B.A.A. 10K W40-44: Vicky Ho Claims the Age Group in Boston's Heat

• Vicky Ho won the W40-44 age group in 59:28 (9:34/mi), holding 11th among women through the first half before finishing 13th among women overall.
• Jessie Lowell was runner-up in 1:02:53 (10:07/mi), a gap of 3:25 back of Ho.
• Ho posted the 13th-fastest women's split on the 5K–8K segment; Lowell was 18th fastest on that same stretch — the two W40-44 runners tracking each other through the race's middle miles.
• Both athletes navigated a brutal 93°F day with a 15 mph wind — conditions that made every minute earned meaningful.

The W40-44 age group came down to two Newton-area runners on one of Boston's most punishing race days in recent memory. Vicky Ho set the tone from the gun, sitting 11th among women at the 5K checkpoint and holding that spot through 8K before a slight slip to 13th at the line — a composed, consistent effort at sub-9:35 pace in genuine heat.

Jessie Lowell of Watertown ran her own steady race, sitting 16th among women at the 5K and largely holding position through to the finish at 17th. Her 10:07/mi average on a 93°F morning is no small thing, and her 18th-fastest women's split on the 5K–8K segment shows she was still pushing through the hardest stretch of the course.

The 3:25 margin between them tells the story cleanly: Ho was the stronger runner on the day, but both women crossed the line having competed hard in conditions that chased plenty of others off their goals. In a two-person age group on a day this unforgiving, finishing is itself a statement.