Abdi Nagiai and Sheila Chepkirui are the 2024 New York City Marathon champions.

He has competed in the New York race three times before and his best result came in 2022 when he was third. He was eighth in Boston in 2016.

“I know the course,” Nagiai said. “Today was about two things: surviving this race and my race after 22 miles. I thought like a cyclist: survive (mile 22) and you win.”

Chepkirui ruled New York for the first time and broke away from current champion Hellen Obiri in the women’s race in the final stretch.

“Let me go the last mile, let me do my best,” Chepkirui said. “When we had about 600 meters left, I told myself that I needed to put in more effort. When I saw that Hellen wasn’t coming, I knew I was going to win and I was so happy.”

Chepkirui, who started running marathons in 2022, won in 2:24.35. Obiri, who has won the last two Boston Marathonsfinished almost 15 seconds behind.

Obiri was hoping to become New York’s first back-to-back champion since Kenya’s Mary Keitany won three in a row from 2014-16. Kenya’s Vivian Cheruiyot finished third, giving the African country three top spots.

Tamirat Tola, current men’s champion and the Paris Olympic gold medalist who finished fourth, just behind Albert Korir.

“I had a good year,” Tola told The Associated Press through a translator. “I won the Olympics and then coming back to New York after that, you know, it’s a tough road. I know I spent a lot of energy. At the 33 kilometer mark I felt my muscles tense up and they just couldn’t handle it.”

Tola, who set the course record last year, was hoping to become the first back-to-back men’s champion since Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya won in 2011 and 2013. The 2012 race was canceled due to Hurricane Sandy.

The top Americans finished sixth in both races. Conner Mantz led the men and Sarah Vaughn led the women. Vaughn was in the lead group heading to mile 20 as they entered the Bronx before she left the lead pack.

Vaughn was poised to run for office in Chicago before COVID-19 prevented her from entering the race. She was late for this marathon.

The day started with a setback in the men’s wheelchair race, with three-time defending champion Marcel Hug losing to Daniel Romanchuk, who also won in 2018 and 2019. Susanna Scaroni won the women’s wheelchair race. It was her second win in New York, also winning the 2022 race and giving Americans winners in both events – the first time this has happened.

The 26.2-mile course passed through all five boroughs of New York City, starting in Staten Island and ending in Central Park. This is the 48th year the race has been held in all five boroughs. Previously, when the route began in 1970, it ran entirely through Central Park. Only 55 people finished the first race, while more than 50,000 people took part this year.

Hours after the top runners finished, it was announced that the Sydney Marathon would become the seventh major marathon in the world, joining Berlin, Chicago, Boston, Tokyo, London and New York.

The weather was perfect for the race, with temperatures in the low 40s when the race started. Last year the temperature was 61 degrees when the race started.