50,000+ Runners Take to Streets, Conquer Five Boroughs in New York City Marathon

More than 50,000 runners pounded the streets for 26.2 miles, from Staten Island to Central Park, for the TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday November 3. Their efforts were buoyed excellent weather, with race temperatures starting in the mid-40s and rising only to the mid-50s, negligible winds and large crowds, especially in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

At the front end of the race, New York City marathon debutante, Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya won the women’s race in 2:24:35—besting last year’s winner and fellow Kenyan, Hellen Obiri, in the last mile by 15 seconds. Chepkirui’s victory comes to 5:31 pace.

The first U.S. finisher was 38-year-old Sara Vaughn, a former University of Colorado runner, with a time of 2:26:56.

The first female New Yorker was 35-year-old Alana Levy, a Big Apple native and former Cornell University harrier who took 31st place with a time of 2:42:01, or 6:11 mile pace. Levy, who runs for the Brooklyn Track Club, is also a graduate of the NYU Stern School of Business and works for Pearl Health.

In the men’s battle, appearing in his fourth New York City Marathon, 35-year-old Abdi Nageey of the Netherlands won in 2:07:39, taking the victory with a searing surge over the last quarter mile.

Born in Mogadishu, Somalia, Nageev’s emigrated to the Nethlerlands with his family at the age of six and is fluent in five languages: Somali, Amharic, Arabic, Dutch and English, and his post-race interview in English was notably thoughtful. Nageev’s winning time comes to 4:53 mile pace.

Taking second place, just six seconds back, was the 2022 winner, Kenyan Evans Chebet of Ethiopia, followed by his countryman Albert Korir. Last year’s victor, Tamirat Tola, ran strong but faded to 4th.

The first American finisher was ex-Brigham Young University runner and U.S. Olympian Connor Mantz, who placed 6th.

While the first New York City resident to finish was 29-year-old Teshome Mekonen, who placed 21st, Mekonen is a professional runner who until 2022, competed for his native Ethiopia. Just four places back, the second Gothamite was 25-year-old Owen Ritz, Philadelphia-native and former Dartmouth runner whose day job is as an equity analyst at Allen & Company. Ritz’s time of 2:17:16 comes out to 5:15 pace.

As for spectating at the marathon, there are numerous schools of thought when it comes to the “best” way to do this.

Last year, Straus News set up at 1st Avenue and 60th Street, then ran over to 5th Avenue in the 90s to catch the leaders twice, before heading north into the masses. This year, both to stay warm and mix things up, the marathon reporter went up to W. 138th Street and Madison Avenue in Harlem, where runners re-enter Manhattan shortly after the 21-mile mark.

This an especially interesting spot for a number of reasons. First, it’s an easy walk over the Madison Avenue Bridge to the Mott Haven Section of the Bronx, where one could hear exceptional live music by a Puerto Rican percussion ensemble, and a funk-influenced jazz group featuring a black woman trumpeter and violinist.

Mordant signs affixed to the bridge itself and overpasses leading to it goad the runners on: “Breakl The Wall Boogie Down Bronx Runners”; “Last Damn Bridge,” “F*** It Up Buttercup.”

Second, at this point in the race, all the pretenders and daredevils are gone. While blow-ups can and will occur over the next five miles to Central Park, the front runners and their immediate followers are all impressive as they come off the bridge and make the left turn onto Madison Avenue.

Similarly, back in the field, it’s fascinating to see, this far into the race, the determination, pain and excitement of those battling to reach their goal time and / or connect with their friends and other supporters.

Among the latter, were Bronx Runners, Ecuadorian, Mexican and contingent from the Bergen Runners, a New Jersey-based club of Chinse-American runners who also made their presence known around the square at Mt. Morris Park.

Bib #1414, Connor Strynkowski of New York Harriers and a former Cornell University runner, stood out among the fast male amateurs by racing shirtless. While this alone isn’t so unusual, that he appears to have pinned his number directly to his chest is—and it worked, with Strynkowski finishing in a very impressive 2:38:16.

Another amateur athlete who garnered an exceptional amount of attention was a lean black man wearing a black tuxedo with a white shirt and black bow tie. He also wore a black hat and sneakers upon which was written the phrase, “Keep It Sexy.” Later identified as Hakeem Adewale, from Nuremberg, Germany, he finished in a praiseworthy time of 3:04.

Unlike the 2023 race, which occurred less than month after the October 7 Hamas terror attack against Israel, political demonstrations were in little evidence this year, though one table on Madison Avenue, set up just steps from the Jehovah’s Witnesses, were accosting passersby about something they call “Global Apartheid.”

As for national politics, at least one man ran in a Harris-Walz singlet, and there was one brownstone with a Harris-Walz placard outside. This reporter did not see any similar Trump or MAGA adornments in Harlem, where the African street vendors on 125th Street were hawking a variety of Harris t-shirts and buttons. This trade stands in contrast to the midtown souvenir shops, where Harris and Trump merchandise are nearly always paired. “Yes I Kam”? We shall see.

Top cops argue at pre-race photo op

Among the post-marathon events, an unexpected bit of drama arose from the Mayor’s Cup competition between NYPD and FDNY officers. Scored a cross-country meet, albeit with the cumulative times rather than placings, NYPD came out on top.

Their victory wasn’t without controversy, however. According to reports, a post-race photo ceremony was preceded by a public shouting and shoving match between interim police commissioner, Thomas Donlon, and Tarik Sheppherd, who is both Deputy Commissioner of Public Information (DCPI), a position he was appointed to in August 2023, and the acting NYPD Chief of Staff, a job he only recently attained via process called unannounced orders.

How unannounced? So unannounced, that at press time, the position is still unfilled on NYC’s official NYPD personnel homepage.

Reports said that chief of department Jeffrey Maddrey had to step in and separate them. In part because the scuffle was viewed by many members of the public, DCPI later released a statment.

“This morning, in the midst of preparations for the marathon, there was a brief disagreement between two NYPD executives that was witnessed by members of the public. The matter was promptly discussed and resolved,” an NYPD statement said.

“The leaders of the NYPD are passionate about their work, and it is that commitment and drive that helps us keep New Yorkers safe every day. We are incredibly proud of the work that every member of the Department is doing to ensure that an extraordinary marathon goes smoothly and safely for the runners and spectators.”

By the time the post-race Mayor’s Cup was awarded, Sheppherd and Donlon had calmed down enough to appear in the same post race photos with the winning NYPD team.