2019 Boston Marathon - The American Women

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2019 Boston Marathon - The American Women

but Desiree Linden | Jordan Hasay | Becky Wade | Sarah Crouch | Sara Hall | Sally Kipyego |

As we're written in multiple places, we appreciated the Boston Marathon's support and inclusion of American athletes. It will be difficult to predict if any of the American women highlighted on this page will make it into the top 3 spots at the Boston Marathon (barring special circumstances like the terrible weather of 2018); but these women are competitive on the international stage and do represent the best of the USA's female marathoners. What we will see is a preview of those who will compete for a spot on the USA's Olympic Team one year hence... And with the expception of a couple of women who will be running at the London Marathon, this is the best of the USA:

Photo Credit: Victah Sailer

Desiree Linden
Country: USA
PB: 2:22:38, 2011 Boston Marathon
Boston Best: 2:22:38, 2011 Boston Marathon

Desiree Linden, the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon in 33 years, returns to the 2019 Boston Marathon as reigning champion after a hard-earned victory in the 2018 event's extraordinary conditions. The two-time Olympian and Arizona State University alumna, who ran a sub-five minute mile as a high school freshman, was a two-time All-American in track and cross-country and finished 3rd in the 5,000m event in the 2005 PAC-10 Collegiate Championships. Linden's 2018 Boston victory (2:39:54) followed a 2nd place finish in 2011 (2:22:38), a race in which she ran her PR but missed the win by only two seconds; Linden also boasts eight top-5 finishes in World Marathon Majors events including a 2nd place finish at the 2010 Bank of America Chicago Marathon (2:26:20).

A 2012 and 2016 Olympian, Linden placed 2nd at both the 2012 and 2016 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in Houston and Los Angeles, respectively. Linden was forced to drop from the 2012 Olympic Marathon in London in the very early miles due to injury; she was 7th overall, 2nd American in the 2016 Olympic Marathon in Rio de Janeiro (2:26:08). Her recent 5th overall, 2nd American performance at the United Airlines New York City Half Marathon (1:11:22), a near match to the 1:11:06 she ran at the 2016 U.S. National Half Marathon Championships, suggests that Linden remains in peak shape as she approaches her first Boston Marathon as defending champion. A long-time member of the Hansons-Brooks team, Linden lives and trains in Michigan.

Photo Credit: Victah Sailer

Jordan Hasay
Country: USA
PB: 2:20:57, 2017 Bank of America Chicago Marathon
Boston Best: 2:23:00, 2017 Boston Marathon

University of Oregon alumna Jordan Hasay, the second fastest American female marathon runner in history, returns to the Boston Marathon after a 2018 largely dominated by injury, surgery and recovery. Her distinguished high school and college careers included multiple youth records at the Junior Olympics in the 1,500m and 3,000m events, 18-time All-American honors and the 2011 NCAA titles in both the mile and 3,000m. After graduating in 2013, Hasay joined the Nike Oregon Project and continues to be coached by Alberto Salazar; her immediate post-collegiate career included a 2014 victory at the Tufts Health Plan 10K (31:39) less than two seconds from Molly Huddle's current 10K American record as well as National Championship titles at the 10 Mile, 15K and 20K distances.

Hasay's true debut year as a leading American distance runner, however, was 2017. Beginning with the Aramco Houston Half Marathon, in which her 1:08:40 finish was the second fastest debut Half Marathon for an American woman, Hasay continued the year with a near one-minute PR at the distance just three months later (1:07:55, 2017 Prague Half Marathon), followed by a 3rd place female podium finish at the 2017 Boston Marathon, where her 2:23:00 finish set the record for fastest debut marathon by an American woman by an almost three-minute margin. She went on to set a two-minute personal best later that fall at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon, running 2:20:57 for another 3rd place podium finish. Hasay's recent Half Marathon time of 1:11:06 at the Rome-Ostia Half Marathon is well off her best, but assuming she shakes any leftover rustiness from her racing between now and Patriot's Day, she remains a top contender for a repeat podium performance.

Photo Credit: Victah Sailer

Becky Wade
Country: USA
PB: 2:30:41, 2013 Cal International Marathon
Boston Best: Debut

A three-time U.S. Olympic Trials participant in the steeplechase (2012, 2016) and marathon (2016), as well as a current qualifier for the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials in the marathon, Becky Wade was a four-time All-American at Rice University and a member of Team USA in the 2018 IAAF World Half Marathon Championship. After a storybook debut at the 2013 California International Marathon resulted in a 2:30.41 winning time, Wade wrestled with achieving her full potential at the distance for several years but returned to form in 2017 and 2018. A 2:35.57 at the 2017 Chevron Houston Marathon earned her third place and top-American honors; her 1:11.15 at the 2018 Aramco Houston Half Marathon was a personal best at the distance, followed by a 2:35.01 at last year's Virgin Money London Marathon.

