FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Ondoro Wins Unprecedented Fourth Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon Title
Sara Hall wins Third-Straight USATF 10 Mile Championships
St. Paul, Minn. - October 6, 2019 - Event record-holder won an
unprecedented fourth Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon men's title with a
2:12:23 victory in the 38th annual race from Minneapolis to St Paul.
Ondoro won comfortably over fellow Kenyan Denis Chirchir, second in
2:13:50, and St. Paul native and current Minneapolis resident Danny
Docherty, who clocked 2:15:55.
In the women's race, Julia Kohnen of Florissant, Mo., won her first
Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon title in 2:31:29. She outran Burnsville's
Dakotah Lindwurm, second in 2:32:49, and 2014 Medtronic Twin Cities
Marathon runner-up Heather Lieberg, third in 2:34:07.
Breaking his own record was on Ondoro's mind, but his back rebelled. "I was
running easily, but around 20K, I felt something in my [lower back], so no
record, he said. "I hope next year I can try my best. It's exciting. I like
the way the people here interact with us. They cheer us very well."
Kohnen was happy with her first Twin Cities race. "It's a really good
feeling to have a fast time under my belt now," she said. "The weather
plays a huge factor, and we couldn't have gotten luckier today. It's so
fun, the neighborhoods are absolutely gorgeous."
Push-rim wheel chair defending champion Hermin Garic of Utic, N.Y. won his
in 1:44:21.
In the USATF 10 Mile Championships held in conjunction with the Medtronic
TC 10 Mile, Sara Hall of Flagstaff, Ariz. won her third consecutive title
in 53:11, six seconds faster than Mekena Morley of Boulder, Colo., a
student-athlete at Colorado University. Burnsville's Katy Jermann was
third at 53:44.
Futsum Zienasellassie of Flagstaff, Ariz. won the men's championship in
46:55, edging former Minnesota resident Abbabiya Simbassa of Colorado
Springs, Colo., second in 46:57 and Connor McMillan or Provo, Utah, third
in 46:58.
Hall and Zienasellassie each won $12,500 for winning their USATF titles,
and Zienasellassie earned an additional $10,000 by winning the equalizer
bonus in the competition where the women are given a head-start over the
men.
Shockingly, Hall's win came just a week after running a personal best
marathon of 2:22:16 in Berlin. "I've never raced a week after a marathon,
I've raced two weeks after, so this is uncharted territory. But since I
love this race, I thought I'd give it a shot to try to win again."
Zienasellassie was elated with his win. "For me, this is a dream come
true, so I'm really happy. It took a lot of people's hard work that brought
me here to the point I'm at right now."
The Medtronic TC 10 Mile saw a record 11,042 finished the 21st running.
The marathon saw 6735 complete the 26.2 mile course.
Twin Cities In Motion (TCM) is the region's premier running event company.
Its mission is simple - ignite everyone's inner athlete. TCM is a 501 (c)
3 nonprofit that organizes 27 races throughout the year, including the
Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, a Top 10 U.S. marathon, to provide
opportunities for people of all ages, abilities, and experiences to live an
active, healthy lifestyle. Collectively, TCM and its charity partners that
fundraise at TCM events give back more than $1.1 million annually to a
variety of causes. For more information, visit us at tcmevents.org, or find
us on Facebook and Twitter @tcmarathon.
###
|
