Boys U-19: Wilcko Wires the NYC Half in 1:16:26

• Rowen Wilcko won the M1-19 age group in 1:16:26 at a 5:50/mi clip — more than 2 minutes 18 seconds clear of runner-up Oscar Greenberg.
• Greenberg (1:18:44) and Gavin Li (1:20:21) locked up 2nd and 3rd, with Li edging Ziyang Ling by just over a minute for the final podium spot.
• A notable finish-order quirk: Alex Califano (1:21:34, 5th) crossed in a faster clock time than Ziyang Ling (1:21:37, 4th) — yet Ling holds 4th by the timing margin that matters.
• The field of 96 spanned a wide range: from Wilcko's 5:50/mi to a 12:34/mi back-of-pack effort — a testament to how broadly the age group drew on race day.

On a crisp 40°F morning running from Prospect Park to Central Park, Rowen Wilcko, 16, from Erie, PA, put on a commanding performance. His 5:50/mi average held up across the full 13.1 miles, and the gap he opened — more than two minutes on a field of 96 — left little doubt about who owned this age group. His 5K–10K segment was particularly sharp, ranking among the stronger splits in the broader men's field at that stretch of the course.

Oscar Greenberg, 18, representing New York, also found his stride in the middle miles, climbing from 329th among men at 5K all the way to 301st by 10K before settling into a 1:18:44 finish — a solid 2nd place in the age group. Gavin Li, another 16-year-old, made his move later in the race, posting the 344th-fastest split in the field on the 15K–20K segment to lock up 3rd in 1:20:21.

The most dramatic story in the top five belonged to Alex Califano. He came through 5K in solid position but faded steadily through the middle — dropping from 313th among men to 570th by 20K — before rallying to finish 5th in 1:21:34. That late fade handed 4th to Ling, whose more even effort (6:14/mi) proved the steadier strategy on the day.