Women's 5K: Ashlin Mallon Turns a 2024 Podium Finish Into a 2025 Title

• Ashlin Mallon, 16, wins in 20:05 (6:28/mi) — 47 seconds faster than her 3rd-place finish at this same race in 2024 (20:52), this time taking the top step.
• Diana Ding runs 22:12 for 2nd, finishing 2:07 back of Mallon — the largest gap between any two consecutive finishers in the top 10.
• 3rd through 4th separated by just 6 seconds: Camille Lessard (23:07) edges Lindsay Dewald (23:13) for the final podium spot.
• Age range on display: from 13-year-old Abigail Liao (9th, 25:05) to 60-year-old Katherine Whittaker (20th, 26:47) among the top 20 of 924 women finishers.

Ashlin Mallon came back to San Francisco with unfinished business. A year ago she stood on the podium in 3rd at this same race with a 20:52. On Sunday, running through 56°F fog and a stiff 14 mph wind, the 16-year-old from Santa Rosa clocked 20:05 — 47 seconds faster — and left no doubt about who owned the women's race. At 6:28 per mile, her winning pace was a full 41 seconds per mile quicker than the runner-up, making the victory as emphatic as any number in the results.

Diana Ding, representing the host city of San Francisco, ran a composed 22:12 (7:09/mi) to claim 2nd place, finishing well clear of the chase pack. Behind her, the race for the final podium spot was genuinely tense: Camille Lessard of Bromont, QC held off Lindsay Dewald by just six seconds — 23:07 to 23:13 — with both women running nearly identical paces through the breezy course. Julia Eisner rounded out the top five in 24:40, followed by a tight cluster of San Francisco locals Vivien Kong (6th, 24:52) and Jun Ong (7th, 24:54) separated by just two seconds.

The top 20 offered a few compelling storylines beyond the podium. Cari Bartnicki, 48, from Novato finished 8th in 25:00 — the only athlete in the top ten over 40. And 13-year-old Abigail Liao of Cupertino cracked the top ten with a 25:05 in 9th, while Sarah Steer, 50, making the trip from Saffron Walden, placed 11th in 25:28. In a women's field of 924, those performances stand out well beyond the numbers alone.