Fast Women: Hellen Obiri leads record-breaking day in NYC
And a three-peat for Annie Rodenfels
Issue 379, sponsored by Bakline
Hellen Obiri takes down a 22-year-old record and returns to the top of the podium in NYC
In recent years, the women’s pro race at the New York City Marathon has gone out relatively conservatively. But not this year. Whether it was the threat of Sifan Hassan’s kick at the end or the great weather, the racing started much earlier this time out. Last week, I questioned who in the field would be willing to push the pace. It turned out Kenya’s Sheila Chepkirui, the defending champion, was eager to keep the pace going, and much of the field was happy to go with her for as long as they could.
The lead pack started to break up just before halfway, which Chepkirui, Fiona O’Keeffe, and Kenya’s Sharon Lokedi and Hellen Obiri hit in 1:11:01, nearly three minutes faster than last year. Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands trailed by about five seconds, but she yo-yoed off the back of the pack and caught back up several times throughout the race. O’Keeffe did some yo-yoing too, though not as much. And both of them dropped back for good around 19 miles in.
After that, it was a three-woman battle among the races’s last three champions: Chepkirui (2024), Obiri (2023), and Lokedi (2022). They remained together as they entered Central Park, but at the 24-mile mark, Lokedi started to push the pace, and Chepkirui began to drop back. Once again, a major marathon would end with an Obiri vs. Lokedi duel.
Since they began their marathoning careers in New York City three years ago, Obiri and Lokedi have had nearly identical marathon calendars. They had raced six times over the distance and Obiri had the edge, 4 to 2. But the last time they met, at April’s Boston Marathon, Lokedi prevailed. After winning Boston 2023, New York 2023, and Boston 2024 back to back, Obiri hadn’t won a marathon in a year and a half.
But when Obiri made a move with about 1K to go, Lokedi was unable to respond. Obiri pulled away and became the first woman to break 2:20 in New York City, running 2:19:51 and winning by 16 seconds. She took a whopping 2 minutes, 40 seconds off Margaret Okayo’s 2:22:31 course record that stood for 22 years, earning $100,000 for the win and an additional $50,000 for breaking the record.
Lokedi (second, 2:20:07) and Chepkirui (third, 2:20:24) also finished well under the previous record. They earned $60,000 and $40,000, respectively. The top three runners negative-split the race, with Obiri running 1:11:01/1:08:50 half marathons.
After she fell off the lead group, O’Keeffe slowed a bit in the closing miles, but she hung on admirably and finished fourth in 2:22:49, the fastest time a U.S. woman had ever run in NYC, by nearly two minutes. She earned $25,000 for finishing fourth and another $25,000 for being the top American.
In her marathon debut in February 2024, O’Keeffe showed that she was a natural in the event by winning the Olympic Trials. But the remainder of her year was a trying experience. What turned out to be a femoral stress fracture caused her to drop out of the Olympic marathon before 5K, and she spent the rest of the year healing. Since then, O’Keeffe has built back slowly and focused on shorter distances. She had some solid performances this year, including a 1:07:46 runner-up performance at the NYC Half Marathon in March. But it’s clear that at this point, the marathon is her best distance.
Annie Frisbie also had a banner day, following up her eighth-place, 2:23:21 performance in Boston with a 2:24:12 for fifth here. She earned $15,000 for placing fifth and another $15,000 for being the second American across the line.
Sifan Hassan struggled significantly over the last 10K, but she hung on to take sixth in 2:24:43. “I simply didn’t have the legs to join the podium today, but the experience is one to never forget,” she wrote on Instagram.
In her debut at the distance, Great Britain’s Jessica Warner-Judd ran a strong 2:24:45 to take seventh. Despite getting sick during the taper, Emily Sisson took a step in the right direction, running 2:25:05 for eighth. Amanda Vestri had an excellent debut, running 2:25:40 to take ninth. And Ireland’s Fionnuala McCormack finished 10th and won the masters division in 2:27:00, only seven weeks after finishing ninth at the world championships. Susanna Sullivan, who was also doubling back from worlds, finished 11th in 2:28:34.
