Stand-outs in the men's field include Ethiopians Yemane Tsegay and Lelisa Desisa, who are currently third and fourth, respectively, in the Series IX standings. Strong performances on Sunday from these men could put them in serious contention for an AWMM championship.
Tsegay has been a workhorse in 2015 – his New York City run will mark his third marathon competition this year, after runner-up finishes in Boston in April (2:09:48) and at the IAAF World Championships in August in Beijing (2:13:08) earned him 32 points on the Series IX leaderboard. Racing marathons within a short recovery window is nothing new to the 30-year-old Tsegay, who will make his New York City debut on Nov.1: Last year he won the Daegu Marathon in South Korea on April 16 (2:06:51), and seven weeks later, on May 25, he ran 2:06:54 to win the Ottawa Marathon in Canada.
25-year-old Desisa earned 25 points with his April 2015 Boston Marathon win (2:09:17). He won Boston as well in 2013 (2:10:22) —becoming the only Ethiopian man with two Boston victories. He was the runner-up in the 2014 TCS New York City Marathon with a time of 2:11:06, when he challenged Wilson Kipsang into Central Park. His marathon career began with a win at the 2013 Dubai Marathon, outlasting four competitors in a sprint finish, and only three months later, he won Boston with a similar surge.
Not to be counted out is Kenya's Wilson Kipsang, the defending TCS New York City Marathon champion. He secured the 2013-2014 World Marathon Majors Series title with his first place finishes last year in New York (2:10:59), London (2:04:29) and Berlin (2:03:23). Kipsang, 33, has run under 2:05 six times, the most of any runner in history. He holds 16 points on the current AWMM leaderboard.
In the women's field, Caroline Rotich, of Kenya, currently holds position #5 on the Series IX leaderboard with 25 points. She earned her 1st-place Boston Marathon finish this year (2:24:55) after a back-and-forth sprint duel over the final quarter mile with Mare Dibaba of Ethiopia. A veteran of AWMM races, Rotich has also performed admirably at the Tokyo Marathon and the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. She returns to New York City after competing in the 2010 and 2011 races.
Also with 25 points and offering formidable competition on Nov.1 is Ethiopia's Tigist Tufa, the surprise winner of the 2015 Virgin Money London Marathon. She waited until mile 23 to make her move in that race, putting 18 seconds on her closest competitor by the finish, and landing a time of 2:23:22. After London, she notched a sixth-place finish at the IAAF World Championship (2:29:12).
Another impressive athlete looking to move up on the Series IX leaderboard is Mary Keitany of Kenya, the defending female champion of the 2014 TCS New York City Marathon (2:25:07) and a veteran of the race, having run a total of three times. Her 2011 third place finish (2:23:38) included a blazing time of 1:07:56 for the first half of the course, the fastest half-marathon ever run in New York City by a woman.
The 33-year-old holds the 2011-2012 Abbott World Marathon Majors title, back-to-back London Marathon championships (2011 and 2012), and she is currently in the 8th position in AWMM Series IX.
The Series IX leaderboard can be viewed here.
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