FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Funk, Nagy Take Titles at Garden of Life Palm Beaches Marathon
Wellington resident Jaelin Funk looked like he had everything under control
the entire way in his runaway victory in Sunday's Garden of Life Palm
Beaches Marathon presented by Jupiter Medical Center.
Nobody could stay with him, but Funk looked almost as fresh crossing the
finish line as he did at the start of the race.
Funk finished with a time of 2:44:46, more than eight minutes ahead of
runner-up John Dangelo of North Palm Beach (2:52:59). It was his second
victory in three career Marathon starts, suggesting that the distance fits
his running style well.
"My first marathon, it was 38 degrees at the start of the race, and it was
raining and 50 degrees during my second marathon.," Funk said. "Today it
was a little warmer and I was trying to deal with the heat. It might have
looked easy, but it wasn't."
Temperatures at the start of the race were a manageable 68 degrees, but it
warmed up as the morning progressed.
Katalin Nagy, a 42-year-old from Ft. Lauderdale, also handled the
conditions well, winning the women's marathon in 3:14:25.
Wellington rising high school junior Colton Lawson won his first career
men's half-marathon (1:15:03), while FAU cross country and track & field
runner Madlen Kappeler won her second (1:21:06) half marathon title.
The four winners were among nearly 3,000 runners who participated in the
race weekend which included a 5K, 10K and four-person marathon relay teams
in addition to the half and full marathon. Runners came from 47 states and
20 countries to compete on the flat and fast course with miles of water
views along the holiday-decorated and palm tree-lined Flagler Drive.
Funk, who recently moved from Orlando to Palm Beach and works as an
inventory manager for a bike company, really looked as if he could run
another 26 miles after crossing the finish line.
"No I'm dead. I'm done," he laughed. "My legs are definitely hurting. I
came to try to win today."
Nagy, a decorated ultramarathoner, was surprised to find she was the winner
as volunteers placed a medal around her neck at the finish line. She won
her second career marathon in five starts.
Nagy is returning to racing after a three-year injury layoff, and Sunday's
race was the first step toward bigger things. She won gold medals in 2015,
2017 and 2019 for the US 24-hr ultramarathon team, and is a two-time
champion of the famous Spartathlon race in Greece (a 153-mile ultramarathon
from Athens to Sparti).
"Today was a training run," said the native Hungarian, who intends to run
the Spartathlon again in September 2022. "This is kind of fast for me. I do
more of the 24-hour running."
Kelley Moyer of Pennsboro, WV (3:16:41) finished in second place and Emily
Daycock of Fort Lauderdale was third (3:25:17).
The 18-year-old Lawson's first experience with the Palm Beaches
half-marathon when he was just 15 was inauspicious at best.
Lawson ran the first 12.5 miles that day before blacking out, falling and
striking his head on a curb. He suffered a concussion, had to be carted
from the route by ambulance and spent the night in the hospital.
"You know when they say at the beginning of the race that if you don't feel
right you should stop?" he said of his first Palm Beaches Marathon three
years ago. "Well, I didn't listen. I guess I wasn't ready for (the race)."
The Kings Academy runner – he won districts, regionals and placed eighth at
the Florida state cross country meet during the fall season – returned to
this event in 2019 and found more favorable results, placing fifth overall
and first among runners in his 18-under division.
Sunday's win marked another step in his running journey, and his mother and
grandmother were on hand to see his first win. It was a two-man race until
the 10-mile mark, when Lawson began to pull away.
"I was in third place through the 5K," he said. "Then it was just me
running with (Daniel Martinez). I dropped him at 10 miles and sped up. I
felt great."
Martinez, of Boqueron, Puerto Rico, finished second (1:16:17) and Emmett
Owenby IV of Lone Tree, CO was third (1:21:19).
Kappeler's half-marathon win came a week after her 24th birthday. The FAU
senior is from a small German town in the Alps, and came to the US as a
collegiate recruit. She was a third team All-Conference USA cross country
selection in the fall.
