Men's 25–29: Haywood holds off Gay in a sub-45 showdown

• Andrew Haywood won the 25–29 race in 44:19 (7:08/mi), the only finisher to break 44:30.
• Jacques Gay closed hard — posting the 2nd-fastest split from Mile 5 to the finish — to claim 2nd in 44:48, just 29 seconds back.
• The top two separated themselves emphatically: 3rd-place C.G. Kline finished in 49:58, nearly five minutes behind Gay.
• An 18-finisher field spread across more than 1 hour 32 minutes, from Haywood's 44:19 to Taylor Thomas's 2:16:35.

Andrew Haywood controlled the 25–29 race from the front, sitting 2nd among men through the early miles and maintaining that position deep into the race. His 7:08/mi average was the class of the field, and his 2nd-fastest split on the Mile 1–to–Mile 2 segment underscored that he wasn't just holding on — he was running with genuine authority. He never surrendered the lead in his age group, crossing in 44:19 to claim the win.

Jacques Gay made the race interesting with a strong back half. Starting the day 8th among men, he steadily climbed — moving to 7th, then 6th, and ultimately finishing 4th among men overall — while posting the 2nd-fastest split from Mile 5 to the finish line. That late surge was enough to lock up 2nd in the 25–29 field at 44:48, but Haywood's cushion proved too large to erase. What separated them at the tape was 29 seconds; what separated their approaches was Gay catching up with a faster closing mile while Haywood had already done his damage earlier.

C.G. Kline rounded out the podium in 49:58 (8:02/mi), holding 9th among men throughout most of the race with a steady, consistent effort. Andrew Elmer was right behind in 4th at 51:47 (8:20/mi). Brittany Whelan took 5th in 1:01:32, and Lance Madow (6th, 1:05:29), Kendall Bowens (7th, 1:08:15), and Gabrielle Quintana (8th, 1:09:39) filled out the middle of the pack on a warm, humid Atlanta morning. Taylor Thomas of Marietta brought it home in 18th at 2:16:35, completing all 18 finishers across the line.