Jordan Hasay entered Sunday's Twin Cities 10-mile championship expecting to gain experience, nothing more. The 25-year-old from Beaverton, Ore., placed third in the USA Track and Field 5K last month, and the 10-mile was just another step in her transition from tracks to roads.
It was a big step. Hasay upset the women's favorite, Aliphine Tuliamuk, to win the USATF 10-mile championship with a time of 52 minutes, 49 seconds. Tuliamuk, 27, from Santa Fe, N.M., finished second in 53:01, and St. Paul Olympic triathlete Gwen Jorgensen finished third in 53:13.
"I was in shock. It was such a great field. I'm actually kind of speechless," Hasay said. "I've had kind of a rough year. I didn't make the Olympic team, and so I just kind of put my head down and have been working on finishing and gaining strength and it finally all came together."
Hasay, competing in her first 10-mile race, also held off the men's winner, Sam Chelanga,to win the $10,000 equalizer bonus (women get a five-minute head start on the men) on top of a $12,000 first-place prize.
The 31-year-old Chelanga from Tucson, Ariz., finished in 47:25 to repeat as champion. Noah Droddy of Boulder, Colo., finished second in 47:28 and Timothy Ritchie from New Haven, Conn., was third in 47:33. Abbabiya Simbassa of Minnetonka finished best (13th) among local male runners.
"I wanted to be the champion, and I wanted to make a move at the right time," Chelanga said. "I saved everything for that last move. … Winning a race is a beautiful thing."
Coppess' wait is over
Phil Coppess waited 30 years for the news he received Sunday afternoon at his home in Clinton, Iowa. The 2:10:05 record time he ran in the 1985 Twin Cities Marathon finally had been broken. Dominic Ondoro blew by it with 2:08:51.
"Wow, that is awesome," Coppess reacted after hearing the news. "That one might last a long time. That is an awesome time on that course. He must have trained for it."