RUNNER’S WORLD
Hailey Middlebrook
Each year on Labor Day, thousands of runners put in the work at the New Haven Road Race, which includes a half marathon, 20K, and 5K. The most prestigious of them, the 20K—which begins near the Yale campus and winds 12.4 miles through the city—includes an impressive lineup of elites competing for the USATF title while tuning up for later fall races.
The women’s field was particularly close in 2018’s race, which shot off in sweltering 80-degree temps with 75-percent humidity. Within the first few miles, a trio made up of Sara Hall, 35; Allie Kieffer, 30; and Emma Bates, 26, pulled into the lead, staying together through mile 10. With less than three miles to go, Hall and Kieffer dropped Bates. Closing onto the finish, Hall surged ahead of her competition, winning in 1:09:03. Kieffer crossed the line in 1:09:20, while Bates took third for women in 1:09:40.
“The race was very challenging,” said Hall in an email to Runner’s World. “It was probably the toughest weather I’ve ever raced in, and I’m in a hard part of my marathon buildup.”
This was Hall’s second time racing in New Haven. Last year, she placed third for women, running a 1:07:53. Earlier in July, Hall won Queensland’s Gold Coast half marathon with a personal best time of 01:09:27, and she’s currently training for Germany’s Frankfurt Marathon on October 28.
The hot, muggy conditions were a dramatic change from Hall’s cool, arid climes in Flagstaff, Arizona, where she lives with her retired long distance-runner husband, Ryan. “I feel like these races where nothing feels comfortable really help prepare you mentally for the discomfort of the marathon,” she said. “I tried to just keep worshipping God by giving my best effort.”
For Kieffer, who finished as the sixth overall woman in 2017, this race was a final tune-up before returning to the New York City Marathon, in which she placed fifth last year.
In an Instagram post, Kieffer voiced her disappointment with her runner-up finish, but stated that it “fueled her fire” for what’s to come. “I ran like I was being chased, trying to hold onto my position,” she wrote. “Second place stings in a way I didn’t expect… But I’m beginning to believe I can win one of these.”
The men’s race was decidedly less dramatic than last year’s, which ended with a sprint between 2016 Olympian Leonard Korir and three-time Olympian Galen Rupp, who out-leaned Korir to win by a second.
This year, Korir took advantage of a downhill slope to break away from fellow competitors Haron Lagat and Kiya Dandena about two miles from the finish, taking first 11 seconds ahead of the field in 1:00:17. Lagat finished in 1:00:28, while Dandena took third in 1:00:34.
Though his finish may have been less strained this year, Korir’s race wasn’t any easier. He told the New Haven Register, “It’s like an oven out there. It’s like, ‘Wow, are we going to finish?’”
According to his interview with the paper, his surging strategy was meant to substitute for a finishing kick. “This year, I had a little bit of a problem with my hamstring, so I don’t have top finishing speed at the moment,” he told the Register. “So, I was like, let me try to change the strategy so I don’t have to sprint.”
Whether he kicks or not, Korrir’s one to watch at the Chicago Marathon this October.