Nathan Martin Wins LA Marathon by a Blink; 45-Year-Old Cherono Wins by a Mile

Sunday’s Los Angeles Marathon ended the only way a proper marathon should: with someone collapsing at the finish line and someone else barely believing what just happened.

American Nathan Martin chased down Kenyan Michael Kimani Kamau over 26.2 miles of Los Angeles asphalt, caught him in the final strides on Santa Monica Boulevard, and won by 0.01 seconds — the closest finish in the race’s 41-year history. Kamau, who had led the final miles and presumably thought he had it won, stretched his arms wide, hit the ground, and was carried off on a stretcher. Martin, somehow, kept standing.

“In any race, I just want to give 100%,” said Martin, 36. “I saw an opportunity to race at the end and give one last push. All I wanted to do is push myself.”

He did. Just enough.

A Five-Mile Chase

Martin didn’t make his move until mile 21 — which is either brilliant strategy or the kind of thing that looks brilliant only when it works.

“I made an actual move five miles out when I saw no one else was picking up the pace. I decided I needed to push,” he said. “At a mile and a half to go, I could see the leader and with 800 meters to go, I was thinking, ‘I’m catching him.'”

His personal best of 2:10:45 came at the 2023 Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota. Sunday’s 2:11:16 wasn’t a PR, but it was something arguably better — a race win decided by less time than it takes to tie a shoelace. If you’ve ever wondered what separates elite race strategy from sheer instinct, this finish was a pretty good demonstration.

Martin is now the second straight American man to win in Los Angeles, following Matthew Richtman, who ran 2:07:56 in 2025 — the fastest time ever on the current Stadium to the Stars course. Before Richtman, no American man had won the race since 1994.

Ethiopian Enyew Nigat finished a distant third in 2:14:23, followed by Josh Izewski (2:14:43) and 2024 champion Dominic Ngeno in fifth (2:16:17).

Meanwhile, Cherono Was Already Done

While the men were busy manufacturing drama in Century City, Priscah Cherono had long since made her point.

The 45-year-old Kenyan mother of three led the women’s elite race from mile one, was two minutes clear of the field by mile nine, and crossed the line in 2:25:18 — just three seconds off her personal best. She then presumably watched everyone else catch up.

“I was feeling OK and I felt I could take it all the way,” she said afterward. “Normally I train alone, so I was happy running by myself.”

Happy running by herself. Two minutes ahead of the field. At 45.

This was only the second professional marathon of Cherono’s career. She came to the distance last year, decades after representing Kenya in the 5,000 meters at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. She won the Marathon Project in Arizona in December, and Sunday she picked up where she left off.

Because the women’s elite field started 15 minutes and 45 seconds before the men, Cherono was the first runner across the finish line overall — earning a $10,000 Marathon Chase bonus in the process. It happened to be International Women’s Day. You can’t write that stuff.

American Kellyn Taylor, a 39-year-old firefighter and mother of four from Wisconsin, ran 2:27:36 for second. “I did everything I could to stay in it,” Taylor said, “but she went out really hard and ran a great race. We were hopeful she was gonna come back, but she didn’t.” She did not. Antonina Kwambai of Kenya took third in 2:28:50.

The Race Itself

More than 27,000 runners tackled the “Stadium to the Stars” course — Dodger Stadium to Century City, through Chinatown, Echo Park, Hollywood Boulevard, the Sunset Strip, Beverly Hills, and Rodeo Drive. The temperature was 59°F at the 7 a.m. start, climbing toward a forecast high of 80°F by midday.

Because of the heat, runners who completed at least 18 miles were eligible for a finisher medal — a rare and welcome nod to race-day reality that had been announced earlier in the week and sparked plenty of debate among runners.

The marathon was shifted one week earlier than usual to avoid conflicting with the Oscars on March 15, which runs through parts of the course. When movie awards and marathon routes collide, the movies apparently win — at least on scheduling.

Full Results

Men’s Pro

1. Nathan Martin (USA) 2:11:18
2. Michael Kimani Kamau (Kenya) 2:11:18
3. Enyew Nigat (Ethiopia) 2:14:23

Women’s Pro
1. Priscah Cherono (Kenya) 2:25:20
2. Kellyn Taylor (USA) 2:27:37
3. Antonina Kwambai (Kenya) 2:28:50