NEW YORK (AP) — Tamirat Tola wasn’t thinking about breaking the New York City Marathon course record as he was running by himself in Central Park for the last few miles of the race. He just was focused on trying to win.

The Ethiopian runner broke the 12-year old mark, finishing the 26.2-mile race in 2 hours, 4 minutes and 58 seconds on Sunday — eight seconds faster than Geoffrey Mutai in 2011.

“The people of New York is amazing to give me moral support every kilometer,” Tola said. “I’m happy for them. Thank you all people. It’s a long kilometers to do alone. … I’m not thinking about a lot. I’m thinking to win. So this is nice.”

Tola, who finished fourth in the race in 2018 and 2019, pulled away from countrymate Jemal Yimer when the pair were heading toward the Bronx at mile 20. By the time Tola headed back into Manhattan a mile later he was up by 19 seconds and left only chasing Mutai’s mark. The 32-year-old was a late add to the field, joining three weeks ago.

Albert Korir of Kenya, who won the 2021 NYC Marathon, finished second nearly two minutes behind Tola.

While there wasn’t much drama in the men’s race after Tola pulled away, the women’s competition came down to the final stretch. Hellen Obiri of Kenya pulled away in the final 400 meters to take the women’s title.

The 33-year-old Obiri ran New York for the first time last year and finished sixth.

“My first debut here was terrible for me, and I say like I don’t want to come back here next year,” Obiri said. “After that, I said, wow, I’m here again. So you know sometimes you learn from your mistakes, so I did a lot of mistakes last year, so I said I want to try to do my best.”

She sure did.

Obiri, Letesenbet Gidey of Ethiopia and defending champion Sharon Lokedi were all running together exchanging the lead. Obiri made a move as the trio headed back into Central Park for the final half-mile pulling away. She finished in 2:27:23. Gidey finished second, six seconds behind.

Lokedi was 10 seconds behind Obiri, who won the Boston Marathon in April. She’s the first woman to win those two marathons in the same year since Norwegian Ingrid Kristiansen did it in 1989.

This was a stellar women’s field that was expected to potentially take down the course record of 2:22:31 set by Margaret Okayo in 2003. Unlike last year when the weather was unseasonably warm with temperatures in the 70s, Sunday’s race was much cooler with it being in the 50s — ideal conditions for record breaking times and for the 50,000 runners.

Instead, the women had a tactical race with 11 runners, including Americans Kellyn Taylor and Molly Huddle in the lead pack for the first 20 miles. Taylor and Huddle both led the group at points before falling back and finishing in eighth and ninth.

“The first 20 miles, I was like what the heck was going on,” Taylor said. “It was super weird, one of the weirdest races I ever ran with the caliber of talent in the field. There were talks of breaking the course record and doing all the things, after a bit it was like that’s not going to happen. We’re running six-minute pace for no good reasons. Sometimes that’s how races play out. You can jump on board and do that or do your own thing. Today i just decide to jump onboard and try and hang on.”

Once the lead group came back into Manhattan for the final few miles, Obiri, Gidey and Lokedi pushed the pace.

As the trio entered Central Park they further distanced themselves from Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei, who finished fourth.

The men’s and women’s winners finished within a few minutes of each other. About an hour earlier, Marcel Hug won the men’s wheelchair race, finishing a few seconds short of his own course record by finishing in 1:25:29. It was the Swiss star’s record-extending sixth NYC Marathon victory.

“It’s incredible. I think it takes some time to realize what happened,” Hug said. “I’m so happy as well.”

He’s the most decorated champion in the wheelchair race at the event, breaking a tie with Tatyana McFadden and Kurt Fearnley for most wins in the division in event history.

Catherine Debrunner of Switzerland won her New York debut, shattering the course record in the women’s wheelchair race. She finished in 1:39:32, besting the previous mark by over 3 minutes, which was held by American Susannah Scaroni.

“It’s difficult to describe in words. I said to my coach if I win this race, it’s the best performance I ever showed,” she said. “Knew it’s the toughest marathon of all. It was the first time. I knew it was going to be so tough.”

Debrunner and Tola both earned a $50,000 bonus for topping the previous course records.

TICKETS TO PARIS

Daniel Romanchuk and Aaron Pike qualified for the 2024 Paris Games by finishing as the top Americans in the men’s wheelchair race. Scaroni and McFadden qualified on the women’s side for the Olympics.