Notable DNFs included Molly Seidel, who made it to mile 23, Sara Hall who dropped after mile 21, and Sara Vaughn and Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot, who made it to mile 20. Cheruiyot said in an Instagram story that she was dealing with an Achilles injury. Ethiopia’s Gotytom Gebreselase, the 2022 world champion, was surprisingly off the back of the pack by 10K, and she dropped out after mile 15. And Kellyn Taylor did not start the race. (Leaderboard | Searchable results)
Update: As I mentioned in the 11/10 newsletter, scratch everything I said about when people dropped out of the race. The tracker continued to update even after some athletes were done for the day. Seidel made it to mile 18. Hall said her day ended at mile 17. Cheruiyot said an Achilles injury forced her to stop after halfway. But Vaughn did indeed make it to mile 20.
All-time fastest performances at the NYC Marathon:
1. 2:19:51, Hellen Obiri, 2025 (first)
2. 2:20:07, Sharon Lokedi, 2025 (second)
3. 2:20:24, Sheila Chepkirui, 2025 (third)
4. 2:22:31 Margaret Okayo, 2003 (first)
5. 2:22:38, Joyciline Jepkosgei, 2019 (first)
6. 2:22:39, Peres Jepchirchir, 2021 (first)
7. 2:22:44, Viola Cheptoo, 2021 (second)
8. 2:22:48, Mary Keitany, 2018 (first)
9. 2:22:49, Fiona O’Keeffe, 2025 (fourth)
10. 2:22:52, Ababel Yeshaneh, 2021 (third)
All-time fastest performances by U.S. women at the NYC Marathon:
1. 2:22:49, Fiona O’Keeffe, 2025 (fourth)
2. 2:24:12, Annie Frisbie, 2025 (fifth)
3. 2:24:42, Molly Seidel, 2021 (fourth)
4. 2:25:05, Emily Sisson, 2025 (eighth)
5. 2:25:40, Amanda Vestri, 2025 (ninth)
6. 2:25:53, Kara Goucher, 2008 (third)
7. 2:26:10, Kellyn Taylor, 2021 (sixth)
8. 2:26:18, Annie Frisbie, 2021 (seventh)
8. 2:26:18, Aliphine Tuliamuk, 2022 (seventh)
10. 2:26:22, Shalane Flanagan, 2018 (third)
Other NYC Marathon Notes
In the wheelchair division, Susannah Scaroni won her third title in four years, covering the course in 1:42:10.
The following runners qualified for the 2028 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in NYC: Annie Frisbie, Amanda Vestri, Elena Hayday (12th, 2:31:22), Steph Bruce (13th, 2:33:26), and Felicia Pasadyn (14th, 2:35:17). Fiona O’Keeffe, Emily Sisson, and Susanna Sullivan were already qualified.
It was amusing to follow Aliphine Tuliamuk’s updates on race day. She ran NYC last year. This year, she was scheduled to be induced the evening of the race, but she went into labor on her own, while watching the race. And she was posting things like, “These [athletes] better run fast, because I am already having contractions.” And later, she wrote how much she loves America because she can get an epidural here. Her hope is to make her marathon return in NYC next year. More about that on this week’s Fast People podcast, details below.
The following athletes won their age groups: Brazil’s Marlei Willers (45-49, 2:41:58), Japan’s Mai Fujisawa (50-54, 2:55:52), Australia’s Krishna Stanton (55-59, 2:54:29), Mexico’s Maria Yamin Morales (60-64, 3:02:31), Gwen Jacobson (65-69, 3:17:57), Great Britain’s Andrea Simmons (70-74, 3:37:48), Kate Stewart (75-79, 4:12:35), and Great Britain’s Patricia Gibson (80-89, 6:41:43).
The top woman from the mass race was New York City’s Sarah Chandler, who finished 16th in 2:39:50.
A number of former professional runners ran NYC this year. Among them were Rebecca Mehra (2:42:49 in her debut), University of Florida coach Samantha Palmer (2:46:52) Maddie Alm (3:07:48), sisters Collier Lawrence (3:18:06) and Mel (Lawrence) Briggs (3:18:04), two-time Olympian Nicole (Teter) Downin (3:36:27), and Olympian Julie Culley (3:46:20). Current pro Des Linden, who is retired from elite marathoning, ran the race with celebrity Anthony Ramos and finished in 4:44:29.
