Bernard Lagat Included in New York City Marathon Elite Men's Field

By Adam Kopet

TCS New York City Marathon race organizers released the elite men's field Thursday for the Nov. 4 race.

One of the more surprising elite men entered in this year's event is 43-year-old Bernard Lagat. He made a move to the roads following the 2016 Olympics, where he finished fifth in the 5,000-meter final.

Lagat's has found success on the roads thus far in 2018. He ran 1:02:00 at the Houston Half Marathon in January. He followed that up with a 31st-place finish at the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in March. Then in July, Lagat won the Peach Tree Road Race, covering 10 kilometers in 28:45.

Lagat will be lining up against Geoffrey Kamworor, the defending New York City Marathon champion. Kamworor had already been announced for this year's race.

Also scheduled to compete in New York are London Marathon runner-up Shura Tola, Tamirat Tola and Lelisa Desisa, all of Ethiopia. All three men have personal bests under 2:05.

Among the elite U.S. men, Abdi Abdirahman has been amongst the strongest finishers in New York in recent years. Shadrack Biwott has also seen success in big marathons. Chris Derrick is entered, along with 2016 Olympian Jared Ward.

For a complete list of the elite men scheduled to compete at the New York City Marathon, see the press release.