The New York City Marathon threw itself a birthday party on Sunday, and the elite races delivered the kind of finishes the occasion deserved. The 2026 race celebrated the 50th anniversary of its famous route through all five boroughs, with about 60,000 runners on the start line.
Sweden’s Andreas Almgren won the men’s race in his first-ever marathon, while Kenya’s Sheila Chepkirui sprinted to her second women’s title. Here is how the day played out, based on reporting from World Athletics, the Associated Press via NPR and Runner’s World.
A debut to remember
Almgren arrived in New York as the world half marathon champion and European 10,000m gold medallist, but he had never raced 26.2 miles. It didn’t show. He eased away from Italy’s Yemaneberhan Crippa in Central Park in the final mile and won in 2 hours, 6 minutes and 1 second, 13 seconds clear.
According to the AP, Almgren’s time was the third fastest in the course’s 50-year history, and he became the first runner to win in his marathon debut since Gebre Gebremariam of Ethiopia in 2010.
Behind him, Lesotho’s Kamohelo Mofolo finished fast to take third in a personal best of 2:06:26, edging Kenya’s defending champion Benson Kipruto by one second. The AP noted that the top seven men all ran times among the 10 fastest ever recorded on the course.
There was also a milestone for the home crowd: American Zouhair Talbi finished sixth in 2:06:43, the fastest time ever run by a U.S. runner in the event.
Chepkirui turns the tables
The women’s race came down to a sprint. Chepkirui, who won in 2024, had been beaten by fellow Kenyan Hellen Obiri last year. This time she pulled away from Obiri in the final 150 metres and won in 2:24:36.
The bigger cheer may have been for second place. American Jessica McClain summoned a strong finish to pass Obiri in the last few strides, finishing in 2:24:42, one second ahead of the two-time winner. World Athletics noted that McClain became the first U.S. woman to finish in the top three in New York since Shalane Flanagan in 2018.
Kenya’s Edna Kiplagat was fourth in 2:25:42.
Wheelchair races: a record eighth for Hug
Switzerland’s Marcel Hug won the men’s wheelchair race for the eighth time, but he had to work for it. Daniel Romanchuk of the United States took the lead in the last mile as the pair entered Central Park, and Hug passed him in the final 100 metres to win by about a second, in 1:28:14.
His Swiss countrywoman Catherine Debrunner pulled away early in the women’s wheelchair race and won in 1:40:02, the second-fastest time in race history, behind her own record from 2023. Two-time defending champion Susannah Scaroni finished third, three months after giving birth to her first child, according to the AP.
Fifty years of five boroughs
The anniversary gave the day extra meaning. The AP noted that in 1976, the first year the race ran through all five boroughs, there were just over 2,000 competitors, including only 88 women. On Sunday about 60,000 runners lined up, and nearly half of them were women.
Runner’s World described race-morning conditions as chilly and sunny, which is close to ideal for a marathon. Sunday’s race was also the final World Marathon Major of the year.
Leading results at a glance
- Men: Andreas Almgren (SWE) 2:06:01, Yemaneberhan Crippa (ITA) 2:06:14, Kamohelo Mofolo (LES) 2:06:26.
- Women: Sheila Chepkirui (KEN) 2:24:36, Jessica McClain (USA) 2:24:42, Hellen Obiri (KEN) 2:24:43.
- Men’s wheelchair: Marcel Hug (SUI) 1:28:14, Daniel Romanchuk (USA) 1:28:15.
- Women’s wheelchair: Catherine Debrunner (SUI) 1:40:02, Tatyana McFadden (USA) 1:48:28.
The finish line
For a race marking half a century of running through Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan, Sunday had it all: a stunning debut, a sprint finish, a breakthrough for American runners and tens of thousands of everyday finishers crossing the line in Central Park.
Image: The Ramble and the Lake in November of 2025, Central Park, Manhattan by Julian Lupyan via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0
