Almgren wins NYC Marathon debut

The 50th edition of the New York City Marathon concluded on Sunday with a new men's winner and a repeat champion on the women's side.

Andreas Almgren of Sweden won the men's race in his first attempt at the full 26.2-mile distance. He had previously focused his career on half-marathons. Almgren separated from Yemaneberhan Crippa of Italy during the final mile. His winning time was 2 hours, 6 minutes and 1 second. Crippa crossed the line 13 seconds behind. Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho took third place, finishing ahead of defending champion Benson Kipruto.

Almgren's time ranks as the third fastest in the event's 50-year history. The top seven finishers all recorded times among the top 10 all-time performances for the course. He is the first athlete to win his debut in the race since Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia won in 2010. Zouhair Talbi of the United States finished sixth. His performance marked the fastest time ever by an American runner in this marathon.

Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya won the women's race for the second time. She defeated Hellen Obiri of Kenya in the final 150 meters. Chepkirui finished in 2 hours, 24 minutes and 36 seconds. Jessica McClain of the United States took second place after passing Obiri in the last few strides. McClain finished six seconds behind the winner. This was the first time a U.S. woman placed in the top three since 2018.

Approximately 60,000 runners started the race, with nearly half of them being women. Competitors represented more than 140 countries. The number of participants stands in contrast to 1976, when just over 2,000 runners, including 88 women, took part. The race began in 1970 with loops inside Central Park. It moved to a citywide course in 1976 to coincide with the U.S. bicentennial.

The course featured a minor adjustment at mile 20 in the Bronx. This change reduced the number of turns in that borough from seven to five. The alteration also eased street closures in the area. It was the first route change in 15 years.

Marcel Hug won the men's wheelchair race for the eighth time. He beat Daniel Romanchuk by just over one second. Romanchuk took the lead in the final mile as they entered Central Park, but Hug passed him in the last 100 meters. Catherine Debrunner of Sweden won the women's wheelchair race. She finished in 1 hour, 40 minutes and 2 seconds. Susannah Scaroni, who gave birth three months ago, finished third, more than eight minutes behind Debrunner.