by Clay Shaw

Philadelphia, PA, November 21, 2021—Mike Chesire of Kenya won the Philadelphia Marathon in 2:13:28.  Dylan Gearinger of Philadelphia moved up through the ranks and caught Chesire in Manayunk, then fell back a bit, but stayed steady to rock a new personal best of 2:14:54.  Gearinger, a native of Berwick, PA, rode the press truck with us on Thanksgiving at the 112^th Run For the Diamonds.  A few people shouted out to Dylan during the race, asking why he wasn’t running. Perhaps they didn’t understand that it’s probably not wise to run a 2:14 marathon on Sunday and race again on Thursday on a very tough course.  Donald Cowart of Winston-Salem, NC was third in 2:17:24.  Ashenafi Ketema Birhana of Ethiopia and Washington, DC was fourth in 2:19:01.  Lyle O’Brien of Boulder, CO was fifth in 2:19:18.  Alex Norstrom of Coventry, CT was sixth with a 2:19:28, and was the final sub-2:20 finisher.  Pablo Kohan of Maplewood, NJ was top master in 2:28:43, he was the 27^th male to finish.

Leslie Sexton of Vancouver, BC had a great day, setting a new course record of 2:28:35.  Sexton is now the #6 Canadian female of all time.  Lexie Thompson of South Weber, Utah was second in 2:30:37, in her first marathon. Hirut Guangul of Ethiopia and New York was third in 2:33:44.  Kerry Allen of Washington, DC was fourth in 2:40:13.  Pamela Cherotich of Kenya was fifth in 2:41:12. Heidi Peoples of Clarks Summit, PA was top master and seventh overall, in 2:42:53.  17 women broke the 2:50 barrier.

The Philadelphia Marathon had 7147 finishers in 2021.  In 2019 there were 10,049 marathon finishers. There was no race in 2020. 

Top Women

1. 2:28:35 Leslie Sexton, 34, Vancouver, BC, Canada
2. 2:30:37 Lexie Thompson, 24, South Weber, UT
3. 2:33:45 Hirut Beyene Guangul, 29, Ethiopia
4. 2:40:13 Kerry Allen, 33, Washington, DC
5. 2:41:12 Pamela Cherotich, 35, Kenya
6. 2:42:14 Chelsea Benson, 39, Ithaca, NY
7. 2:42:53 Heidi Peoples, 41, Clarks Summit, PA
8. 2:43:49 Lily Anderson, 24, Brooklyn, NY
9. 2:43:43 English Jackson, 23, Grottoes, VA
10. 2:45:14 Lauren Kelly, 31, Philadelphia, PA
11. 2:45:33 Gabby Tofig, 26, Brooklyn, NY
12. 2:46:31 Samantha Roecker, 30, Philadelphia, PA
13. 2:48:09 Erin LiVecchi, 38, Haddonfield, NJ
14. 2:48:44 Laurel LeMoigne, 36, Springfield, VA
15. 2:48:50 Mackenzie Lowe, 26, Greenville, SC
16. 2:49:37 Chelsea Oda, 31, Portland, OR
17. 2:49:59 Rosie Mascoli, 30, Bala Cynwyd, PA
18. 2:51:43 Kaitlin Frei, 26, Kennett Square, PA
19. 2:53:01 Riley Brady, 26, New Hope, PA
20. 2:53:02 Ellie Leonard, 25, Bethesda, MD

Top Men

1. 2:13:28 Mike Chesire, 24, Kenya
2. 2:14:55 Dylan Gearinger, 24, Philadelphia, PA
3. 2:17:24 Donald Cowart, 36, Winston-Salem, NC
4. 2:19:01 Ashenafi Ketema Birhana, 33, Washington, DC
5. 2:19:18 Lyle O’Brien, 30, Boulder, CO
6. 2:19:28 Alex Norstrom, 25, Coventry, CT
7. 2:20:12 Colin Martin, 26, Pittsburgh, PA
8. 2:21:04 Jeffrey Seelaus, 27, Boston, MA
9. 2:22:58 Alexis Lavoie-Gilbert, 29, Levis, QC, Canada
10. 2:23:14 Brady Bobbitt, 24, Ballston Lake, NY
11. 2:23:34 Edmilson dos Reis Santana, 34, Brazil
12. 2:24:02 Thomas Adam, 35, Charlottesville, VA
13. 2:25:37 Will Rehrig, 28, Middletown, DE
14. 2:26:40 Jake Duckworth, 26, New Haven, CT
15. 2:26:40 John Elimlim, 31, Kenya
16. 2:26:55 Joshua Hibbs, 33, Glenside, PA
17. 2:27:12 Alexander Predhome, 27, Jamaica Plain, MA
18. 2:27:32 Jeff Costen, 29, Toronto, ON, Canada
19. 2:27:56 Ben Stephenson, 30, Washington, DC
20. 2:28:03 Sean Donohue, 30, Holmdel, NJ

Categories: Race Coverage

Tags: 2021, featured, Philadelphia, Philadelphia Marathon