Swede Almgren wins NYC Marathon debut; Chepkirui takes women's title

Andreas Almgren of Sweden and Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya won the New York City Marathon on Sunday.

Almgren secured his first victory in the 26.2-mile race in a time of 2 hours, 6 minutes and 1 second. He left Yemaneberhan Crippa of Italy behind in the final mile. Crippa crossed the line 13 seconds later to take second place. Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho finished third, ahead of defending champion Benson Kipruto.

Almgren's result marked the third fastest time in the event's 50-year history. The top seven finishers all posted times that rank among the top ten all-time performances. He is the first runner to win his debut race in New York since Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia did so in 2010. American Zouhair Talbi placed sixth, recording the fastest time ever by a U.S. male runner in the marathon.

Chepkirui claimed her second title in the women's race. She separated from Hellen Obiri of Kenya in the final 150 meters to finish in 2 hours, 24 minutes and 36 seconds. American Jessica McClain took second place, passing Obiri in the closing strides. McClain was six seconds behind Chepkirui. It was the first time a U.S. woman finished in the top three since 2018.

The race marked the 50th edition to traverse all five boroughs of New York City. Just over 2,000 people competed in 1976, the seventh running of the event, which included 88 women. Sunday's field numbered nearly 60,000, with almost half of them women. Participants represented more than 140 countries.

The course underwent a minor adjustment for the first time in 15 years. Runners took a different route at mile 20 upon entering the Bronx. Organizers changed the path to reduce turns in the borough from seven to five and ease street closures.

Marcel Hug won the men's wheelchair race for the eighth time. He beat Daniel Romanchuk by just over one second after passing him in the final 100 meters. Catherine Debrunner of Switzerland won the women's wheelchair race in 1 hour, 40 minutes and 2 seconds. That time was the second fastest in history. Susannah Scaroni finished third, more than eight minutes behind Debrunner, three months after giving birth to her first child.