San Francisco Half Marathon 2025: Jing Chen Commands the F55-59 Field

• Jing Chen, 57, wins in 1:44:06 (7:56/mi), finishing more than five minutes clear of runner-up Katelyn Johnson.
• Biggest mover: Yolanda Taylor entered the women's field ranked 376th at the first checkpoint — and climbed all the way to 190th by the finish, taking 3rd in F55-59 in 1:52:24.
• Tight battle for 4th–6th: Angie Fung (1:55:11), Catherine Sui-Miller (1:55:19), and Wenli Bai (1:55:31) were separated by just 20 seconds across the line.
• Places 9 and 10 finish in the same clock time: Julie Buckley and Naomi Shimizu both crossed in 2:08:38 at 9:49/mi, though the timing gave Buckley 9th.

Jing Chen, 57, from Cupertino, ran a commanding race from start to finish — and then some. She entered the women's field at 181st after the opening miles, but her 7:56/mi pace steadily cut through the field, and she posted the 81st-fastest women's split on the 4.9M–11.9M stretch to surge from 117th to 94th among women. By the finish she had climbed to 92nd in the women's field and stood alone atop F55-59, her 1:44:06 a full five minutes and two seconds ahead of second place.

Katelyn Johnson, 59, from Alameda, was the picture of consistency in 2nd — her women's field position barely shifted from 165th at the first checkpoint to 147th at the finish, running a steady 8:20/mi to clock 1:49:08. Yolanda Taylor, 55, told a very different story: she was buried at 376th among women through the opening miles, then unleashed one of the field's most dramatic climbs, rising to 228th, then 182nd, and finishing 190th in the women's race — good for 3rd in F55-59 in 1:52:24 at 8:34/mi.

The race for the remaining podium spots produced the afternoon's closest finish. Angie Fung (4th, 1:55:11) held off a late charge from Catherine Sui-Miller, who had actually been ahead of Fung in the women's field through the early miles — Sui-Miller ranked 161st among women at the 1.2M checkpoint before fading to 252nd by the finish, while Fung moved steadily from 303rd to 250th. Wenli Bai slotted in just 12 seconds back in 6th at 1:55:31, making it three finishers within 20 seconds for 4th through 6th. A full 47 women completed the F55-59 race across the hills of San Francisco.