Abdi Nageeye, Sheila Chepkirui win New York City Marathon with late surges

Dutchman Abdi Nageeye and Kenyan Sheila Chepkirui pulled away from more accomplished runners in the last half mile to win their first major marathon titles at the New York City Marathon.

Nageeye, the Tokyo Olympic silver medalist, edged Kenyan Evans Chebet, 2:07:39 to 2:07:45, to become the first Dutch runner to win New York City. Nageeye, 35, finished fourth, third and fifth in the last three New York City Marathons.

Nageeye was born in Somalia, moved to the Netherlands at age 6, then moved to Syria for three years and then back to Somalia before returning to the Netherlands via Ethiopia when he was adopted.

He raced New York City less than three months after dropping out of the Paris Olympic marathon with less than two miles to go. Nageeye was slowed by hip pain from a hard collision with Kenyan Alexander Mutiso before the halfway point.

NEW YORK CITY MARATHON: Results

Once he returned to training, Nageeye thought about the Olympic disappointment every day and vowed to make the podium in New York City.

“At the finish, I was like, am I dreaming or not?” he said on ESPN. Nageeye is the second-oldest male runner to win New York City after 36-year-old Kenyan Paul Tergat in 2005 and the oldest man to win his first World Marathon Major since the series began in 2006.

Chebet won New York City in 2022, sandwiched between two Boston Marathon titles.

Conner Mantz, who was sixth, was the top American man, just as he was at the Olympic Trials in February and the Paris Games in August.

Chepkirui, a 33-year-old mom, dropped defending champion and fellow Kenyan Hellen Obiri late in Central Park in her New York City debut.

She clocked 2:24:35, pulling away from Obiri by 14 seconds. Vivian Cheruiyot, a 41-year-old who won the 2016 Olympic 5000m, was third to round out the first Kenyan women’s podium sweep in New York City history.

Chepkirui entered with the fastest personal best of the field — 2:17:29 — and was the 2023 Berlin Marathon runner-up.

Sara Vaughn was the top American woman in sixth in 2:26:57.

New York City marked the last major marathon of 2024. This year, no male or female runner won multiple World Marathon Majors for the first time since 2012 (including the Olympics and biennial world championships), excluding 2020.

Men’s marathoning appears to be entering a new era after nearly a decade of dominance from Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, who turns 40 on Tuesday and failed to finish his most recent marathon at the Paris Olympics.

Women’s marathoning still has leading stars: Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich shattered the world record to win the Chicago Marathon in 2:09:56 on Oct. 13. Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan won her first two marathon starts in 2023, then broke the Olympic record in Paris.

No U.S. male or female runner has made a major marathon podium since the 2022 Chicago Marathon, the longest drought in a decade.

Also Sunday, Americans swept the New York City women’s and men’s wheelchair victories for the first time.

Daniel Romanchuk earned his third New York City title and first since 2019 as Swiss Marcel Hug was denied a a four-peat. Hug, who placed fourth, had won his previous 16 annual World Marathon Major starts in a row.

Susannah Scaroni won her second New York City Marathon in three years. Scaroni, a four-time Paris Paralympic medalist, won by 10:42 over countrywoman Tatyana McFadden. That marked the largest margin of victory in a New York City wheelchair division since 2002.

The next major marathon is the Tokyo Marathon on March 2.