Olympians Tuliamuk, Korir Shine at the USATF 25 km Championships

USATF Release

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana – Nothing could slow down fellow Olympians Aliphine Tuliamuk and Leonard Korir Saturday morning in Grand Rapids, Michigan at the USATF 25 km Championships presented by Toyota, as the duo used similar strategies to run away from competitive fields, on their way to victory.

On-demand races and coverage of the USATF 25 km Championships hosted by the Amway River Bank Run, the fifth stop on the USATF Running Circuit presented by Toyota, are available and can be viewed with a +PLUS subscription on USATF.TV.

An unseasonably warm morning didn’t slow down the front runners in the women’s race, as Tuliamuk and marathon American record holder Keira D’Amato set a quick early pace, passing through 5 km in 16:24, while building a sizeable lead over the chase pack.

D’Amato and Tuliamuk would continue to grow their lead through 10 km, passing through the split in 33:01, both running comfortably side by side, through the streets of Grand Rapids.

It wasn’t until mile 11 when things started to look different at the front, as Tuliamuk put in a significant surge that D’Amato couldn’t cover. Tuliamuk continued to charge over the next two miles, growing her lead to more than 30 seconds with the final mile coming into view.

Tuliamuk maintained form in the final stages of the race, crossing the finish in victorious fashion in 1:23:19, the fourth USATF 25 km title of her career. D’Amato never wavered behind Tuliamuk, claiming second overall in 1:24:04.

Dakotah Lindwurm pulled away from the chase pack half way through the race and ran by herself the rest of the way, taking home third in 1:26:37.

Sarah Pagano ran a tremendous back half of the race to grab fourth place overall in 1:27:52, while Andrea Pomaranski took home fifth overall in 1:28:20, her second consecutive top five finish on the USATF Running Circuit in as many weekend, having placed second at last weekend’s USATF Half Marathon Championships.

Molly Bookmyer brought home a sixth place finish in 1:28:40, as Lindsay Flanagan and Brittney Feivor placed seventh and eighth in 1:28:56 and 1:29:09. Sakiko Minagawa and Joanna Stephens finished ninth and tenth, clocking in at 1:31:54 and 1:32:46.

Pomaranski’s fifth place effort earns her another nine points towards the USATF Running Circuit overall standings, giving her 27 points total, putting her second behind Emily Sisson’s 37.5 points. Tuliamuk’s winning effort moves her into third place in the circuit standings with 22.5 points.

Similar to the women’s race, the men’s race got off to a quick start, as Parker Stinson set a challenging early pace, stringing out the field, with only Futsum Zeinasellassie and Korir keeping pace. The trio ran stride for stride through the opening miles of the race, pushing the hills of Grand Rapids together.

Stinson, Zeinasellassie, and Korir hit the 10 km mark in 29:55, well ahead of the chase pack, while Kiya Dandena and Haron Lagat worked together a ways behind in fourth and fifth.

The men’s race received a jolt in mile seven, with Korir putting in a surge and opening a significant lead, as Zeinasellassie and Stinson maintained their pace, seemingly content to let Korir push ahead.

Korir would continue to grow his lead throughout the remainder of the race, while Zeinasellassie would pull away into sole position of second just past mile nine, as Stinson started to fade back from his quick early pace.

Korir’s decisive move continued his momentum on the USATF Running Circuit, as the U.S. Army standout crossed the finish line victoriously in 1:15:53, his second circuit victory in consecutive weekends and his eleventh USATF Running Circuit victory.

Behind Korir, Zeinasellassie charged into the final straight, crossing the line in second in 1:16:29, earning his second runner-up finish over the past week, having finished second to Korir at the USATF Half Marathon Championships last weekend, while also earning his second consecutive runner-up finish at the USATF 25 km Championships. 

Dandena ran a terrific back half of Saturday’s race to claim third in 1:16:42, just ahead of Johnny Crain, who finished an impressive fourth in 1:16:49. Will Nation earned yet another top ten finish at the USATF 25 km Championships with his fifth place effort of 1:17:40, while Tyler Jermann took home sixth in 1:08:08.

Lagat faded a bit over the final miles, still claiming a seventh place finish in 1:18:48, while early frontrunner Stinson placed eighth in 1:19:19. Joshua Park and two-time USATF 25 km champion Fernando Cabada earned ninth and tenth place in 1:19:22 and 1:20:53.

Korir’s winning effort increases his USATF Running Circuit first place points total to 64 points, while Zeinasellassie maintains his second place standing with 43 points. Jacob Thomson sits third with 16 points.

The next stop on the 2022 USATF Running Circuit are the USATF Women’s 6 km Championships, which take place on June 4 in Canton, Ohio, while the men resume racing on July 16 in Kingsport, Tennessee at the USATF Men’s 8 km Championships.

About the USATF Running Circuit

The USATF Running Circuit is a USATF road series featuring USATF championships from one mile through the marathon and consistently attracts the best American distance runners with more than $500,000 to be awarded in total prize money. A total of $42,600 in prize money will be awarded at the USATF 25 km Championships

The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USATF Running Circuit race. For the USATF 25 km Championships, scoring is set as 22.5 for first, 18 for second, 15 for third, 10.5 ,9, 7.5, 6, 4.5, 3 and 1.5, with those earning the most points receiving prize money at the end of the series.

The mission of the USATF Running Circuit is to showcase, support and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USATF Running Circuit and its races have provided over $7 million to U.S. distance runners.

Contributed by Scott Bush