After a 1:12:35 performance at the 2019 Aramco Houston Half Marathon and a 1:14:26 2nd place performance at the Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon, Wade decided to forgo an additional Half Marathon this spring and focus solely on her final build-up for Boston. While a personal best may be unlikely at Wade's debut Boston Marathon, particularly because she doesn't have significant experience racing on the type of hills the course will offer up, Wade's performance will certainly be an indicator of what to expect as we approach next year's U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.

Photo Credit: Victah Sailer

Sarah Crouch
Country: USA
PB: 2:32:27
Boston Best: 2:37:36, 2016 Boston Marathon

Sarah Crouch, a 13-time All-American with a school record 12 national appearances while at Western Washington University, enters the 2019 Boston Marathon positioned for a breakout performance. With three top-10 performances at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon to her credit, Crouch in 2018 ran personal bests in both the Half Marathon and Marathon distances, the latter just weeks after having a benign tumor removed her leg. Her 1:11:31 performance at the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon was good for 2nd overall and 1st American; her 2:32:27 PR at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon saw her finish 6th overall and top American once more. Crouch also notched Half Marathon victories at the Rock N' Roll Dallas (1:19:07) and Rock N' Roll New Orleans (1:17:56) Half Marathons early in the year, as well as a 3rd place finish in the 25K National Championships (1:27:03).

Crouch, currently living in Flagstaff, AZ and coached by Steve Magness, qualified for the U.S. Olympic Trials in both the Marathon and 10,000m events in 2012. She last ran the Boston Marathon in 2016 (2:37:36), placing 11th overall and 2nd American; she is considered a top contender in next year's U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.

Photo Credit: Victah Sailer

Sara Hall
Country: USA
PB: 2:26:20, 2018 Ottawa Marathon
Boston Best: Debut

Stanford alumna Sara Hall, a 7-time All-American, 3-time NCAA runner-up in the 5,000m and indoor 3,000m events and 3rd place finisher at the 2003 NCAA Women's Cross-Country Championships, enters her debut Boston Marathon after strong seasons in 2017 and 2018 which included PR's at both the Half Marathon and Marathon distances. Coached by husband and former Olympic marathoner Ryan Hall, her top 10 performance at the 2016 TCS New York City Marathon was followed in 2017 by Half Marathon wins at the Gold Coast (1:10:32) and Santa Rosa (1:14:47) Half Marathons; later that year, she earned the first of the three National Championship titles she would win in 2017 and 2018 at the Cal International Marathon (2:28:10). She began 2018 with a win at the Publix Gasparilla Half Marathon, following that with a 2nd place finish at the U.S. Half Marathon National Championships in Pittsburgh (1:10:07) and a repeat victory and personal best time at the Gold Coast Half Marathon (1:09:27).
Hall capped off 2018 with important wins at two shorter distances, earning the U.S. 20K National Championship title at the New Haven Road Race (69:04), and edging phenom Molly Huddle by less than one second for the win at the TC 10-Miler (52:47) in early October. With a recent Marathon PR of 2:26:20 at the 2018 Ottawa Marathon and extensive experience racing against elite fields, Hall's debut at this year's Boston Marathon should be one of the most exciting.

Photo Credit: Victah Sailer

Sally Kipyego
Country: USA
PB: 2:28:01, 2016 TCS New York City Marathon
Boston Best: Debut

Sally Kipyego, silver medalist in the 10,000m event at the 2012 London Olympic Games and the 2011 World Championships, will run her debut Boston Marathon after taking time off to have her first child. Kipyego, during her collegiate career at Texas Tech, was the first Kenyan woman to win a NCAA Cross-Country championship; she also earned three consecutive NCAA division titles and is tied with Suzy Favor-Hamilton for the most wins at individual NCAA Cross-Country championships. Kipyego became an American citizen in 2017.

Kipyego's very successful post-collegiate track career was interrupted twice by injuries to her calcaneus following the 2012 Olympics; after taking the majority of 2013 off for recovery, she ran her debut Half Marathon at the 2014 United Airlines NYC Marathon, winning the event in a 1:08:31 time that bested 2014 Boston Marathon champion Buzanesh Deba and American Half Marathon record holder Molly Huddle. A third-place finish at the same event followed in 2015 (1:09:39); in 2016, Kipyeo ran her debut marathon at the TCS New York City Marathon (2:28:01), finishing second to the legendary Mary Keitany and again besting Huddle. Kipyego has stated in recent interviews that she is not in peak shape for this event following pregnancy and a long bout of illness but hoping for a top-10 finish; her performance will nonetheless be one to note among American women in the build-up to the 2020 U.S. Olympic Trials.