F20-24 at CIM 2024: Friedel Runs Clear in a Deep Young Field

• Sydney Friedel won the F20-24 age group in 2:43:19 (6:14/mi), finishing 3 minutes 44 seconds clear of runner-up Alauna Carstens.
• Alauna Carstens ran the 27th-fastest 5K→10K split among all women before gradually fading from 18th among women to 51st by the finish — still good enough for 2nd in F20-24 at 2:47:03.
• Places 3 through 5 were decided by just 86 seconds: Alison Ray (2:48:25), Yilin Wu (2:48:34), and Erinn Hill (2:48:45).
• 181 women finished in F20-24, making it one of the most competitive age groups on the course.

Sydney Friedel ran a composed, consistent race from Kansas City. Her gender place among the full women's field held remarkably steady through the first 30 kilometers — hovering right around 51st — before she found another gear, climbing to 42nd among women by 40K. Her 6:14/mi average speaks for itself, and she crossed in 2:43:19 with room to spare over a field that had plenty of firepower behind her.

The most dramatic trajectory belonged to Alauna Carstens. The 20-year-old from Olympia came out flying, posting the 27th-fastest split among all women in the opening 5K-to-10K stretch and sitting 18th among women early on. But the pace caught up with her: she slipped steadily through the field, dropping to 51st among women by the finish. That kind of early aggression is a double-edged sword at CIM, and Carstens will have a clear data point to work with next time. She still held on for 2nd in F20-24 at 2:47:03.

The battle for the rest of the podium was genuinely tight. Alison Ray ran a patient, negative-split-flavored race — moving from 90th among women at 5K all the way to 58th by the finish, with the 39th-fastest women's split on the 35K-to-40K stretch powering her home in 2:48:25. Yilin Wu was similarly relentless, posting the 35th-fastest women's split from 40K to the line to edge into 4th at 2:48:34. Erinn Hill rounded out the top five at 2:48:45 — just 20 seconds behind Ray after 26.2 miles. Three women, 86 seconds, all under 2:49. That's the kind of depth that makes F20-24 at CIM worth watching.