Runners battle gusty winds to complete the 44th New York City Marathon
Runners battle gusty winds to complete the 44th New York City Marathon
Runners cross the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge at the start of the New York City Marathon on November 2.
Whipping winds and chilly temperatures tested New York City Marathon runners on Sunday. Despite the tough conditions, an estimated 50,000 people completed the 26.2-mile course. They wound their way from the starting line in Staten Island through Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx toward the finish line in Manhattan's Central Park.
Wilson Kipsang from Kenya won the marathon in 2 hours, 10 minutes, 59 seconds. Because of the wind, his time was the slowest winning time in New York since 1995. It was more than seven and a half minutes off the world record he set just over a year ago in Berlin. The runners adjusted carefully to 30 mph winds by sticking to a slow pace at the start. "It was very tactical," Kipsang said. "So it was not easy."
Mary Keitany, also from Kenya, won the women’s title with a final time of 2:25:07. In her previous NYC Marathon, Keitany took an early lead but this year she held back. She and Kenya’s Jemima Sumgong entered Central Park side by side, and Sumgong appeared to be pulling away with just over a mile left. But Keitany had one last burst left and won by 3 seconds. It was the tightest finish in the history of the women's race. "In the closing miles, my target was to win," Sumgong said, "but it was Mary's day."
An Honored Tradition
The New York City Marathon has grown from a Central Park race with 55 finishers to the world's biggest and most popular marathon. Sunday was the 44th edition of the NYC Marathon. The race had its millionth finisher in history.
Meb Keflezighi won first place for American Men with a final time of 2:13:18. Desiree Linden won first place for American Women with 2:28:11. It was so windy that the wheelchair race started at the 3-mile mark because it was too dangerous to roll across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge. Kurt Fearnley won the Wheelchair Division with a time of 1:30:55. Alfredo De Los Santos won the Handcycle Category in 1:17:28.
Bronx resident Buzunesh Deba of Ethiopia took ninth in the women's race after finishing as the runner-up at the last two NYC Marathons. She was seeking to become the first New Yorker to win the race in 40 years.
Winning Big
Keitany and Kipsang each earned $100,000 for winning the Men and Women’s marathon title. Kipsang also clinched the $500,000 World Marathon Majors bonus with the victory.
At the end of the race, Kipsang decided it was a good time for his finishing kick. He had been saving his energy exactly for this moment. "I really trusted myself," he said.
Kipsang wound up beating Lelisa Desisa by 7 seconds.
Keitany, a two-time London Marathon champ, hadn't run a 26.2-mile race since 2012 because of the birth of her second child. "I worked hard for this opportunity," she said. "I'm happy because I have a victory today.”