SF Marathon NB35-39: Vi Lu Dominates, Sean Wong Closes Strong

• Vi Lu won the NB35-39 race in 3:16:54 (7:31/mi), posting the fastest women's split on the 1.81–5.55 Mile segment.
• Sean Wong finished 2nd in 4:02:53 (9:16/mi), running the 6th-fastest women's split in the field on the closing 25 Miles–Finish stretch.
• The two NB35-39 finishers were separated by 45:59.

Vi Lu controlled this race from the front. Running at a 7:31/mi clip through the fog and 93% humidity of a San Francisco July morning, the Oakland 38-year-old held 1st among women from the opening miles all the way through the race's middle stages, and backed it up with the fastest women's split on the 1.81–5.55 Mile segment — a stretch where she was clearly setting the tone. The late-race data shows her sliding to 3rd and then 4th among women in the final miles, but she had already banked enough to secure the NB35-39 title in 3:16:54.

Sean Wong of San Francisco ran a steady, measured race through the city streets. Sitting 11th among women at the opening checkpoint, the 38-year-old worked methodically forward — 12th, then 11th, then climbing to 8th by the finish. The most eye-catching number came at the very end: a 6th-fastest women's split on the 25 Miles–Finish stretch, a strong close that underscored how well he was moving when it mattered most. He crossed in 4:02:53 to claim 2nd in NB35-39.

Two finishers, two very different races — one built on early speed and a commanding middle stretch, the other on patience and a powerful finishing kick. Both got it done on one of American road racing's most demanding urban courses.