M80-99 Marathon: Johnston Goes the Distance in Fresno

• Donald Johnston, 81, of Clovis, CA won the M80-99 age group in 7:25:25 — the only finisher in the group.
• His average pace of 16:59/mi carried him across all 26.2 miles on a warm, clear November morning in Fresno.
• On the 18M–19.8M stretch, Johnston posted the 500th-fastest men's split in the field on that segment.

Donald Johnston, 81 years old and racing in his own backyard out of Clovis, CA, stood alone atop the M80-99 age group at the Two Cities Marathon — and that's not a small thing. Finishing a marathon at 81 is a feat that most runners half his age will never attempt, and Johnston did it on a day that pushed the thermometer to 74°F under a clear Fresno sky.

His 7:25:25 finish at a 16:59/mi average reflects the honest math of covering 26.2 miles in the heat at age 81 — steady, deliberate, and complete. The data tells a quiet story of persistence: his men's field position held remarkably consistent through the back half of the race, ticking forward from 523rd to 503rd across the final miles, a sign that he was moving through the field rather than fading into it.

At the end of the day, Johnston's name sits alone at the top of the M80-99 standings — which is exactly where it belongs.