Leonard Korir Brings Sub-60-Minute Ability to USATF Half Marathon Championships

By Adam Kopet

Leonard Korir brings talent and experience to Sunday's USATF Half Marathon Championships in Pittsburgh. He enters the race with a 59:52 best, third on the U.S. all-time list.

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Korir's last race, however, was a disappointing one. He finished 73rd at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships at the end of March. In 2017, he finished 20th. Five weeks after his last cross country performance, Korir will be looking to get his year back on track.

If Korir is not at full strength this weekend, his training partner, Stanley Kebenei, could be in position to take the win. Kebenei a slow half marathon personal best, compared to others in the field, but his recent performance at the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run is a good indication of his fitness. He ran 46:00, missing out on the American record due to a mis-measurement of the course that left it about 240 feet short.

Other contenders in the men's race include Brogan Austin, the 2018 USATF Marathon Championships winner, Andrew Colley, the winner of last year's USATF Half Marathon Championships, and Reed Fischer, who owns the second fastest half marathon best in the field at 1:02:06.

The women's race is shaping up to be a three-way battle between Sara Hall, Stephanie Bruce and Emma Bates.

Hall won USATF titles at 10 miles and 20K last year. She also finished runner-up at the 2018 USATF Half Marathon Championships. She is coming off a 15th place finished at last month's Boston Marathon.

Bruce finished 33rd at this year's IAAF World Cross Country Championships. Last year she won the Peachtree Road Race 10K and finished runner-up at the USATF Marathon Championships in a personal best 2:29:20.

Bates, the former Boise State All-American, has made a recent splash on the American road racing scene. She won the 2018 USATF Marathon Championships in her marathon debut. She has also had strong showings this spring, finishing as the top American at the United Airlines NYC Half and the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run.

The USATF Half Marathon Championships is the fourth stop on the USATF Running Circuit. Race videos will be available for on-demand viewing at USATF.TV.