After noticing a sharp spike at some point, I started tracking the number of women who broke 3:00 at the New York City Marathon each year. Last year’s race produced the most sub-3:00 performances ever, by far, with 203, and this year’s race tied that. Until last year, 2019 had the most, with 108.
According to the results, a record-breaking 59,226 runners finished the race.
Thanks to Bakline for their continued support in November
Major congrats to all our NYC finishers! If you crossed a finish line this season, you probably didn’t do it alone. Somewhere along the course, someone was holding a gel, a bottle, or a cowbell—shouting your name, believing in you even when you doubted yourself. We’re all the recipients of that kind of love and faith, and it makes every mile possible.
Our Support Your Local Runner capsule is for everyone who stands on the sidelines for hours in the wind and rain, losing their voice for teammates, friends, and strangers giving their all. The marathon experience would be far less joyful without the thousands who show up to cheer.
And for those heading to their next start line—like Philly—our race collections are ready for what’s next.
ICYMI: Our NY Performance and Lifestyle collections are here to celebrate your NY finish. As always, Fast Women subscribers get a really special code fastwomen, worth 20% off during the course of our sponsorship.
A three-peat for Annie Rodenfels in NYC
Saturday morning’s Dash to the Finish Line 5K, held in conjunction with the New York City Marathon, came down to a four-way 200m sprint, and two-time defending champion Annie Rodenfels prevailed, winning in 15:33. In recent years, the race has served as the USATF 5K Championship, but this year, it was just a 5K with a quality field.
With 800m remaining in the race, Rodenfels had dropped a few strides behind the lead trio of Weini Kelati, Elle St. Pierre, and Parker Valby. It was enough that the on-screen graphic listed her in the “chase” category rather than as one of the leaders. But anyone who has seen Rodenfels kick knows it’s not over until it’s over. And she knows how to run the NYC course.
Kelati responded best to Rodenfels’ move and took second in 15:34. In her first race after having her second child about six months ago, St. Pierre finished third in 15:35. And in her first race since recovering from a navicular fracture, Valby took fourth in 15:37.
I admit that after watching Rodenfels finish a distant second behind Emily Sisson at the Boston 10K for Women three weeks earlier, I put her a little too far down in last week’s preview. But it made me feel better when I saw that she told Race Results Weekly, “Honestly, I felt like I’m less sharp than normal. I feel like I usually come here and I’m raring to go, ready in shape. I took [a longer break]. We’ve been trying to slow it down, so I can be in shape more at the right time. So, I was very surprised [to win] this.”
Rodenfels praised coach Juli Benson, whom she has been working with since May, after the race. And over the summer, Rodenfels moved from Boston to Boulder to train with Meridia, a team that is still working on building its distance squad. She said she’s planning to move up in distance, but it sounds like she’s not ready for a marathon just yet. So maybe she has a half marathon on the horizon?
Valby’s post-race interview with LetsRun was informative. She said that she broke her navicular in February and only got back to running about two months ago. She’s living in Gainesville, Florida, and has returned to working with her college coaches, Will and Samantha Palmer. (I confirmed that both of them are involved.) And as one would expect, it sounds like missing most of her rookie season due to injury took a significant mental toll. She went out to Crested Butte, Colorado, for a month to train with Emma Coburn, who was also returning from injury and has been a good mentor and friend to Valby.
Both Kelati and Valby seemed potentially interested in running next month’s USATF Cross Country Championships with an eye on qualifying for the World Cross Country Championships, which take place in Tallahassee in January. St. Pierre said she’s not planning to race again until the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in February.
St. Pierre seemed pleased with the progress she’s made since having her son in May, but she pointed out that her first child was born in March, so all of her progress is shifted two months later. In an Instagram story last week, she said that her first child was a better sleeper, and now, with her second, “two wakes per night is a ‘good night.’”
One-third of the pro field scratched in advance of the race: Taylor Roe, Elly Henes, Katelyn Tuohy, and Samantha Bush. I was surprised that Alicia Monson was the first to fall off of the pack, around the mile mark. She said in an Instagram story afterward that she got sick two weeks ago. She was concerned that she didn’t have prep time after that, and it turned out she was right. This was apparently her first road race longer than a mile and hopefully it didn’t scare her off. She finished eighth of eight in 16:22.
