speed suit designed by Nike—and it was the perfect place to debut it, because her odds of winning were high, and bold fashion statements go over best when one is leading the way.
I heard some mixed opinions on the suit, but I am always in favor of athletes mixing up what they wear, and I think track & field regularly misses opportunities for athletes to show off more looks. Also, I liked hearing Hodgkinson say she put her foot down when, for performance reasons, Nike wanted her hair to go in the suit, too.
It was fun to see the home crowd’s enthusiasm as she pulled away over the final 200m and won 1:56.40 to 1:58.75 over Switzerland’s Valentina Rosamilia. The two U.S. athletes in the field, Juliette Whittaker (2:00.46) and Raevyn Rogers (2:01.12) finished fourth and sixth, respectively.
At the end of the broadcast, Athlos founder Alexis Ohanian, who truly seems to have trouble keeping a secret, said he’s not allowed to talk about what’s to come for Athlos, but in the days leading up to the event, he said plenty. He told ESPN that there will probably be multiple Athos events next year, and that he hopes to have as many as six in 2028. And he hinted to ESPN that Athlos might play a role in developing the next generation of athletes. He also told the PA News Agency that Athlos will eventually include male athletes.
I appreciate that he has become so passionate about helping celebrate track & field athletes. As event organizers try more things, some will stick. And competition to attract athletes is good, because it requires everyone to raise their game. (Kind of like how having way too many high school national championships leads all of the event organizers to continue to strive to do better.) I don’t think the World Athletics Ultimate Championships would have been what they were without competition from Grand Slam and Athlos.
I’ll be very curious to see what Ohanian can pull off, and if it can gain traction. He’s skilled at getting news outlets to report on what he’s promising, and it would be great if he can eventually get them to turn that attention toward the athletes’ performances. I hope Ohanian can work with World Athletics to find a spot in the calendar that makes sense. (Athlos results | 800m replay | Mile replay | Full broadcast)
Other News
In sickening news, a federal lawsuit filed last week alleges that a 16-year-old track athlete was raped by another participant while attending a Nike Elite Program gathering in July. The lawsuit claims that Nike and National Scholastic Athletics Foundation staff members urged the victim to say that the attack was consensual and requested that the family not contact law enforcement. (They did anyway.)
Keely Hodgkinson shared last week that a scan of her hamstring revealed that where most people have a single tendon, she has two. She has had recurring issues with her hamstring, and her team is still trying to figure out whether the congenital abnormality is a strength or a weakness.
World Athletics announced last week that Nairobi beat out London and Rome and will host the World Athletics Championships in 2029, and Munich will host in 2031. It’s the first time that the championship will be held in Africa. Critics of the decision are arguing that until Kenya gets a better handle on its doping problems, it shouldn’t be allowed to host.
U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier and medical resident Felicia Pasadyn shared that on September 9, she was hit by a car in Gainesville, Florida, while running. She suffered seven fractures, bleeding in her abdomen, and severe puncture wounds in her knee, among other injuries. There is a GoFundMe to support her as she recovers.
The same day, former Bradley University and University of Oregon runner Julia Nielsen shared that she was hit by a car while cycling and underwent surgery after suffering multiple fractures. Nielsen, who represents Sweden, ran her 1500m personal best of 4:10 earlier this year, and her twin sister, Wilma, raced at the World Road Running Championships over the weekend.
When Shelby Houlihan returned from her four-year doping ban early in 2025, I was curious to see whether any shoe companies would determine sponsoring her was a good financial decision. In her first year back, she won the 5,000m at the USATF Outdoor Championships, she won a silver medal at world indoors, and finished fourth at outdoor worlds. She was one of the best U.S. distance runners, but understandably, none of the major brands bit. (Or, if they did, they didn’t offer anything she deemed worth accepting.) She did have some support, but it was from a smaller brand, called Easy Day. Houlihan has had an up and down year in 2026, but last week, Skechers announced that she would be the first athlete to represent their AERO series. I’d be curious to hear if hitching their wagon to Houlihan turns out to be an effective marketing strategy, but I imagine much of their target audience will see all of her accolades and won’t necessarily know the whole story. In a Q&A with Runner’s World, Houlihan said that she’s now being coached by her fiancé, Riley Wattier.
Ethiopia’s Ruti Aga, the 2019 Tokyo Marathon champion, has been provisionally suspended by the AIU after testing positive for methylprednisolone and for tampering with the investigation.
