Masters Women's Half Marathon: Elamiri Dominates in the Rain

• Ewa Elamiri wins in 1:43:50 (7:56/mi), finishing nearly 18 minutes ahead of 2nd place — the clearest margin of the day among the masters women.
• Patricia Salmon, 59, runs down the field: entered the women's race 14th, climbed to 8th among women by the finish, taking 2nd in masters with a 2:01:51 (9:18/mi).
• Chiemi Yamamoto, 63, claims 3rd in 2:06:20 (9:39/mi), also moving through the women's field from 16th to 10th — a steady, composed effort in tough conditions.
• Candace Furlong, 74, finishes 5th in 2:32:06 (11:37/mi), posting the 14th-fastest women's split on the final lap — a standout performance for the field's oldest finisher.

Thirteen masters women toed the line in Sacramento on a raw February morning — 51°F, light rain, 14 mph wind, 91% humidity — and Ewa Elamiri of Folsom made the conditions look irrelevant. The 42-year-old ran a measured but powerful race, sitting 3rd among all women at the first checkpoint before moving to 2nd by the final lap. Her closing split was the 2nd-fastest among all women on that leg, and her 1:43:50 finish left a gap of nearly 18 minutes back to 2nd place — a commanding wire-to-wire performance.

Behind her, the masters race had real drama in the chase. Patricia Salmon of Danville came in 14th among women at the first split and kept climbing, finishing 8th in the women's field and 2nd among masters in 2:01:51. Her 7th-fastest women's split on the closing lap tells the story: she was running people down all afternoon. Chiemi Yamamoto of Roseville mirrored that trajectory — 16th among women early, 10th by the finish — crossing in 2:06:20 for 3rd in masters at age 63.

The back half of the masters field showed plenty of grit across a wide range of paces. Amparo Haynes (4th, 2:23:39) and Candace Furlong (5th, 2:32:06) held their positions steadily through the second lap, with Furlong's 14th-fastest closing split among all women particularly impressive at 74. Nancy Long (6th, 2:44:42) and Allison Harrington (7th, 2:45:45) were separated by under a minute at the line. At the back, Mari Muki of Torrance closed out the 13-finisher field in 4:14:36 — completing 13.1 miles in the wet and wind is its own achievement.