San Francisco Half Marathon: Monique Charron Surges to F65-69 Victory

• Monique Charron (2:03:25, 9:25/mi) won the F65-69 race, climbing from 616th to 415th among women through the first 10.65 miles before unleashing the 359th-fastest women's closing split to seal the win.
• Lynne Hodge (2:05:03) held the early pace but faded in the women's field after a strong 2.13M–6.62M segment, finishing 1:38 behind Charron.
• Denise Beatty (2:22:29) and Kathy Trapani (2:24:13) rounded out the podium separated by just 1:44, both closing well — Beatty's final segment ranked 759th among women, Trapani's 758th.
• Thirteen women finished the F65-69 race, spanning just over 1:09:36 from first to last.

Monique Charron of Ste-Thérèse, QC, didn't just win — she built her lead methodically and then pounced. Running 9:25/mi through San Francisco's famously hilly streets, she was 616th among women at the first checkpoint and spent the entire middle portion of the race moving forward, reaching 415th by 10.65 miles. Then came her best move: a 359th-fastest women's closing split that put the result beyond doubt. At 66 years old, she crossed in 2:03:25.

Lynne Hodge of Kiawah Island, SC, told a different story. The 67-year-old ran the 446th-fastest women's split on the 2.13M–6.62M segment — a genuine surge in the middle miles — but her position among women drifted from 415th to 465th over the second half. She still finished a strong 2nd in 2:05:03, just 1:38 back, but Charron's late charge was the decisive difference.

Third and fourth place belonged to Denise Beatty (2:22:29) and Kathy Trapani (2:24:13), separated by 1:44 at the line. Both closed with nearly identical split rankings — 759th and 758th among women respectively on their best segments — suggesting two athletes who found their rhythm in the back half. Cindy McKenzie rounded out the top five in 2:31:19 (11:33/mi).

The rest of the field spread across a wide range of efforts, from Kristin Bahri's 2:35:33 and the side-by-side finishes of Linda Siino and Margarita Silvia Elizalde Mariscal (both 2:36:07) through to Violeta Arnobit of Honolulu, who completed the course in 3:13:01. Thirteen women from Quebec to Stockholm to Zapopan brought their own journeys to the San Francisco streets — and every one of them finished.