Andreas Almgren wins New York on marathon debut, Sheila Chepkirui reclaims her crown (full results)

Almgren makes history on his marathon debut

All eyes were on him, and he delivered. Andreas Almgren is the new New York City Marathon champion. The craziest part of the story is that the Swede had never run the full 42.195 km before. Even so, he was already tipped as one of the big favorites. On the streets of the Big Apple, he ran the perfect race and became the first European winner here since Italy's Giacomo Leone in 1996, and the first Swede ever to take the title.

At 31, the former 800 m specialist arrives off a historic end to the season. European 10,000 m title in Birmingham in August. Then world half marathon title in Copenhagen in September, with a European record of 58:06. Almgren is one of the names of the moment. For his marathon debut, he picked New York for its course without pacemakers and its head-to-head racing, with the LA 2028 Games possibly in his sights. Before the race, we had already looked at the Swedish phenomenon and his chances of winning.

The race was above all about patience and control. After a cautious climb up the Verrazzano Bridge, the pack went through 10 km in 30:52, then through the half in just over 1:04. Then it was American Zouhair Talbi who made the first move: a surge around 22 km, just after halfway, then another push on the Queensboro Bridge after 25 km. Each time, the group behind him responded. At 35 km, around fifteen men were still at the front.

The turning point came from Benson Kipruto. The defending champion, a very experienced Kenyan, threw in a lightning surge at 37 km that literally blew the group apart. Up front, only Kipruto, Almgren and Italy's Yeman Crippa remained. Fairly discreet until then, Almgren executed his race plan very smartly. He took over at the front for the first time shortly before 40 km. Crippa hung on for another kilometer before cracking on a second Swedish acceleration in the southern part of Central Park.

The Swede finished like a rocket. He covered the last 400 meters through Central Park at a supersonic 2:37/km. Finish time: 2:06:01. A win in New York. On his marathon debut. It's monumental.

Right behind him is Yeman Crippa, winner of the Paris Marathon this spring. He finishes just 13 seconds back in 2:06:14. A few weeks before the race, we had the chance to meet him and the Italian was very confident. He knew he had a shot at winning. And he was right to believe in himself. This runner-up finish at a Major in New York feels like a win for him and confirms his rise on the international marathon scene. In the final meters, Benson Kipruto was caught out by Lesotho's Kamohelo Mofolo, who dug deep to finish in 2:06:26, just ahead of the Kenyan. No podium for Kipruto. A first since 2020.

Among the home runners, Zouhair Talbi delivered a solid performance but faded in Central Park and finishes 6th in 2:06:43. North American record holder Conner Mantz comes in 11th in 2:07:27.

Nike finally gets its big Major win of 2026

He was all smiles at the post-race press conference with a pair of Nike Apex around his neck. Andreas Almgren has finally put the Swoosh back in the spotlight. This year, adidas has mostly swept the Major podiums. Before New York, adidas had 8 of the 12 Major wins of 2026, 7 of them in the Adizero Adios Pro Evo 3. Nike had just two: Brigid Kosgei in Tokyo, in the Vaporfly 4, and Addisu Gobena in Sydney, in a prototype Alphafly 4. The strongest image remained April's: Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha under two hours in London, in the Evo 3. Even in Chicago, where Nike is a partner, both winners wore adidas. With Kipruto stealing the show from Kiplimo, the Swoosh had to settle for just two third places, through Milkesa Mengesha and Brigid Kosgei.

Andreas Almgren's performances in Copenhagen in September, then here on the streets of New York, put Nike back in the light. And so does its futuristic new model, the Nike Apex, due out in January 2027.

With the Apex, Nike isn't necessarily following its rivals in the race for the lightest shoe. At a claimed 176 g, it is much heavier than the Evo 3 (97 g). Instead, Nike is betting on cushioning and energy return: four Air Zoom units stacked in pairs under the forefoot, the most Air Zoom pods the brand has ever placed at the front of a running shoe. All of it sits in a brand-new ZoomX LT foam, with a redesigned Flyplate carbon plate and a 40 mm stack with zero drop. The brand claims up to 40% more energy return than the Alphafly 3, for an announced price of $350.

Nike's win is only partial, though. adidas is never far away... In the women's race, Sheila Chepkirui won in the three-stripe brand's gear, giving it its ninth win in 14 Major races this season (men and women combined).

Sheila Chepkirui takes back her crown

A year after being beaten by Hellen Obiri, Sheila Chepkirui got her revenge. The Kenyan wins in 2:24:36 and claims her second New York title, after the one in 2024.

Conditions were ideal this morning. Cool temperatures around 7°C and no wind. Still, the start was very cautious. Obiri, the course record holder in 2:19:51 since last year, led the group through 5 km in 18:23. The pace then picked up, with a half split of 1:13:52 for a group of eleven women led by American Jess McClain, in great form this year.

From 25 km, Obiri and Chepkirui began to clear the field and the law of the marathon took over. They were closely followed by American Weini Kelati, the national half marathon record holder, who was making her debut over the distance. Eight women remained at the front, including the ageless Edna Kiplagat. At 46, the two-time world champion and 2010 New York winner hung on to the end and finishes just off the podium in 2:25:42.

In the final kilometers, the duel tightened. Obiri attacked, Chepkirui responded, and vice versa. The two Kenyans ran the last kilometer at a crazy 3:10/km, the fastest of the race. With 400 m to go, Obiri, two-time world 5000 m champion and four-time Major winner, tried to launch her kick. She knows the hills of Central Park by heart, having already run the New York City Marathon twice before this edition (for two wins). But this time the script was far wilder for the Kenyan. Her compatriot Chepkirui covered the attack, then managed to pull clear in the last 150 meters. She crosses the line in 2:24:36 and gets sweet revenge after finishing 3rd last year.

Jessica McClain takes second on the podium

Behind the two Kenyans, Jessica McClain wasn't finished. Dropped by the lead duo, the American came back in Central Park and passed Obiri in the last 100 meters. She dug deep to take second in 2:24:42, a single second ahead of Obiri (2:24:43). A spectacular comeback. McClain becomes the first American on the New York podium since Shalane Flanagan, third in 2018.

At 34, the Arizona-based athlete confirms a historic season. In April, she took 5th in Boston in 2:20:49, the best time ever by an American on that course, erasing Flanagan's mark. In September, she won team silver in the half marathon at the World Road Running Championships in Copenhagen. Before New York, she said she was aiming higher than simply being the first American. Mission accomplished. With a top-5 finish in a World Athletics Platinum race, she should also secure her official selection to represent the United States at the LA 2028 Games.

Behind her, it was a very good day for the United States: four American women finish in the top 10. Carrie Ellwood is 6th (2:26:28), Weini Kelati 7th on her marathon debut (2:26:51) and Paige Wood 8th (2:27:29).

With a 2:06:01 in his very first marathon, Andreas Almgren has hit hard. The 31-year-old Swede posts one of the fastest debuts in the history of the distance, though still some way off exceptional marks like those of Kelvin Kiptum (2:01:53 in 2022), Yomif Kejelcha (1:59:41 in 2026) or Guye Adola (2:03:46 in 2017). His time is also only slightly slower than what Kenenisa Bekele (2:05:04 in 2014) and Eliud Kipchoge (2:05:30 in 2013) ran in their first marathons. It is a remarkable performance, all the more so on New York's demanding course, and it hints at plenty of room for progress over the distance. Bring on the next one.