Looking for a fun way to unwind outdoors this summer? Look no further; the Beyond Season Golf Tournament, hosted by Collins Oppong and presented by Dependable Home Health Care, will be returning August 26^th at Crystal Lake Golf Course in Lakeville, MN.

“This unique golf event is specifically designed to unite and celebrate a diverse community of golfers, with a primary focus on Black and immigrant individuals and their partners,” Oppong said.

Oppong, a Ghanaian entrepreneur and media development consultant, hosted the inaugural tournament in tandem with his birthday celebration last summer in the hopes of “getting more Africans playing golf.” Until 1961, the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) held a “whites only” policy. Although there are now more options to practice golf more cheaply, there are still private clubs that charge initiation fees upward of $50,000, which some see as a continuation of the sport’s segregationist history. Oppong hopes that by introducing the sport to his community, he can bridge the “golfing gap.”

“I am eager to establish connections with the community and various organizations to ensure greater representation of Black golfers,” Oppong said.

In addition to the 18-hole competition, Oppong said that this year’s tournament will feature a beginner’s golf clinic, putting contests, and various opportunities to win cash prizes. The funds raised at this year’s event will go toward Circle of Life, an organization that provides women and girls in Ghana with feminine hygiene products.

“This support enables [Ghanaian women and girls] to continue their education and lead fulfilling lives,” Oppong said.

The tournament will conclude with a prize ceremony featuring music, dinner, cocktails, and entertainment. More information on the event can be found here.

BOSTON (AP) — Defending champion Evans Chebet of Kenya won the Boston Marathon again on Monday, surging to the front at Heartbreak Hill to spoil the much-anticipated debut of world record holder Eliud Kipchoge and win in 2 hours, 5 minutes, 54 seconds.

Hellen Obiri, a two-time Olympic silver medalist in the 5,000 meters, won the women’s race in a sprint down Boylston Street to finish in an unofficial 2:21:38 and complete the Kenyan sweep.

Chebet, 2021 winner Benson Kipruto of Kenya and Gabriel Geay of Tanzania dropped Kipchoge from the lead pack around Mile 20 and then ran together for the last three miles. Geay won a footrace for second, 10 seconds behind the winner and 2 seconds ahead of Kipruto.

Kipchoge, a 12-time major marathon winner, was sixth. Scott Fauble was the top American, finishing seventh.

Kipchoge had been hoping to add a Boston Marathon victory to his unprecedented running resume. The 38-year-old has won two Olympic gold medals and four of the six major marathons; Boston is the only one he has competed in and failed to win. (He has never run New York.) He also broke 2 hours in an exhibition in a Vienna park.

Fighting a trace of a headwind and rain that dampened the roads, Kipchoge ran in the lead pack from the start in Hopkinton until the series of climbs collectively known as Heartbreak Hill. But to the surprise of the fans lined up along Boylston Street for the final sprit, he wasn’t among the three leaders.

Marcel Hug of Switzerland won the men’s wheelchair race in a course record time – his sixth victory here – and American Susannah Scaroni won her first Boston title despite having to stop early in the race to tighten her wheel.

For the first time, the race also includes a nonbinary division, with 27 athletes registered.

A dozen former champions and participants from 120 countries and all 50 states were in the field of 30,000 running 10 years after the finish line bombing that killed three people and wounded hundreds more. The race also included 264 members of the One Fund community — those injured by the attack, their friends and family and charities associated with them.

The city marked the anniversary in a ceremony on Saturday.

A robotic dog named Stompy belonging to the Department of Homeland Security patrolled the start line before the race began, trailed by photographers capturing the peculiar sight. Officials said there were no known threats.

At 6 a.m., race director Dave McGillivray sent out a group of about 20 from the Massachusetts National Guard that hikes the course annually. Capt. Kanwar Singh, 33, of Malden, Massachusetts, said it’s a special day.

“Ten years ago, the city came to a halt. It’s an incredibly strong comeback, as a group together,” he said. “I tell people, never bet against Bostonians.”

Collins Oppong thinks taking up golf could improve the economic and social wellbeing of the African community. The Ghanaian-born podcast host and media development consultant, hosted the inaugural Beyond End of Season Golf Invitational on Saturday at the Crystal Lake Golf Club in Lakeville, Minnesota. Oppong established the tournament to fulfill his vision of seeing Africans connect over golf, a sport that has not always welcomed them in the past.

