BetsySaina

After not finishing the 2017 Tokyo and TCS New York City Marathons, she ran a 2:22:56 in Paris. Two months earlier, she won Japan’s Marugame Half-Marathon in 1:09:17, taking 10 seconds off her personal best time set at the Boston B.A.A Half Marathon in 2014.

In her Olympic debut in 2016, she dropped 50 seconds from her 10,000-meter professional best, placing fifth in 30:07.78. She similarly took 36 seconds off her personal best in the indoor 5000 meters at that year’s NYRR Millrose Games, winning in 14:57.18.

She has completed four NYRR races, the best being a runner-up finish at the NYRR New York Mini 10K in 2015. Four-time TCS New York City Marathon champion Mary Keitany was first and previous event winner Edna Kiplagat was third to round out the podium.

Saina began running as a teenager in Eldoret, Kenya, and came to America to run for Iowa State University. With the Cyclones, she was an 11-time NCAA All-American and a three-time individual NCAA champion. She graduated with a degree in nursing a remained in Iowa to train, later moving on to Colorado. Currently, she has been training in Nandi Hills in her native country of Kenya.

Race History