Almgren Wins New York City Marathon in 2:06:01 on His Debut, Chepkirui Holds Off McClain

Andreas Almgren of Sweden won the TCS New York City Marathon on Sunday in 2:06:01, winning the first marathon of his career. Sheila Chepkirui of Kenya won the women's race in 2:24:36, holding off Jess McClain of the United States by six seconds. NBC Sports reported that Almgren is the first Swede to win in New York and the first Swede to win any major marathon. Sweden Herald reported that he is also the first European-born men's winner in New York since 1996.

A debutant beats the champions

The men's race stayed packed deep into the morning. FloTrack's live splits had American record holder Conner Mantz leading at 35K in 1:45:33, with the top 14 runners separated by just 1.37 seconds and defending champion Benson Kipruto down in 14th. At 40K, Almgren led in 2:00:00, with Kipruto 0.55 seconds behind, Yemaneberhan Crippa of Italy third and Zouhair Talbi of the United States fourth, six seconds back.

Four runners were still together when the race entered Central Park. Sweden Herald reported that Almgren stayed patient through every move his rivals made, then left Crippa behind with a couple of kilometres to run. He won by 13 seconds, according to NBC Sports, and his 2:06:01 finished 1 minute, 3 seconds outside the course record of 2:04:58 that Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia set in 2023.

Almgren, 31, was the bronze medalist at 10,000m at the 2025 World Championships, according to NBC Sports. Sweden Herald reported that he won European Championship gold at 10,000m in August and the World Half Marathon title in September, the first non-African runner to win that title in 30 years. Sunday was his first attempt at 26.2 miles.

McClain ends the American podium wait

The women's finish was tighter. Defending champion Hellen Obiri of Kenya led at 35K, with Chepkirui 0.28 seconds behind and six runners inside one second. At 40K, Chepkirui and Obiri were locked together at 2:17:39, with McClain third, 3.38 seconds back.

Chepkirui, the 2024 champion, won in 2:24:36 for her second New York title. McClain finished second in 2:24:42, passing Obiri by 41 hundredths of a second in the final strides, according to NBC Sports. Obiri was third in 2:24:43. NBC Sports reported that McClain's podium is the first for an American man or woman in New York since Shalane Flanagan finished third in her title defense in 2018. McClain placed fourth at the 2024 U.S. Olympic Trials in both the marathon and the 10,000m and was the top American at the Boston Marathon in 2025 and 2026. Edna Kiplagat of Kenya, the 2010 champion, finished fourth at age 46.

The last major of the year

The professional women started at 8:35 a.m. Eastern and the men at 9:05 a.m., after the wheelchair divisions opened the day at 8 a.m. Swiss racers swept the wheelchair titles: Marcel Hug won his eighth New York men's title in 1:28:14 and Catherine Debrunner won her second women's title in 1:40:02. Olympic champion Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands and Fiona O'Keeffe of the United States withdrew three weeks before the race, Hassan with sickness and O'Keeffe after left hamstring surgery, according to NBC Sports. Nearly 60,000 runners were expected on the course, FloTrack reported, on the 50th anniversary of the five borough route first run on Oct 24, 1976. New York was the last World Marathon Major of 2026.