“What draws me to golf is the wonderful opportunity to experience nature, exercise, network with diverse people, and create fun memories for everyone,” Oppong said.

Golf hasn’t always been open to Black people in the United States. Until 1961, the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) held a “whites only” policy. Although there are now more options to practice golf more cheaply, there are still private clubs that charge initiation fees upward of $50,000, which some see as a continuation of the sport’s segregationist history. The golfers at Oppong’s event seem to think that there are affordable ways Black people can introduce their children to golf.

Around 90% of Fortune 500 CEOs played golf, and 80% of business executives said that golf facilitated deeper professional relationships, according to a study published by Forbes. Black people only make up 9.5% of professional golfers, according to data from the career research firm, Zippia. Oppong said his goal was to close the gap by connecting Africans to the golf world.“Africans getting into golf is a great way to connect the African diaspora and grant us the opportunity to network in a way that is both relaxing and different from what we are accustomed to,” Oppong said.

Dressed in professional golfing gear from head to toe, Justice Sikakane, eyed the final hole from multiple angles before putting his last shot. He has been golfing since high school and credited Tiger Woods for inspiring him to start playing. Sikakane, who is an IT professional, expressed gratitude for the plethora of networking opportunities the sport has brought him over the years and said that closing the racial gap in golf could create new avenues of professional advancement for Black people.

“A lot of the times when I get invited to golf outings for work, I end up meeting really interesting people in my field,” Sikakane said.

The tournament’s Best Gross Score winner George Mburu, ended his 18-hole journey with a celebratory fist bump. To him, sports are the great equalizer, diminishing the weight of skin color by providing every player with the same set of rules. He said it was an old myth that golf excluded for people of color, and that free resources to learn golf and financially accessible clothing options are available.

“This sport can bridge the haves and the have-nots,” Mburu said. “You don’t need expensive gear either; you just need to show up and be willing to potentially network. I learned golf through YouTube.”

According to a collaborative study conducted by the University of Southampton, England, and the University of Southern California, golfers may be more likely to live well into old age than their sedentary elderly people. For senior citizens, more time out on the course was linked to increased strength, improved balance and coordination, and even mental health benefits from “seeing more green.” In addition, golf demands less physical exertion than other sports, making it an ideal choice for many in the latter half of their lives.

Eagan, Minnesota resident Kofi Hinson started packing his clubs as the sun was beginning to set. As he waited for his friends to tally their final scores, Hinson explained why he thought golf is “a game of a lifetime.”

“My kids got me my first golf set when I turned 60 and now I play very frequently, so it’s never too late to start reaping those health benefits,” Hinson said.

Hinson acknowledged that there were racial barriers to the sport, but not the ones that were there in the past. Since segregation is not keeping Black people physically off the course anymore, Hinson said there is a chance for Black people to begin introducing the game to their children. He said that Black youth can grow to love it if it becomes a part of their culture, much like basketball.

“The issue nowadays is not access,” Hinson said, “it’s exposure. You have white kids who pick up an interest in the sport because their parents and grandparents did it, and so I think if we want our kids to pick up golf we have to first encourage it ourselves.”

But golf doesn’t just offer physical and professional benefits. Event guests seemed to agree that it builds character as well. As he stood mere meters away from the hole, avid local golfer Marcus Davis adjusted his form in preparation for what he hoped would be his last swing. When the ball scraped the edge of the hole and continued to roll, he let out a sigh. Patience, he said, is one of the virtues one gains when they choose to pursue golf.

“Golf is an allegory for life,” he said. “You can have a plan to make that hole-in-one shot, but it doesn’t always work out the way you planned, so you have to have the patience to allow yourself the time to come up with a game plan.”

Ugandan American entrepreneur Ian Oundo raised his golf club in victorious celebration as his ball rolled smoothly into the last hole. As he made his way back to his golf cart, he smiled as he sang the praises of his friend Oppong. Oundo, who runs a political consultancy firm, said Golf was the perfect way to socialize on a cool fall afternoon.

“It’s beautiful not only because we are supporting our brother Collins, but also just to see a good group of African guys come together and bond over the sport,” Oundo said. “I want to see us out on the golf course more.”

