Long Beach Marathon F20-24: Paige Moore Outkicks the Field in a Wire-to-Wire Battle

• Paige Moore wins in 2:55:13 (6:41/mi), claiming the F20-24 title after trading the women's lead throughout the race and posting the 2nd-fastest women's split from miles 5.5 to 13.1.
• Hope Stark surges from 10th to 3rd among women, finishing 2nd in F20-24 in 2:58:10 with the 4th-fastest women's split on the 13.1M–20M stretch — a relentless mid-race charge from Colorado Springs.
• Brooke Decker's late-race explosion: starting 37th among women, she rocketed to 8th by the finish — the 4th-fastest women's split from mile 20 to the line — to land 4th in F20-24 at 3:07:35.
• 192 finishers completed the F20-24 race under warm, humid Long Beach conditions (72°F, 73% humidity).

Paige Moore (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA) didn't just win F20-24 — she earned it the hard way. Her gender standing yo-yoed between 1st and 2nd across all four checkpoints, meaning she was never truly clear of the competition. But her 6:41/mi average and a blistering 2nd-fastest women's split through the middle miles (5.5 to 13.1) proved she had the engine to close the deal. Her 2:55:13 is the number that matters: a comfortable 2:57 gap over runner-up Hope Stark.

Stark (Colorado Springs, CO) told a different story — one of patience rewarded. She was 10th among women at the first checkpoint, steadily climbing through 7th and 4th before settling 3rd among women at the gun. Her 4th-fastest women's split from the half to mile 20 was the engine of that ascent, and she crossed in 2:58:10 at 6:48/mi to take 2nd in F20-24. Keely Berger (Santa Monica, CA) rounded out the podium in 3:04:35, posting the 5th-fastest women's split over the final 10K to hold off a charging field.

That charging field was led by Brooke Decker (Los Gatos, CA), whose race was essentially run in reverse — invisible through the first half, then relentless. From 37th among women at mile 5.5, she clawed to 15th by mile 20 before unleashing the 4th-fastest women's closing split to finish 4th in F20-24 at 3:07:35. Camilla Eskelinen (Long Beach, CA) rounded out the top five in 3:11:08, while Ella Nyholm (Shoreview, MN) and Iliana Treyger and Jaelynn Cid — separated by just 22 seconds — filled 6th through 8th at 3:20:28, 3:23:01, and 3:23:23 respectively.