Women's Marathon: Zimmermann Takes the Tape in San Francisco

• Leandra Zimmermann, 26, wins in 2:45:59 (6:20/mi), posting the 2nd-fastest women's split on the 14.95–18 mile stretch to seal the result.
• Brooke Starn returns to the podium in 2:51:14 — she won this race outright in 2022 (2:44:38) and finishes 3rd on that same pivotal segment.
• The top five are separated by just 16 minutes and 10 seconds across a 26.2-mile course, with Clara Lin (2:58:38), Liz Ozeki (3:01:16), and Angie Banks (3:02:09) rounding out a tight podium chase.
• Jacqueline Tierney doubles up her San Francisco weekend, finishing 6th here in 3:04:22 after earning 3rd in the Saturday 5K.

Leandra Zimmermann ran a patient, disciplined race through San Francisco's famously hilly streets. She sat in 3rd place from the very first checkpoint all the way through mile 18 — then made her move. Her 2nd-fastest women's split on the 14.95–18 mile segment was the decisive surge, vaulting her to 2nd, and she never looked back, crossing in 2:45:59 at 6:20/mi.

The most compelling subplot belongs to Brooke Starn. The 25-year-old from Danville had stood on this same finish line as the winner in 2022 with a 2:44:38. This year she ran a strong 2:51:14 — also recording the 3rd-fastest women's split over that same 14.95–18 mile stretch — but Zimmermann was simply stronger on the day. Starn's podium return is a genuine story of consistency in a competitive field of 1,310 women.

Clara Lin (3rd, 2:58:38) and Liz Ozeki (4th, 3:01:16) both made moves on that same 14.95–18 mile segment — Lin posting the 4th-fastest split, Ozeki the 5th-fastest — but neither could close the gap on Zimmermann or Starn. Angie Banks, 42, rounded out the top five in 3:02:09, her strongest stretch coming later on the 18–24 mile segment where she posted the 5th-fastest women's split.

Further back, Jacqueline Tierney's 6th-place finish in 3:04:22 (7:02/mi) is worth a second look: she had already raced the Saturday 5K and finished 3rd. Back-to-back podium performances across two races in one weekend is no small feat. Emma Turpin and Grace Johnson, both 19, finished 11th (3:18:11) and 12th (3:18:32) respectively — a reminder that the depth in this women's field ran all the way down the results sheet.