NEW YORK – Shalane Flanagan and Geoffrey Kamworor will defend their titles at the New York City Marathon in November.
Last year, Flanagan became the first U.S. woman to win the NYC Marathon since Miki Gorman in 1977. Kamworor of Kenya earned his first major marathon victory.
The Swiss pair of Manuela Schar and Marcel Hug also will defend their titles in the wheelchair competition on Nov. 4.
Flanagan won in 2 hours, 26 minutes, 53 seconds, beating Mary Keitany of Kenya. Flanagan had the second-fastest time by a U.S. woman at the event in just her second NYC Marathon. She finished runner-up in 2010.
The 37-year-old Flanagan says she’s “thrilled to have the opportunity, support, passion, and health” to defend her title.
More than 50,000 runners from 125 countries are expected, and she hopes “everyone preparing enjoys their journey to the start line.”
Durango’s Laura Thweatt, who had a breakout performance at the 2015 New York City Marathon when she finished seventh overall and as the top American woman in a time of 2:28:23, will compete at this year’s Chicago Marathon, which is a little less than eight weeks away on Oct. 7. Thweatt is building back to marathon form after taking a year off after the 2017 London Marathon. She finished sixth in that race and was again the top American woman with her marathon personal record time of 2:25:38. A pelvis injury and the subsequent rehab kept her out of running for nearly a year.
Thweatt’s most recent race was the Gold Coast Half Marathon June 30 in Australia. She finished third in 1:10:17, her personal best in the distance.
“Things are still moving forward and I’m healthy,” Thweatt said in a post to Instagram this week. “As tired as I’ve been, it’s a great feeling to be back into the grind of marathon training.”
The Durango Herald contributed to this report.
