Cleveland Marathon 5K: Ryan Green Owns M40-44

• Green's winning margin: 50 seconds over Jeremy Long — a commanding gap at 7:00/mi in a 51-man field.
• Tight podium battle: Just 14 seconds separated 2nd (Long, 22:35) from 3rd (Bryant, 22:49), with 4th-place Johnson only 16 seconds further back at 23:05.
• Age outlier: Jared Ingram, the lone 44-year-old in the top ten, claimed 7th at 25:27 — the oldest finisher in the listed top 20.
• Field spread: From Green's 21:45 to Paul Molan's 31:42 in 20th place, the M40-44 group spanned over ten minutes of racing on a humid, breezy Cleveland morning.

Ryan Green made the M40-44 race look straightforward. The Avon Lake 40-year-old crossed in 21:45 at a crisp 7:00/mi, putting 50 seconds between himself and the field — a margin that, in a 5K, is closer to a statement than a squeaker. With 67°F temps and 83% humidity pressing down on Lake Erie's doorstep, that kind of pace required real composure.

Behind him, the battle for the podium was considerably tighter. Jeremy Long (Akron) held second in 22:35, but Christopher Bryant (North Olmsted) was right on his shoulder at 22:49 — a 14-second gap that could have flipped with one bad mile. Steven Johnson (Stow) rounded out the top four in 23:05, meaning positions two through four were decided within a 30-second window. Kennith Coleman then put some daylight on the rest, finishing 5th in 24:31, with Antonio Santiago close behind at 24:51.

Further back, Jared Ingram deserves a mention: at 44, he was the oldest finisher in the listed top ten and still clocked 25:27 — a solid 8:11/mi on a day when the wind and humidity were doing nobody any favors. The M40-44 group brought 51 finishers to the line in Cleveland, and Green's performance at the front of it was the clear headline.