NEW YORK (AP) — Frances Tiafoe’s run to the U.S. Open semifinals is, first and foremost, about Tiafoe himself, a 24-year-old from Maryland who took up tennis because his father was a janitor at a junior training center, a player who never won a match past the fourth round at a Grand Slam tournament until now, who owns one career ATP title and a sub-.500 career record, and whose ranking ranged from 24 to 74 over the past two seasons.

“A Cinderella story,” to use his phrase.

Tiafoe’s tale — which already includes a victory over 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal along the way to Friday’s matchup against No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain with a berth in the final at stake — is about so much more, too.

It is a significant step forward for American men’s tennis right now and could help grow the sport in the future, too.

Tiafoe is the first man from the United States to reach the semifinals at Flushing Meadows since Andy Roddick, 16 years ago. He has a shot at giving the country its first male champion at any Slam since Roddick in New York, 19 years ago.

If he can get past Alcaraz on Friday — the other men’s semifinal is No. 5 Casper Ruud of Norway against No. 27 Karen Khachanov of Russia — Tiafoe would become the first Black man from the U.S. in a major final since MaliVai Washington was the runner-up at Wimbledon in 1996.

“American men’s tennis has been struggling for a couple of decades. Struggling with a standard that we set for ourselves: Grand Slam champions and Grand Slam finals,” Washington said in a telephone interview Thursday. “That has not happened on the men’s side in years.”

A high bar was set by the success of the likes of Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe — the last African American man in the U.S. Open semifinals, in 1972, and the person for whom the event’s main stadium is named — and, before that, Don Budge and Bill Tilden. Thanks to the Williams sisters, and other players who were major champs or runners-up more recently, such as Sloane Stephens, Madison Keys, Sofia Kenin and Danielle Collins, American women’s tennis has stayed relevant long past the days of Chris Evert and Billie Jean King.

“It absolutely helps the U.S. Open to have male and female champions from the U.S. Absolutely,” tournament director Stacey Allaster said. “We had the greatest of all time for decades on the women’s side. And obviously we’ve had amazing American champions on the men’s side, from Pete and Andre to Andy. But it’s been a while.”

As Serena Williams prepared to walk away from her playing days, current athletes such as Tiafoe, 18-year-old Coco Gauff and others spoke during the U.S. Open about the influence she and her sister, Venus, had on their careers.

Gauff has said she plays what she called “a predominantly white sport” because she “saw somebody who looked like me dominating the game.”

The importance of representation can’t be overstated.

“What Frances is doing now is inspiring me,” Washington said. “And I hope he inspires young players — not just Black, but white, Hispanic, Asian. Certainly, because of his background, and the the color of his skin, it’s going to have a certain impact on young Black players and especially young Black boys. And I hope it makes them think, ‘OK, I’ve been playing tennis for a bunch of years. This inspires me to keep going.’ Or: ‘I’ve never played tennis before. This inspires me to try.’”

Tiafoe’s on-court enthusiasm — “which you might see more readily in basketball,” Washington said — and off-court personality could help draw youngsters to tennis.

So could the sorts of social media that didn’t exist in Washington’s playing days.

“I don’t know if you can ever truly know what type of impact you’re having on the next generation until maybe years later, when someone says, ‘Hey, I started playing tennis because I remember watching you at Wimbledon,’” said Washington, whose youth foundation in Jacksonville, Florida, offers after-school and summer programs. “We’re always trying to look for a diverse group of players, trying to find that next player and maybe looking for that next player in unconventional places.”

Martin Blackman, head of the U.S. Tennis Association’s player development program, thinks Tiafoe “resonates and is relevant in the culture. He represents a huge opportunity to make tennis ‘cooler.’”

Tiafoe does not shy from the notion that he can lead the way for others.

“He wants to be a role model,” said his coach, Wayne Ferreira. “I always tell him, ‘If you want to be a role model, you have to win tennis matches.’ … If he can win this tournament, he can be an inspiration for a lot of kids.”

Tiafoe was 6 when he first crossed paths with Blackman, who at the time was a coach at the Junior Tennis Champions Center in College Park, Maryland, where little Francis and his twin brother, stayed while Dad worked.

“He would watch the group lessons, he would watch the private lessons, he would hit on the wall,” Blackman said.

Blackman sees what Tiafoe is doing as the result of a process started more than a dozen years ago to try to develop future champions.

Blackman sees a “healthy peer pressure” in the group of American men around Tiafoe’s age who have come through the ranks — and rankings — together, including Taylor Fritz, Reilly Opelka and Tommy Paul.

