W30-34 at the 2026 NYC Half: Lokedi Owns the Age Group — and the Final Miles

• Sharon Lokedi wins in 1:07:10 (5:07/mi), the 2nd-fastest women's split from 15K to 20K sealing her W30-34 title and 2nd place among all women at the finish.
• Emily Sisson runs 1:09:06 (5:16/mi), climbing from 9th among women at the 10K mark to 6th by the finish — her 4th-fastest women's split on the 15K–20K stretch powering the charge.
• Dakotah Popehn takes 3rd in 1:10:06 (5:21/mi), posting the 9th-fastest women's split over the final 1.1K to cement her podium.
• Grace Heymsfield (1:14:30) and Emily Durgin (1:14:45) are separated by just 15 seconds for 5th and 6th — Heymsfield the stronger finisher on the 10K–15K stretch (18th-fastest women's split on that segment).

On a crisp 40°F morning from Prospect Park to Central Park, the W30-34 age group put together one of the most compelling performances in the women's race. Sharon Lokedi ran 1:07:10 at 5:07/mi — a pace that didn't just win the age group but kept her in the thick of the overall women's battle. She held 3rd among all women through the opening 15K, then unleashed the 2nd-fastest women's split of anyone in the field from 15K to 20K, vaulting to 2nd among women by the finish. That's not just a W30-34 story — that's a top-of-the-podium performance for the entire women's race.

Emily Sisson made the 13.1 miles count in a different way. She crossed the 10K mark sitting 9th among women, but the 15K-to-20K stretch — where she posted the 4th-fastest women's split in the field — was where she made her move, climbing to 6th overall among women and finishing in 1:09:06 (5:16/mi). A nearly two-minute gap separates her from Lokedi, but the trajectory of her second half told a story of someone who found another gear. Dakotah Popehn rounded out the W30-34 podium in 1:10:06 (5:21/mi), steady throughout and strong at the close, logging the 9th-fastest women's split over that final push to the line.

Behind the podium, the W30-34 field of 3,010 finishers was deep and competitive well into the standings. Calli Hauger-Thackery (1:13:16, 5:35/mi) was notably consistent — holding 17th among women from the very first checkpoint all the way to the finish — while Grace Heymsfield (1:14:30) edged Emily Durgin (1:14:45) by 15 seconds for 5th, a gap that reflects genuinely different paces across the back half of the course. Further back, Katie Hallahan (1:19:36) and Hannah Westra (1:19:47) were separated by just 11 seconds for 10th and 11th, with Adrian Vitello (1:20:13) and Gabrielle Yatauro (1:20:16) three seconds apart for 12th and 13th — a testament to how tightly bunched this age group ran deep into the results.