I was impressed by 47-year-old Roberta Groner, who also ran 16:22 and finished second in the mass race. (Race replay | Results)
Conference championships set the stage for NCAA showdown
BYU first year Jane Hedengren made the biggest statement of NCAA conference meet weekend. At the Big 12 Championships at Rim Rock Farm in Lawrence, Kansas, she took off from the gun, kept her foot on the gas, split 15:20 for 5K, and won in a championship record of 18:29.6 for 6K. She won by 44.7 seconds and led BYU, ranked No. 1, to a dominant victory. Her performance honestly made me wonder if any American woman at any level would be able to outrun her in a cross country race at the moment. (Big 12 Results | Race replay)
In the SEC, Alabama’s Doris Lemngole, who was running her first race since finishing fifth in the steeplechase at the world championships, took a different approach. She chilled in the pack for more than half the race before pulling away in the fourth kilometer and winning by 14+ seconds, in 19:32.4 for 6K. Florida, ranked No. 3, was so dominant that they could have counted their sixth and seventh runners and they still would have won the meet. (SEC Results)
The most competitive race of the weekend came in the ACC. NC State’s Grace Hartman had opened up an eight-plus second lead at 4K, but she slowed in the second half of the race, which allowed her competitors to close the gap. Her teammate, Angelina Napoleon, caught her with a minute remaining and kicked to a 19:13.9 6K win. Last year at ACCs, Napoleon was 59th.
Notre Dame’s Mary Bonner Dalton, who is having a breakthrough season, finished second in 19:14.9, Clemson’s Silvia Jelego was a close third (19:15.2), and Hartman looked like she might have been running into a little bit of trouble at the end, but she hung on to take fourth in 19:16.9. No. 2-ranked NC State went 1-4-5-8-10 and dominated the team race. (ACC Results)
And in the Big Ten, No. 4 Oregon ran so well, with Diana Cherotich, Juliet Cherubet, and Silan Ayyildiz going 1-2-3, that the race lacked some drama up front. (Big Ten Results)
Hedengren looked tough to beat on Saturday, but if anyone’s up for the job, it should be Lemngole. They will race each other only once this season, at the NCAA Championships on November 22. Hedengren’s two races in the NCAA have done little to teach her about racing strategy, because no one can keep up with her. Parker Valby successfully used the hard-from-the-gun strategy to beat Lemngole at NCAAs in 2023. But Lemngole is two years stronger now and one of the top steeplechasers in the world.
And will it be a two-woman race, or could Napoleon, Cherotich, New Mexico’s Pamela Kosgei (who won the Mountain West conference), or someone else challenge? It will also be exciting to see what all of the dominant teams can do when they come together.
Other conference champions included Washington State’s Rosemary Longisa in the WCC, Georgetown’s Melissa Riggins in the Big East, and NAU’s Hayley Burns in the Big Sky.
Other News
I learned after last week’s newsletter went out that Tessa Barrett’s 2:34:11 win at the Marine Corps Marathon unfortunately won’t count as a qualifier for the 2028 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, because the race is not USATF sanctioned. (Certified and sanctioned are two different things.) Barrett ran well under the 2:37:00 standard on a tough course, but situations like this one seem to come up at least once per Trials cycle. Fortunately she still has time to fit in more marathons, and it sounds like she already has a plan for take two. This is a good reminder that if you’re planning to go after a Trials qualifier at one of the slightly less established races, it’s a good idea to check that your race is currently USATF sanctioned and doesn’t drop more than 3.30m/km. (But I can’t fault anyone for assuming Marine Corps was USATF sanctioned; I did the same.)
I just love the detail in this People article that after Susanna Sullivan finished fourth in the marathon at the world championships, her sixth-grade students secretly organized a “Dress Like Mrs. Sullivan Day” in her honor. She also said that given how much she has on her plate, becoming a full-time runner is starting to seem more and more appealing.
Gracie Hyde has joined Meridia, and in her newsletter, Colleen Quigley wrote that Madie Boreman and Katie Camarena have left the group.