“We want that same dynamic we had back in the early ’90s, with Pete, Andre, Jim Courier and Michael Chang,” Blackman said. “That’s another part of why Frances’ breakthrough is so significant.”

NEW YORK (AP) — Frances Tiafoe’s vision was blurry from the tears. He was thrilled — overwhelmed, even — when the last point was over and it hit him that, yes, he had ended Rafael Nadal’s 22-match Grand Slam winning streak Monday and reached the U.S. Open quarterfinals for the first time.

“I felt like the world stopped,” Tiafoe said. “I couldn’t hear anything for a minute.”

Then Tiafoe found himself “losing it in the locker room” when he saw that NBA superstar LeBron James gave him a Twitter shoutout.

“Bro,” Tiafoe said, “I was going crazy.”

What meant the most to Tiafoe about his 6-4, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory over 22-time major champion Nadal in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows, though, was looking up in his Arthur Ashe Stadium guest box and knowing his parents, Constant and Alphina, were there.

“To see them experience me beat Rafa Nadal — they’ve seen me have big wins, but to beat those ‘Mount Rushmore’ guys? For them, I can’t imagine what was going through their heads,” said Tiafoe, a 24-year-old American seeded 22nd at the U.S. Open. “I mean, they’re going to remember today for the rest of their lives.”

His parents both emigrated to the United States from Sierra Leone in West Africa amid its civil war in the 1990s. They ended up in Maryland, where Constant helped construct a tennis training center for juniors, then became a maintenance man there; Alphina, Frances said, was “a nurse, working two jobs, working overtime through the nights.” Frances and his twin brother, Franklin, were born in 1998, and soon would be spending hour upon hour where Dad’s job was, rackets in hand.

Maybe one day, went the dream, a college scholarship would come of it.

“It wasn’t anything supposed to be like this,” Tiafoe said Monday evening, hours after by far his biggest victory.

He is the youngest American man to get this far at the U.S. Open since Andy Roddick in 2006, but this was not a case of a one-sided crowd backing one of its own. Nadal is about as popular as it gets in tennis and heard plenty of support as the volume raised after the retractable roof was shut in the fourth set.

“It’s something to tell the kids, the grandkids: ‘Yeah, I beat Rafa,’” Tiafoe said with a big smile.

He served better than No. 2 seed Nadal. More surprisingly, he returned better, too. And he kept his cool, remained in the moment and never let the stakes or the opponent get to him. Nadal, a 36-year-old from Spain, had won both of their previous matches, and every set they played, too.

“Well, the difference is easy: I played a bad match and he played a good match,” Nadal said. “At the end that’s it.”

This surprise came a day after Tiafoe followed along on TV as his pal Nick Kyrgios “put on a show” and eliminated No. 1 seed and defending champion Daniil Medvedev. That makes this the first U.S. Open without either of the top two seeded men reaching the quarterfinals since 2000, when No. 1 Andre Agassi exited in the second round and No. 2 Gustavo Kuerten in the first.

That was before Nadal, Novak Djokovic, who has 21 Grand Slam titles, and Roger Federer, who has 20, began dominating men’s tennis. Djokovic, 35, did not enter this U.S. Open because he is not vaccinated against COVID-19 and was not allowed to enter the United States; Federer, 41, has undergone a series of operations on his right knee and last played at Wimbledon last year.

Now come the inevitable questions about whether their era of excellence is wrapping up.

“It signifies that the years go by,” Nadal said. “It’s the circle of life.”

Tiafoe now meets No. 9 Andrey Rublev, who beat No. 7 Cam Norrie 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 earlier Monday.

Late Monday turned into early Tuesday when third-seeded Carlos Alcaraz beat No. 15 seed Marin Cilic 6-4, 3-6, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in a match that lasted 3 hours, 54 minutes and ended at 2:23 a.m.

No. 11 Jannik Sinner rallied from two games down in the fifth set to beat Ilya Ivashka 6-1, 5-7, 6-2, 4-6, 6-3.

The No. 1 woman, Iga Swiatek, moved into her first quarterfinal at Flushing Meadows by coming back to beat Jule Neiemeier 2-6, 6-4, 6-0.

“I’m just proud,” Swiatek said, “that I didn’t lose hope.”

The 21-year-old from Poland will face another first-time U.S. Open quarterfinalist: No. 8 Jessica Pegula, the highest-ranked American woman, who advanced with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over two-time Wimbledon winner Petra Kvitova.

