X45-49: Roberts Runs Away with It in a Crisp NYC Morning

• Robert Roberts won the X45-49 age group in 1:36:02 (7:20/mi), the fastest time in the group by more than six minutes.
• Jose Arriaga held 2nd in 1:42:42, while Pedro Garcia Soria rounded out the podium in 1:50:44 — a gap of just over 8 minutes separating 2nd and 3rd.
• Elle Gallagher crossed 4th in 2:12:55, the only London representative in the group.
• Marion Yates finished 5th in 4:17:03, but posted the 81st-fastest split in the field on the 10K→15K segment — a bright spot in a tough day.

Five athletes lined up for the X45-49 age group on a crisp 40°F morning from Prospect Park to Central Park, and Robert Roberts made the outcome look straightforward. Running at a steady 7:20-per-mile clip, the Merrick, NY 48-year-old finished in 1:36:02 — more than six minutes clear of anyone else in the group. His 18th-fastest split in the women's field on the 5K→10K segment shows he was moving well through the early miles, and his gender place held remarkably stable through the back half, hovering around 17th–18th among women throughout.

Jose Arriaga of Brooklyn was the picture of consistency, holding 20th among women from the gun through 20K before fading slightly to 25th at the finish. His 1:42:42 (7:50/mi) was a solid effort that kept 3rd place comfortably at arm's length. Pedro Garcia Soria, making the trip from Ciudad Lopez Mateos, Mexico, earned the final podium spot in 1:50:44, and his 27th-fastest split among women on the 15K→20K leg suggests he found a good rhythm in the race's later stages.

Elle Gallagher, representing London, came home 4th in 2:12:55 — a 10:08/mi pace that reflects a measured approach across the 13.1 miles. Marion Yates of Huntington Beach closed out the group in 5th, with a finish time of 4:17:03 that tells its own story, though her 81st-fastest split among women on the 10K→15K stretch was a genuine highlight within an otherwise difficult afternoon.