New York Marathon 2024: Tola and Obiri want to defend their titles

NEW YORK (AP) — Defending New York City Marathon champions Tamirat Tola and Hellen Obiri are aiming to become the first repeat champions in nearly a decade.

“It wasn’t easy to win New York; I know every athlete who comes here is confident,” said Tola, who set the course record last year. “I’m also in it to win, so I know I’m up to the task.”

If Tola does win on Sunday, the 33-year-old from Ethiopia will become the first man to become champion again in New York since Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya won in 2011 and 2013. The 2012 race was canceled due to Superstorm Sandy.

There's more history at stake for Tola: He wants to join select company and become only the second runner to win both Olympic gold and the NYC Marathon in the same year, equaling Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya in 2021 caught up.

Jepchirchir is the first runner to win the Olympic marathons, the New York Marathon and the Boston Marathon during his career.

Tola scored a victory at the Paris Games, where he set an Olympic record in the marathon. He said the circuits in Paris and New York are similar because of the hills.

To defend his title on his favorite course, he will have to beat a stellar field that includes previous winners Geoffrey Kamworor (2017, 2019), Albert Korir (2021) and Evans Chebet (2022), all of whom hail from Kenya.

Bashir Abdi from Belgium won the silver medal in Paris and is also in the race. Conner Mantz and Clayton Young, who finished eighth and ninth in Paris, are the top American men.

Obiri, a 34-year-old Kenyan who won the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics, is trying to become the first woman to win consecutive races since Mary Keitany of Kenya won three straight races from 2014 to 2016.

“I’m looking forward to winning two in a row,” Obiri said.

To achieve this feat, she must beat her own strong field. Other previous winners of Sunday's women's race include Sharon Lokedi (2022) and Edna Kiplagat (2010), both from Kenya. The outstanding Americans Dakotah Popehn and Jenny Simpson are also in the running.

“I keep calling this my encore tour,” said Popehn, who got married last weekend. “When I'm having fun, I drive best anyway. My goal is to be the best American and keep that title at the Olympics. I think I can be in the top five overall.”

Swiss stars Marcel Hug and Manuela Schär, who have won nine New York City Marathons, are the leaders in the wheelchair field. Hug has won every race he has competed in this year, including the Paris Paralympics.

The NYC Marathon has been running since 1970 and last year more than 50,000 runners completed the race. The race is organized by the nonprofit New York Road Runners. Runners can participate in the marathon in a variety of ways, including through a qualifying time, a lottery, or donating to charity.

For the first time, the organization added a “Team for Climate,” allowing runners to donate $3,000 toward carbon credits to participate in the race. While New York has been warm all week with temperatures ranging from 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit (20 degrees Celsius), it is expected to cool down to 50 degrees Celsius on race day.

To enhance the runners' experience after the 26.2-mile race, the New York Road Runners worked with the city and arts organizations to offer deals on some museum admissions and tickets to Broadway shows.

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