Another women’s quarterfinal will be two-time major finalist Karolina Pliskova against No. 6 Aryna Sabalenka.

Nadal won the Australian Open in January and the French Open in June. Then he made it to the semifinals at Wimbledon in July before withdrawing from that tournament because of a torn abdominal muscle.

Nadal competed only once in the 1 1/2 months between leaving the All England Club and arriving in New York, where he has won four trophies.

He tweaked his service motion, tossing the ball lower than he normally does so as not to put as much strain on his midsection. There were plenty of signs Monday that his serve was not in tip-top shape: nine double-faults, a first-serve percentage hovering around 50%, five breaks by Tiafoe.

Earlier in the tournament, he lost the first set of his first-round match. Did the same in the second round, when he also accidentally cut the bridge of his nose and made himself dizzy when the edge of his racket frame bounced off the court and caught him in the face.

Still, on Monday, Nadal appeared on the verge of turning things around when he broke early in the fourth set and went ahead 3-1.

Tiafoe told himself: “Stay in it. Stay with him.”

That’s tied to two key areas Tiafoe credits with helping make him a stronger player of late: an improved in-match mindset and a commitment to fitness.

“Rafa is there every point. I’ve been known to have some dips in my game at times, where it’s like you’re watching (and thinking), ‘What’s that?!’” Tiafoe said. “That was my thing, match intensity.”

No concern now: He grabbed the last five games. The next-to-last break came for a 4-3 edge in the fourth set, when Nadal put a backhand into the net, and Tiafoe skipped backward toward the sideline for the ensuing changeover, his fist raised.

Fifteen minutes later, Tiafoe broke again, and it was over. This represents the latest significant step forward for Tiafoe, whose only previous trip to a Grand Slam quarterfinal came at the 2019 Australian Open — and ended with a loss to Nadal.

When one last backhand by Nadal found the net, Tiafoe chucked his racket and put his hands on his head. He glanced into the stands — Mom, Dad, brother, girlfriend, Washington Wizards All-Star Bradley Beal, others — then sat in his sideline chair and buried his face in a towel.

“It was just wild. My heart is going a thousand miles an hour. I was so excited. I was like: Let me sit down,” Tiafoe said. “Yeah, I’ve never felt something like that in my life, honestly.”

WEST WINDSOR, Vt. (AP) — Kenyan cyclist Sule Kangangi died in a crash Saturday while competing in a gravel race in Vermont.

Kangangi was riding at a high speed in the Vermont Overland race when he crashed.

“Sule is our captain, friend, brother. He is also a father, husband and son. Gaping holes are left when giant’s fall. Sule was a giant,” his Team AMANI posted on social media. “Instead of leading us at the front of the pack, he will now lead us as our guiding pole star as we press forward in the realization of his dream.”

Rachel Ruto, the wife of president-elect William Ruto of Kenya, posted on Twitter that she was shocked to learn the sad news that he had passed away after a tragic crash.

“My heartfelt condolences to his family, and the entire cycling community, that has lost a talented cyclist, a mentor and a friend,” she wrote. “We will all miss him as an individual. Kenya has lost a champion. Rest in peace Sule.”

The Vermont Overland is a 59-mile (95-kilometer) dirt road bicycle race that includes nearly 7,000 feet (2,130 meters) of climbing, according to the race’s website. About 900 cyclists were competing on Saturday in the race that begins and ends in the community of Brownsville in the town of West Windsor, officials said.

“Vermont Overland is heartbroken by the tragic death of Suleiman ‘Sule’ Kangangi during The Overland yesterday,” Ansel Dickey, owner of Vermont Overland, said in a statement on Sunday. “He was a kind friend and an inspiring and heroic athlete to his teammates and the gravel cycling community at large. We extend our deepest sympathies to his family, his friends, Team Amani, and the people of Kenya who are mourning his loss today.”

BOSTON (AP) — Reigning Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir capped the celebration of a half-century of women in the Boston Marathon with a finish to top them all.

The 28-year-old Kenyan won a see-saw sprint down the stretch on Monday, when the world’s oldest and most prestigious annual marathon returned to its traditional spring start for the first time since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

On the 50th anniversary of the first official women’s race, Jepchirchir traded places with Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh eight times in the final mile before pulling ahead for good on Boylston Street and finishing in 2 hours, 21 minutes, 1 second.

