Andreas Almgren of Sweden captured the men's title at the New York City Marathon on Sunday, marking a significant milestone in his career. The 26-year-old, who had previously excelled in half-marathon events, made his debut at the full 26.2-mile distance. In a dramatic finish, Almgren pulled away from Italy's Yemaneberhan Crippa during the final mile to cross the line in 2 hours, 6 minutes, and 1 second. Crippa finished 13 seconds behind the winner. Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho secured third place, narrowly ahead of defending champion Benson Kipruto.
Almgren's performance placed his time as the third fastest in the 50-year history of the course. Notably, all of the top seven finishers recorded times that ranked within the top 10 all-time for the event. He became the first runner to win the marathon on their debut since Ethiopia's Gebre Gebremariam achieved the feat in 2010. American Zouhair Talbi also had a standout performance, finishing sixth and setting the fastest time ever recorded by a U.S. runner in this race.
In the women's competition, Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya claimed her second victory in the event. Chepkirui, who also won in 2024, separated herself from her countrywoman Hellen Obiri in the final 150 meters to finish in 2 hours, 24 minutes, and 36 seconds. Jessica McClain of the United States took second place, passing Obiri in the final strides. McClain finished six seconds behind Chepkirui. This result marked the first time a U.S. woman has placed in the top three since 2018.
The 2026 edition of the race marked the 50th time the marathon has traversed all five boroughs of New York City. The event has seen massive growth since its early days. In 1976, the seventh running of the race featured just over 2,000 competitors, including only 88 women. By Sunday, approximately 60,000 runners reached the starting line, with nearly half of the field being female. Athletes from more than 140 countries participated in the race.
The defending men's champion, Kipruto, competed after his thrilling victory last year, where he defeated Alexander Mutiso by a margin of three-hundredths of a second. The marathon itself has a rich history dating back to 1970. For its first six years, the race was confined to loops within Central Park. It was moved to the broader city in celebration of the U.S. bicentennial and to help bolster the local economy during a period of struggle, eventually becoming one of New York's premier sporting events.
Course adjustments were made for this year's event. For the first time in 15 years, the route changed slightly at Mile 20 as runners entered the Bronx. This modification was designed to reduce the number of turns in that borough from seven to five, thereby easing street closures for local residents and businesses.
In the wheelchair category, Marcel Hug won the men's race for the eighth time. He edged out Daniel Romanchuk by just over a second. Romanchuk had taken the lead in the final mile as they entered Central Park, but Hug overtook him in the last 100 meters to claim the victory.
Swiss athlete Catherine Debrunner dominated the women's wheelchair race, pulling away from the field early to finish in 1 hour, 40 minutes, and 2 seconds. This was the second-fastest time in the race's history, trailing her own record from 2023 by about 30 seconds. Susannah Scaroni, the two-time defending champion, finished third. Scaroni competed just three months after giving birth to her first child and finished more than eight minutes behind Debrunner.
