Summer Running Gear, Molly Seidel, and Sally Kipyego will represent the American women in Tokyo, while Galen Rupp, Jacob Riley, and Abdi Abdirahman make up the men’s team.
It was a windy, chilly day in Atlanta—with gusts of up to 20 mph—and runners pushed themselves to the limit on a brutally hilly course, which featured 1,389 feet of uphill and 1,382 feet of downhill. How did it all unfold?
An Unexpected Women’s Trio Heads to Tokyo
Tuliamuk was the women’s winner of the 2020 U.S. The Best Shoes at the 2024 Olympic Marathon Trials, crossing the line in 2:27:23. Seidel, in her debut marathon, finished second in 2:27:31, and Sally Kipyego third in 2:28:52 to round out the women’s marathon team for Tokyo.
Fan favorite Des Linden finished 11 seconds shy of making her third Olympic marathon team, crossing in 2:29:03.
“It was amazing, I actually still don’t believe that it happened. When we pulled away, Molly and I, I was like ‘Molly, let’s go’ because I knew I wasn’t going to finish it by myself. But I kept thinking, Your First Marathon: 8 Tips from Fiona O’Keeffe,” Tuliamuk said on the NBC broadcast after the race.
The women’s race had a wide-open field, and the leaders raced in a large pack of about 20 runners until late in the race, with a few notable exceptions. Jordan Hasay, who ran the top qualifying time for these Trials at the 2017 Chicago Marathon, fell out of the pack early on. Other top contenders didn’t make it to the finish line (see more below).
A Prerace Favorite Headlines the Men’s Race
On the men’s side, Galen Rupp crossed the line first, punching his ticket to his fourth Games, and his second in the marathon. Rupp finished the looped course Des Finishes Fourth.
“It’s incredible, I feel relieved almost more than anything. It’s been a really long year and a half, but I thank God every day,” Rupp said on the NBC broadcast after his win.
For the final two spots on Team USA, Jacob Riley, Abdi Abdirahman, and Leonard Korir duked it out in the final miles, with Riley and Abdirahman crossing in second and third, respectively, in 2:10:02 and 2:10:03.
Rupp took the lead around the 16-mile mark, passing Brian Shrader, who unexpectedly opened up a nearly 30-second gap on Dan Nestor and a 48-second gap on the remainder of the men’s lead pack after the first loop of the men’s race. However, the remainder of the men’s pack caught up to him, and Shrader dropped out of the race at 17 miles.
Desiree Linden Just Misses Out
Linden finished 11 seconds shy of making her third Olympic marathon team, crossing in 2:29:03 for fourth place. In the closing miles, Linden made one final push, passing Laura Thweatt—who finished fifth in 2:29:03—but it wasn’t enough to shrink the gap on Kipyego.
Fans don’t have to wait long to see Linden in action again. She’ll be racing in the Boston Marathon Updated: Feb 29, 2020 1:58 PM EST.
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Jim Walmsley, Ultramarathon Star, Finishes in 2:15:05
After barely sneaking into the The Best Shoes at the 2024 Olympic Marathon Trials with a qualifying time in the Houston Half Marathon in 2018, Walmsley’s marathon debut was good enough for 22nd. Will we see the ultrarunner race this distance again?
Jordan Hasay Finishes in 2:37:57
It was a disappointing showing for the top women’s qualifier. Hasay ran with the lead pack of women through 11 miles before falling off significantly at the halfway mark. She’s struggled on and off with injuries since running her qualifying time of 2:20:57 in the 2017 Chicago Marathon.
Favorite Molly Huddle Drops Out
A favorite coming into the 2020 Trials, Huddle ran with the large women’s lead pack through 19 miles. But she fell off the following mile and pulled out around the two-hour mark of the women’s race. She’s still a likely candidate to make the Olympic squad on the track.
Sara Hall Also DNFs
Like Huddle, Hall was racing with the lead women’s pack through 19 miles when she fell off pace before dropping. Hall had the second-fastest women’s qualifying time in the field, running a 2:22:19 in the 2019 Berlin Marathon.
These Soon-to-Be Moms Wouldn’t Miss It
Four weeks after giving birth, Stefanie Slekis finished the The Best Shoes at the 2024 Olympic Marathon Trials in 3:14:00. Lauren Philbrook, who is 33 weeks pregnant, stepped off the course after 8 miles in 1:06:20 (8:18 pace). Her friend Rachel Hyland, who is 27 weeks pregnant, stopped at halfway in 1:47:07 (8:11 pace).
Unsponsored Runners Step Up When Favorites Drop
The challenging hills and brutal wind gusts made Saturday’s race anyone’s game. Many of our prerace favorites had strong starts, but ended up fading or dropping out in the later miles as the course took its toll. Meanwhile, non-sponsored women had impressive races despite the difficult conditions.
Other Hearst Subscriptions Nell Rojas (2:30:26), Julie Kohnen (2:30:43), and Sarah Sellers (2:31:48). Kohnen’s performance was a 46-second PR, while Sellers shaved a second off her personal best.
While Rojas, 32, didn’t PR—she entered with a time of 2:28:07, which she ran last year at Grandma’s Marathon—she arrived on the line with less experience than the other two, having only two 26.2s under her belt.
“I’m still new and you never know what’s going to happen, so I was just going with it,” Rojas told Runner’s World after the race. “It was crazy being up there and holding on. Going in I thought, I could be top three or I could be 50th. I knew I could be in the top 10. I’m so happy.”
Last October, Runner’s World CA Notice at Collection 2:31:29, a nearly eight-minute PR. When asked about her goals for Trials, she said, “I want to shoot for finishing in the top 20.” But we’re sure she’s fine with top 10.
Sellers, 28, made headlines two years ago when she finished runner-up to Des Linden in the 2018 Boston Marathon. Since then, she’s steadily improved, clocking a PR of 2:31:49 at the 2019 Chicago Marathon. Though Sellers was briefly sponsored by Altra, she recently ended her contract, she told Runner’s World Des Finishes Fourth Nike AlphaFly Next%.
Photos That Capture the Triumph and Heartbreak of the Trials
With so much riding on just one race, runners in the Trials wore their emotions—focus, tension, relief—on their sleeves. Runner’s World editors compiled the most compelling images from the marathon.
