Highlights and Results From the 2023 New York City Marathon
Runners hit the streets of NYC on a great day for racing
The biggest marathon in the world featured inspiring performances across the five boroughs. On Sunday, November 5, more than 50,000 people competed in the 53rd running of the New York City Marathon.
Runners enjoyed clear skies and moderate temperatures for most of the competition. Here are the highlights from the 2023 New York City Marathon.
Tamirat Tola dominates the men’s race in a course record
With a decisive move around the 32K mark, Tamirat Tola ran away with the men’s title in New York City. The 2022 world marathon champion earned redemption in the Big Apple with the victory in 2:04:58, a course record by eight seconds and almost two minutes ahead of runner-up Albert Korir.
The win follows a disappointing showing at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, where Tola was forced to drop out of the marathon due to stomach issues. On Sunday, the Ethiopian runner showed no signs of struggle when he broke away from the competition with 10 kilometres remaining.
From the start, Tola made his intentions known. He led a pack of five through the half marathon split in 1:02:45. The group included podium contenders Korir, Yemal Yimer, Abdi Nageeye, and Zouhair Talbi, with Shura Kitata close behind.
After the Queensboro Bridge, the race started to heat up. Just after 25K, Tola and Yimer threw in a surge that dropped Korir and the remaining competitors. By the time they reached 30K, the Ethiopian runners were 25 seconds ahead of their Kenyan rival.
Tola’s victory marks his first World Marathon Major title after claiming two third-place finishes previously.
Hellen Obiri claims women’s title
In a thrilling sprint finish, Hellen Obiri won the women’s race in 2:27:23. The victory in Central Park is the Kenyan runner’s second World Marathon Major title this year, marking an exceptional transition from the track to the roads.
In her first 42.2K, the On Athletics Club athlete finished sixth in the Big Apple last year. Obiri followed the performance with a decisive victory at the Boston Marathon in April. On Sunday, the two-time 5000m world champion tapped into her track speed to beat half marathon world record-holder Letesenbet Gidey on the homestretch. She is the first athlete in 34 years to win Boston and New York City in the same season.
The race tactics played out perfectly for Obiri to run away with the title this weekend. In the first half of the race, a pair of Americans took turns leading a large pack that stayed together for much of the competition. In the early kilometres, Kellyn Taylor led the group through 10K in 34:35. Heading into the 20K split, Molly Huddle assumed the lead for a time before Taylor brought the field through 13.1 in 1:14:21. Both runners were competing in their first marathon postpartum.
By 35K, the group started to thin from 11 runners to seven. At 37K, the race heated up once again when Viola Cheptoo attempted to break away from the pack. In response, Obiri, Gidey, Kosgei, and Lokedi covered the move up the hill heading into Central Park.
As the athletes closed in on the finish line, more surges left Lokedi, Gidey, and Obiri battling each other up front in the last mile. With about 600 metres remaining, Obiri sprinted ahead of Gidey and Lokedi to claim the crown. Gidey finished second in 2:27:29, and Lokedi placed third in 2:27:33.
Americans Taylor and Huddle went on to finish eighth (2:29:48) and ninth (2:32:02), respectively.
Cal Calamia captures the win in the non-binary division
Cal Calamia won the non-binary division at the 2023 New York City Marathon. He ran a time of 2:48:50 to take the win. In second place was Jake Caswell, who won the non-binary division at the 2022 NYC Marathon. Nick Dill was third place in 2:59:24
READ MORE ON: new york city marathon road running