Abdi Nageeye and Sheila Chepkirui won the New York City Marathon on Sunday, using strong kicks in the final mile to secure their victories.
Nageeye became the first runner from the Netherlands to win the men's race, finishing in 2 hours, 7 minutes, and 39 seconds. 2022 champion Evans Chebet came in second, six seconds behind. Nageeye expressed disbelief at his win, saying, "When I was finishing, the emotions weren't there in the moment, but I just couldn't believe that I was going to win it."
Nageeye, who previously finished third in New York in 2022, noted his experience with the course and said, "I know the course. Today was two things: survive that race and my race is after 36 (kilometers; 22 miles)."
In the women's race, Chepkirui, running the New York Marathon for the first time, pulled away from defending champion Hellen Obiri in the last stretch to win in 2:24:35. Chepkirui stated, "Let me push the last mile, let me give it my best."
Obiri, looking to become the first consecutive women's champion since 2014-16, finished second. Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya finished third, making it the first time Kenyans swept the women's medal positions.
Men's defending champion Tamirat Tola finished fourth. Tola said, "I had a good year... Around the 33-kilometer mark I felt my muscle tighten and my muscles just couldn't handle it."
The best American finishers were Conner Mantz, who placed sixth in the men's race, and Sara Vaughn, who placed sixth in the women's race. Vaughn had been in the lead group but dropped back after Mile 20.
In the men's wheelchair race, Daniel Romanchuk upset three-time defending champion Marcel Hug, while Susannah Scaroni won the women's wheelchair race for her second victory in New York.