“I was feeling she was strong. I pushed it,” said Jepchirchir, who earned $150,000 and the traditional gilded olive wreath to go with her Olympic gold medal and 2021 New York City Marathon title. “I fell behind. But I didn’t lose hope.”

Evans Chebet completed the Kenyan sweep, breaking away from Gabriel Geay with about four miles to go to finish in 2:06:51 for his first major marathon victory. The 2019 winner Lawrence Cherono was second, 30 seconds back, defending champion Benson Kipruto was third, and Geay fell back to fourth.

Daniel Romanchuk of Champaign, Illinois, won his second career wheelchair title in 1:26:58. Switzerland’s Manuela Schar won her second straight Boston crown and fourth overall, finishing in 1:41:08.

Peres Jepchirchir, of Kenya, crosses the finish line to win the women’s division of the 126th Boston Marathon, Monday, April 18, 2022, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)
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Peres Jepchirchir, of Kenya, crosses the finish line to win the women’s division of the 126th Boston Marathon, Monday, April 18, 2022, in Boston. (AP Photo/Winslow Townson)

BOSTON (AP) — Reigning Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir capped the celebration of a half-century of women in the Boston Marathon with a finish to top them all.

The 28-year-old Kenyan won a see-saw sprint down the stretch on Monday, when the world’s oldest and most prestigious annual marathon returned to its traditional spring start for the first time since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.

On the 50th anniversary of the first official women’s race, Jepchirchir traded places with Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh eight times in the final mile before pulling ahead for good on Boylston Street and finishing in 2 hours, 21 minutes, 1 second.

“I was feeling she was strong. I pushed it,” said Jepchirchir, who earned $150,000 and the traditional gilded olive wreath to go with her Olympic gold medal and 2021 New York City Marathon title. “I fell behind. But I didn’t lose hope.”

Evans Chebet completed the Kenyan sweep, breaking away from Gabriel Geay with about four miles to go to finish in 2:06:51 for his first major marathon victory. The 2019 winner Lawrence Cherono was second, 30 seconds back, defending champion Benson Kipruto was third, and Geay fell back to fourth.

Daniel Romanchuk of Champaign, Illinois, won his second career wheelchair title in 1:26:58. Switzerland’s Manuela Schar won her second straight Boston crown and fourth overall, finishing in 1:41:08.

Sharing a Patriots’ Day weekend with the Red Sox home opener — the city’s other sporting rite of spring — more than 28,000 runners returned to the streets from Hopkinton to Copley Square six months after a smaller and socially distanced event that was the only fall race in its 126-year history.

Fans waved Ukrainian flags in support of the runners whose 26.2-mile run Monday was the easiest part of their journey. Forty-four Ukrainian citizens had registered for the race; only 11 started.

Athletes from Russia and Belarus were disinvited in response to the invasion.

“I decided to come here and show that Ukrainians are strong, we’re fighting and we hope peace will come soon,” said Dmytro Molchanov, a Ukrainian who lives in New York.

“It’s really tough, basically, being here while all my family, my friends and Ukrainians are fighting over there for peace in my country, in Europe and the world overall,” said Molchanov, who finished in 2:39:20.

“When it was really tough I tried not to give up and tried pushing, kind of fight with myself the way Ukrainians are fighting against Russia right now.”

Ukrainians who were unable to make it to Boston were offered a deferral or refund.

“Whatever they want to do, they can do,” Boston Athletic Association President Tom Grilk said. “Run this year, run next year. You want a puppy? Whatever. There is no group we want to be more helpful to.”

Jepchirchir and Yeshaneh, who was third in New York last fall, spent most of the morning running shoulder to shoulder — or even closer: Just after the 25-kilometer marker, the Ethiopian’s eyes wandered from the course and she drifted into Jepchirchir.

Yeshaneh reached out to apologize, and the two clasped each other’s arms as they continued on.

“In running, we understand each other and we maybe somebody came and bumps, but it’s OK,” Jepchirchir said. “It was not rivalism; it was just an accident.”

Beaten, Yeshaneh finished four seconds back. Kenya’s Mary Ngugi finished third for the second time in six months, following her podium in October after the 125th race was delayed, canceled and delayed again.

About 20 men stayed together — with American CJ Albertson leading for much of the way — before Chebet and Geay broke from the pack coming out of Heartbreak Hill. Chebet pulled away a couple of miles later.

