Andreas Almgren wins New York City Marathon on his debut in 2:06:01 as Chepkirui takes second title and McClain ends US podium wait
Sweden's Almgren won in 2:06:01 in his first marathon. Chepkirui won a three-way sprint in 2:24:36, with Jess McClain second, the best US result since 2018.
At a glance
- Andreas Almgren of Sweden won the New York City Marathon in 2:06:01 on Sunday, November 1, in the first marathon of his career, 13 seconds ahead of Italy's Yemaneberhan Crippa.
- Kenya's Sheila Chepkirui won the women's race in 2:24:36, pulling clear of Hellen Obiri in the last 150 metres for her second title after 2024.
- American Jess McClain passed Obiri in the final strides to finish second, six seconds behind, the first US woman in the top three since 2018.
- Switzerland's Marcel Hug won his eighth wheelchair title by about a second over Daniel Romanchuk; Catherine Debrunner won the women's wheelchair race by more than eight minutes.
Andreas Almgren of Sweden won the New York City Marathon on Sunday in 2:06:01, and it was the first marathon he has ever finished. He beat Italy's Yemaneberhan Crippa by 13 seconds. In the women's race Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya won her second title in 2:24:36, while American Jess McClain finished second, the first US woman in the top three since 2018.
About 60,000 runners were at the start on Staten Island, nearly half of them women, on a clear, cool morning for the 50th race through all five boroughs.
How a debutant broke up the men's race
Nobody got away early. American Zouhair Talbi led at halfway in about 1:04:01, and a pack of around 15 men was still together at 35km, where Conner Mantz was at the front in 1:45:33.
The race was settled in Central Park. At 40km, Almgren, defending champion Benson Kipruto and Crippa were covered by about a second, with Talbi six seconds back. Over the last 2.2km Almgren pulled clear, opening a 13-second gap on Crippa by the line.
He arrived as the betting favourite despite his inexperience. Almgren won this year's world half marathon title in a European record of 58:06, took the European 10,000m crown in 2026 and has a world bronze over that distance from 2025.
He is the first European-born man to win in New York since Italy's Giacomo Leone in 1996. The Dutch runner Abdi Nageeye, who won in 2024, was born in Somalia.
Three women, six seconds, one last sprint
The women's finish was far closer. Chepkirui went clear of her compatriot Obiri in the final 150 metres, and McClain then caught Obiri in the last few strides for second, beating the two-time champion by less than half a second.
McClain finished fourth in both the marathon and the 10,000m at the 2024 US Olympic Trials, and has been the top American at Boston in each of the past two years. The last American woman on this podium was Shalane Flanagan, third in 2018. Kenya's Edna Kiplagat, the 2010 champion, was fourth at the age of 46.
The field lost two big names beforehand. Olympic champion Sifan Hassan withdrew through illness three weeks before the race, and American Fiona O'Keeffe pulled out after hamstring surgery.
The 2026 results, and how they compare with 2025
| Race | 2026 winner | Time | Runner-up | 2025 winning time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men | Andreas Almgren (Sweden) | 2:06:01 | Yemaneberhan Crippa (Italy), +13 sec | 2:08:09 (Benson Kipruto) |
| Women | Sheila Chepkirui (Kenya) | 2:24:36 | Jess McClain (USA), +6 sec | 2:19:51 (Hellen Obiri) |
| Men's wheelchair | Marcel Hug (Switzerland) | 1:28:14 | Daniel Romanchuk (USA), +1 sec | — |
| Women's wheelchair | Catherine Debrunner (Switzerland) | 1:40:02 | Tatyana McFadden (USA), +8:25 | — |
Neither open race threatened a course record. Tamirat Tola's men's mark of 2:04:58 from 2023 still stands, and so does Obiri's 2:19:51 from last year.
Hug's eighth title came down to a second
The closest finish of the day was in the men's wheelchair race, where Hug held off Romanchuk by about a second for his eighth New York win. Debrunner's race was the opposite: she won by more than eight minutes for her second title.
A new Bronx turn and what comes next
This year's route changed in the Bronx for the first time since 2011. Between miles 20 and 21 runners took a new path to the Madison Avenue Bridge, with five turns instead of seven and no change in distance.
New York was the last World Marathon Major of 2026. Runners chasing fast times before the end of the year now look to Valencia in Spain on December 6.
