DULUTH,MN (KDAL) – The weather on Saturday turned out to be ideal for those running in Grandma’s Marathon and Half Marathon, with cool temperatures and a brisk tail wind.
Kenya’s Boniface Kongin claimed victory in the 43rd annual Grandma’s Marathon. Kongin finished the course with a time of 2:12:01. Coming in second was Andrew Colley, 28, from Blowing Rock NC, who finished in 2:12:15. Christopher Kipyego, 45, of Kenya, won the masters men’s division for the third consecutive year crossing the finish line in 2:17:06.
In the women’s division, American, Nell Rojas, claimed the women’s championship title with a time of 2:28:09. Rojas, 31, from Boulder, CO, cruised to an easy victory in the second marathon of her career with a time of 2:28:09 ahead of Margaret Njuguna, 35, of Kenya, with a time of 2:33:15. Heather Lieberg, 40, of Montana, finished in 2:40:38 and earned the female masters title.
Susannah Scaroni, 28, of Illinois, won the women’s wheelchair division for the second consecutive year, set a new event record, and the Paralympic World Record with a time of 1:30:42. She is now a nine-time Grandma’s Marathon Champion. Tatyana McFadden, 30, of Maryland, came in second place at 1:31:30.
Aaron Pike 33, of Illinois, repeated his victory for the third consecutive year with a time of 1:20:59 in the men’s wheelchair division setting a new event record. He beat Patrick Monahan, 33, of Ireland, who finished in 1:22:23.
In the 29th annual Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon, Panuel Mkungo, 25, of Kenya, won for the second consecutive year with a time of 1:02:37. Katy Jermann, 27, of Burnsville, MN, claimed the women’s title in 1:10:27.
In results from the Friday night William A. Irvin 5K, Matthew Scherber of St. Paul, Minnesota, won the 3.1-mile race with a time of 15:24. Second place went to Jesse Prince of Bemidji, Minnesota, with a time of 16:13. The course record on the scenic course was set by Dustin Franta (15:34) in 2017.
In the women’s division, Carrie Tollefson of St. Paul, took the title once again with a time of 18:11. Tollefson came in first place in 2017 and 2018 as well. Second place went to McKenzie Melander of Apple Valley, Minnesota, with a time of 19:47.
For complete results, log on to www.grandmasmarathon.com. All results are unofficial.