Additional Results
Courtney Olsen won the IAU 100K World Championships in Spain on Sunday. Racing in 90 degree weather, she covered the course in 7:10:31 (6:55/mile), finishing 86 seconds ahead of Japan’s Miho Nakata. Allison Mercer was the next U.S. finisher across the line, taking 15th in 7:39:55, and Laura Cortez finished 73rd in 9:53:22. (Results)
Kenya’s Mercy Chelangat, of NAZ Elite, won the Philadelphia Distance Run half marathon in 1:09:22. Annamaria Kostarellis took second (1:11:00) and Susanna Sullivan was third (1:11:56). (Results)
Biruktayit Degefa won the Cow Harbor 10K in 32:18, with Kassie Parker taking second in 32:27. (Results)
Marisa Howard won The Boulevard Race in Spokane, Washington, running 20:49 for four miles. (Results)
Stephanie Bruce, 42, won the Bronx 10 Miler in 54:50, and Roberta Groner, 48, took second in a personal best of 55:03. (Results)
Anna Gibson won the Pikes Peak Ascent half marathon in 2:37:22. (Results)
Hannah Allgood won the Run Rabbit Run 100 Mile in 19:01:59 and earned $20,000. The race got a lot of attention last week after announcing that the winners of the 2027 and 2028 races will earn $100,000 each. (iRunFar recap)
Eastern Kentucky’s Brighter Jepchumba won a battle of the first years at the John McNichols Invitational in Terre Haute, Indiana, outkicking Indiana’s Katy Zang to win 19:14.0 to 19:15.7. Both went well under Sally Kipyego’s record of 19:28.1 on the storied course, which had stood since 2008. NAU won the team title over Utah, 61 to 107. And this is your annual reminder that in cross country, the low score wins. (Results)
NC State’s Bethany Michalak won the Adidas XC Challenge in Cary, North Carolina, running 16:34.2 for 5K and leading her team to a win. (Results)
Podcast Highlights
I appreciated hearing Lauren Gregory discuss how fueling better has been a game changer in her running career on The Fueling Forward Podcast. She discussed some of the same topics in her latest YouTube video as well.
On Trackside with Maddie Mooney, a new podcast, Roisin Willis said that she dealt with low iron this summer.
I appreciated getting an Annie Rodenfels update on I’ll Have Another in advance of the World Road Running Championships.
I enjoyed hearing post-collegiate runner Amalia Dorion, who has a significant social media following, discuss her goal of qualifying for the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials on D3 Glory Days.
It was interesting to hear from age-group record setters Jenny Hitchings and Jan Holmquist on Still Running, another new podcast.
Carolina Rubio MacWright and Vanessa Chavarriaga Posada continue to discuss some of the issues that matter most and how they intersect with the outdoor industry on the latest episode of Mangonada.
Additional Episodes: Anna Benedettini and Kodi Kleven on Road to the Trials | Meg Eckert discussed her six-day world record on The Freetrail Podcast | Jenny Simpson on Mentor Buffet | Meghan Canfield discussed how she has changed her training over time on Women of Distance
It’s a busy time of year in the running world, with track season, marathon/road racing season, trail racing season, and cross country season all overlapping a bit. There may still be a track meet here or there, but Athlos essentially marked the end of the track season, until things start up again in December.
My life is still incredibly hectic, I am still in the process of deep cleaning my entire house to deal with our moth infestation, and because I am also cleaning it out, things are moving slowly. (But my editor, Sarah Lorge Butler, went above and beyond by coming to help me clean for several hours earlier this week!)
It’s still going to be a while before things settle down here, and I figure out what our new normal looks like. In the meantime, I am spending less time on social media (which is quite nice) and I don’t have time to do any athlete profiles. But those will eventually return.
Generous support from readers, via Venmo and Patreon have helped keep this newsletter keep going this month, and you can also help support Fast Women by using this link when you shop at Running Warehouse. (And newsletter readers can use the code FASTWOMEN to save 20% on clothing and socks, and 10% on clearance shoes, nutrition, and hats. The code helps you, and using the link helps Fast Women.)
Thanks so much to all of you for bearing with me in a really tough year, and I hope you all have the best week possible.
Alison
I've seen Anne Marie Nissen train for years now and she is one of the loveliest and hardest working people on the circuit. Imo her 4th place was finally a true reflection of her talent!
Surrounding you with love and gentleness Alison.