W25-29 at the 2026 NYC Half: Van Es edges Belayneh by one second in a blistering finish

• Diane Van Es wins in 1:08:21 (5:13/mi), holding off Fentaye Belayneh by a single second in the closest finish of the W25-29 podium.
• Belayneh owned the middle miles, posting the 3rd-fastest women's split on the 10K–15K stretch before Van Es surged past her with the 5th-fastest women's split on 15K–20K.
• Amanda Vestri and Annie Frisbie ran a tight battle for 3rd and 4th, separated by just three seconds (1:09:22 vs. 1:09:25) — Vestri with the 7th-fastest women's split on 15K–20K, Frisbie with the 8th-fastest women's split on the second half.
• Emily Venters was the biggest mover in the top 10, climbing from 13th among women at the 10K mark all the way to 10th by the finish on the strength of the 6th-fastest women's split in the second half.

Forty degrees and a light breeze off the park made for near-ideal racing conditions from Prospect Park to Central Park, and the W25-29 group — 3,737 finishers strong — delivered one of the day's most compelling finishes at the front. Van Es, the 26-year-old from Rotterdam, was sitting 6th among women through the halfway point, then shifted gears. Her 5th-fastest women's split on the 15K–20K segment was the decisive move, and she crossed in 1:08:21 to claim the W25-29 title. Belayneh, who had been running in 4th among women as early as the 10K checkpoint, couldn't quite close the gap, finishing one second back in 1:08:22.

Behind the top two, the race for the rest of the podium was nearly as gripping. Vestri (1:09:22) and Frisbie (1:09:25) were separated by three seconds after 13.1 miles of racing, with Vestri's late surge on 15K–20K just enough to hold her off. Venters was the quiet story of the second half — invisible in the top-10 conversation through 15K, she ran herself into 5th place with a relentless closing effort, finishing in 1:09:46 at 5:19/mi. Konstanze Klosterhalfen (1:10:04) and Agnes Ngetich (1:10:25) rounded out a deep top seven, all seven women finishing under 5:23 per mile pace on a challenging urban course.