Almgren wins New York on marathon debut as Chepkirui reclaims crown
Sweden's Andreas Almgren won the men's New York City Marathon on Sunday in his first attempt at the distance, finishing in 2 hours, 6 minutes and 1 second. The marathon is 26.2 miles, and most runners who win it have spent years building up to it. Almgren did not.
He is better known on the track and the roads. He was the World Half Marathon champion going into New York, and he holds the European record in the half marathon with 58:06. He also won bronze in the 10,000m at last year's World Championships. The Guardian reported that his winning time was enough to beat a strong field, which included defending champion Benson Kipruto.
Italy's Yemaneberhan Crippa was second, 13 seconds behind Almgren. Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho took third. The gap between first and second was small enough to be decided over the final miles, and the margin shows how tightly the lead group ran.
The women's race was won by Kenya's Sheila Chepkirui in 2:24:36. It is her second New York title, after her win in 2024, so the crown she held two years ago is back with her. She had already won the Nagoya Women's Marathon in Japan in March, a result that set her up as one of the favourites here.
American Jessica McClain took second, six seconds behind Chepkirui. It was the first top-three finish by a US woman in New York since 2018, a gap of eight years. For American fans, that is the detail that will stand out most from the women's race.
About 60,000 runners started the race, which winds through all five boroughs of New York City before finishing in Central Park. Winning it means something beyond the prize. New York is one of the six World Marathon Majors, the series of marathons that most elite athletes measure their careers against. A win there tells the sport where a runner stands, and it tells the runner too.
For the winners, the day is the result of years of training that most spectators never see. Almgren's first marathon ended with a name on the top of the leaderboard. Chepkirui's second New York title ends a two-year wait for her. Both will now look ahead to what comes next on the calendar.
