NYC Marathon: Ghirmay Ghebreslassie, Mary Keitany win top 2016 races

NEW YORK - Eritrea’s Ghirmay Ghebreslassie has won the New York City Marathon in the men’s field, becoming the youngest ever to win the men’s event. 

Meanwhile, a short time earlier Mary Keitany of Kenya won her third straight New York City Marathon to become the first woman to win three consecutive marathons in New York since Grete Waltz’s five-year run from 1982 to 1986.

Ghebreslassie finished his debut in New York with an unofficial time of 2 hours, 7 minutes, 51 seconds.

For most of the course, the men’s field was a three-man race between Ghebreslassie, Kenya’s Lucas Rotich and Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa. By mile 20, Ghebreslassie gradually began pulling away.

The 20-year-old beat Rotich by 62 seconds and became the youngest male winner in New York. The previous youngest male winners were Alberto Salazar in 1980 and Tom Fleming in 1973, who won as 22-year-olds.

Defending champion Stanley Biwott withdrew at the 10-mile mark with a right calf injury. He also dropped out in the Rio Olympics after getting sick.

American Abdi Abdirahman placed third.

Desisa, who was the runner-up in New York in 2014 and a two-time Boston Marathon winner, dropped out at the 22nd mile.

The 34-year-old Keitany defended her title Sunday in an unofficial time of 2 hours, 24 minutes, 26 seconds, beating countrywoman Joyce Chepkirui by nearly four minutes.

Last year, Keitany pulled away around the 21-mile mark. On Sunday, she began getting a sizable lead at the 15-mile mark as the race crossed the Queensboro Bridge into Manhattan.

Keitany reached Manhattan in less than 90 minutes. As she began running up First Avenue, television commentators referred to her as “The Boss of New York City,” and following the 20-mile mark, Keitany led by more than two minutes.

Molly Huddle placed third in her debut after setting an American record at the 10,000 meters in the Rio Olympics.