“We had communicated earlier, all of us. We wanted to keep running as a group,” said Chebet, who finished fourth in London last fall. “I observed that my counterparts were nowhere near me and that gave me the motivation.”

This race marked the 50th anniversary of Nina Kuscsik’s victory in the first official women’s race. (But not the first woman to finish: That honor belongs to Bobbi Gibb, who first ran in 1966 among the unofficial runners known as bandits.)

At Wellesley College, the women’s school near the halfway point, the iconic “scream tunnel” was back after the pandemic-induced absence — and louder than ever. One spectator in Wellesley held a sign that read “50 Years Women Running Boston,” along with names of the eight who broke the gender barrier in 1972.

Five of the original pioneers returned for this year’s celebration, including Valerie Rogosheske, who finished sixth in ’72; she ran alongside her daughters this year and served as the honorary starter for the women’s elite field.

Rogosheske, who wore Bib No. 1972, said at the starting line that she had been planning to hide in the bushes and run as a bandit 50 years ago until women got the go-ahead a few weeks before the race.

“It’s a reminder that we’ve got it pretty easy,” said 2018 winner Des Linden, who finished 13th on Monday. “Fifty years ago, they were breaking barriers and doing the hard part.

“It’s really not lost on me that there’s 126 years of race history here, and we’re ‘Rah! Rah!’-ing 50,” she said. “But you can’t look back, you look forward.”

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) — FIFA suspended Zimbabwe and Kenya from international competitions on Thursday for government interference in the running of their national soccer bodies.

Zimbabwe was banned after its government-run Sports and Recreation Commission refused to relinquish control of the Zimbabwe Football Association and reinstate the federation’s leadership.

ZIFA officials were removed from office in November on allegations of corruption.

Kenya was banned after its sports ministry also removed the soccer federation’s leaders and accused them of corruption. Kenyan soccer president Nick Mwendwa is facing criminal charges.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced the bans.

It means Zimbabwe and Kenya national teams and clubs can’t play in any international competitions. Funds from FIFA are also cut off.

Kenya’s women’s national team was already thrown out the qualifying competition for the African Cup of Nations because of the crisis at the federation.

The world soccer body ordered Zimbabwe to reinstate its soccer officials by Jan. 3 but delayed any action, allowing Zimbabwe to compete at the men’s African Cup of Nations in Cameroon in January and February.

The Minnesota Vikings on Thursday introduced their new general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah after conducting eight initial interviews for the position.

Isaac Owens, the president of the Ghanaian Association of Minnesota said the Ashanti people of Ghana name a male child born on Sunday Kwesi.

“If you have Mensah as your last name, it means you were the third-born in your family,” Owens said.

Adofo-Mensah was one of two finalists for the Vikings job and he was the Vice President of Football Operations with the Cleveland Browns for the last two seasons and seven seasons with the San Francisco 49ers prior. His contract with the Vikings is for a four-year deal worth a reported $12 million.

His hiring brings to five the number of Black general managers in the 32 team league.

The new GM met with reporters at the Vikings practice facility in Eagan. Vikings owner and president Mark Wilf introduced him during the event on Thursday.

“Kwesi has a strong leadership presence, a unique background and a variety of strong football experiences, which we believe are significant strengths as he assumes this role,” Wilf said. “He immediately stood out to us in his interviews because of his long-term success and his comprehensive information gathering and his intentional decision-making processes. He is a tremendous leader.”

The Vikings organization is also in search of a head coach and the owners had indicated they will first hire a general manager so that he can participate in the search for one.

“From the moment I jumped on the interview it was just an immediate fit,” Adofo-Mensah said. “It just felt right. I really do believe that I was meant to be your general manager.”

Also present at the event was his mother whom she called his “superhero” and his fiancée who he said went on Etsy and bought a vintage Vikings hat after the interview.

Adofo-Mensah, 40, received his undergraduate degree in economics from Princeton and a master’s degree from Stanford. Before moving to the NFL, he worked at Wall Street for a combined eight years as an associate portfolio manager at Taylor Woods Capital and at Credit Suisse as a commodities’ trader.

“I know my background is unique but when you think about this job, it is about making decisions, building a consensus in the building, combining different sources of information into one answer and having everybody behind it,” Adofo-Mensah said. “Along those lines, I don’t think there’s many people more qualified than I am.”