Femke Bol of the Netherlands had more to say about her move to the 800m here.
I enjoy hearing more about how the pros are using bicarb, and in this YouTube interview with FloTrack, Molly Seidel said that the first time she used it for a marathon was the 2023 Chicago Marathon, where she ran her PR. She takes it two hours out from the race.
Grayson Murphy found out that she was pregnant a few days before the World Mountain and Trail Running Championships and in her newly launched Substack, she explained her decision to go ahead and start the race.
This case has flown under the radar a bit, but Kenya’s Esther Gitahi, a University of Alabama graduate, was banned for four years after testing positive for EPO at the 2024 B.A.A. 5K, where she finished second in 15:08. You can read about her unsuccessful defense here. She was third in the 5,000m at the 2019 NCAA outdoor T&F championships.
Last week, the Chicago-based DWRunning team posted that one of their runners, a 67-year-old man, was attacked by border patrol following the team’s long run. The runner ended up with six broken ribs and internal bleeding. According to another teammate, he had been training to run the New York City Marathon. The Chicago Area Runners Association released a statement in response to the incident.
After Lauren Fleshman recommended it, I listened to Linda Flanagan’s 2022 book Take Back the Game: How Money and Mania Are Ruining Kids’ Sports—and Why It Matters last week. I thought it did a really good job of capturing many of the issues that plague youth and collegiate sports, including some of the things I wrote about last week. It’s a great read for parents who have kids who are into sports, as well as coaches. And there was much more running-specific content than I was expecting.
Podcast Highlights
I loved getting an Aliphine Tuliamuk update on Fast People, days before she was due to give birth. She said that because of her overlapping pregnancy and recovery from hamstring surgery, she’s in the worst shape of her life at the moment, but she’s looking forward to getting back to work, without rushing the process.
It was good to hear from Molly Huddle on Getting Chicked. I appreciated her thoughts on super shoes, and I was happy to hear her say she’d like to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Marathon Trials. It sounded like she was thinking she’d go for the half marathon standard.
Sharon Lokedi was good on the Podium Athletics podcast.
I appreciated Jess McClain sharing more about her egg retrieval experience, especially, on The Fueling Forward Podcast. That starts after the 55-minute mark.
Maria Lindberg, who I featured two weeks ago, told more of her story on Road to the Trials.
World Athletics announced last week that there will be a World Treadmill Championship, starting next year. I hope it leads to the discovery of some person who runs world-class times on the treadmill every day but never thought to run a race or go outside. I appreciated Des Linden and Kara Goucher’s takes on the matter on Nobody Asked Us with Des and Kara.
I enjoyed hearing Deena Kastor say on the Lactic Acid Podcast that Joan Benoit Samuelson sent her oven mitts that she crocheted to thank Kastor for pushing her to run the Chicago Marathon (after the 32-minute mark).
It was interesting to hear Sara Vaughn say during this For the Long Run live show that her daughter’s coach at NAU has the athletes fuel on any run longer than six miles, and she’s started to do more of that, too. When she was in college, she did 90-minute long runs with no water. Times have definitely changed.
In case it helps anyone, Olympic Marathon Trials qualifier Taylor Dare shared her experience with amenorrhea and infertility on the Period Recovery and Fertility Podcast.
Additional Episodes: Heather MacLean on the Lactic Acid Podcast | Erika Kempon On Her Mark | Addie Bracy on The Trail Network Podcast | Sadie Engelhardt on Beyond the Stride | Keira D’Amato on both The Mother Runners and Still in the Game| Age-group standout Heidi Peoples on The Rambling Runner Podcast
It’s been a very long few days. I finished this up around 4:30 a.m. because the searchable results weren’t available last night. (There was some sleeping in there first.) Thanks again to Bakline for sponsoring Fast Women and to Katrina Gaisford for the photos she took in NYC. I posted some more of them on Instagram.
I hope you all have the best week possible.
Alison
This is a highlight of my Monday mornings, as well! Thank you, Alison for all the work you do to start off the week so informed 🙏🏻🏃🏽♀️
Thanks for the long and informative newsletter, a highlight of my Monday mornings!!