"It was fun today," she said. "I felt no pressure and I didn't expect
anything. I came to clear my head."
Boynton Beach's Staci Huelat was second (1:28:01) while Sylvanna Toledo was
third (1:28:57).
Runners headed north on Flagler Drive from the start line adjacent to Meyer
Amphitheater, and passed the Sandi Tree, West Palm Beach's famous 35-ft,
700-ton holiday sand sculpture. The course then led north to Manatee Lagoon
before doubling back south and veering off through the historic and quaint
areas of downtown West Palm Beach.
"It's a great race, and it had nice visuals," said Funk.
"A very professional race," added Nagy. "The volunteers were great. The
refreshment areas were good. It was an awesome organization that put this
on."
Mens Marathon Results
1 Jaelin Funk Orlando 02:44:46
2 John D'Angelo North Palm Beach 02:52:59
3 Nick Eccher Nashville 02:54:57
4 Fabio Da Cunha Barueri 02:56:42
5 Joe Rodbard West Palm Beach 02:56:46
6 Gerard O'Leary Toronto 02:56:51
7 Rodrigo Londono Medellin 02:57:37
8 Philip Pasch Schwabach 02:59:06
9 Yisroayl Peer Delray Beach 03:00:18
10 Todd Robinson Longmont 03:01:38
11 Birhanu Van Der Riet Winter Garden 03:01:53
12 Ryan Deauville West Palm Beach 03:03:26
13 Joseph Perreault Ave Maria 03:06:17
14 Gabriel Lugo Miami 03:09:31
15 John Miller North Fort Myers 03:10:13
16 Emilio Martinez Bronx 03:10:49
17 Aaron Ferge Boynton Beach 03:15:34
18 Ty Fisher West Palm Beach 03:20:20
19 Colin McCormick Boca Raton 03:21:20
20 Kevin Cochrane Fort Lauderdale 03:22:30
21 Greg Lovell North Palm Beach 03:23:07
22 Pablo Jimenez Godoy Miami 03:27:32
23 Danny Zalk West Palm Beach 03:28:24
24 Joshua Vongphrachanh Grand Rapids 03:28:59
25 Branko Angjeleski West Palm Beach 03:29:08
Womens Marathon Results
1 Katalin Nagy Sarasota 03:14:25
2 Kelley Moyer Pennsboro 03:16:41
3 Emily Daycock Fort Lauderdale 03:25:17
4 Erin Dillon Redfield 03:26:31
5 Rochelle Fields Safety Harbor 03:36:57
6 Emmanuelle Leblanc Kingston 03:38:44
7 Molly Maggard Springboro 03:39:50
8 Maria Urso Jupiter 03:43:53
9 Jessie Macdonald St. Catharines 03:45:02
10 Silvia Munoz Poland Sterling 03:45:36
11 Petra Nousiainen Vintrosa 03:45:38
12 Dorothea Trotter Boynton Beach 03:52:14
13 Leah Mitchem Sarasota 03:52:28
14 Dima Kassis Lake Worth 03:53:22
15 Rebecca Murphy Conway 03:57:55
16 Taylor Hall Polk City 03:59:18
17 Dana Cantwell Wellington 04:00:32
18 Amanda Roszczewski Naples 04:02:12
19 Nicole Noonan New York 04:03:33
20 Stephanie Reinhold Winter Garden 04:06:37
21 Jill Van Horn Rockville 04:07:50
22 Kayla Jane Mclaughlin Chicago 04:08:54
23 Migdalia Vega Vega Baja 04:13:29
24 Maggie Hammerschmidt Tinley Park 04:18:33
25 Katie Tinley Tampa 04:21:03
Men's Half Marathon
1 Colton Lawson Wellington 01:15:03
2 Daniel Martinez Boqueron 01:16:17
3 Emmett Owenby IV Lone Tree 01:21:19
4 Michael Castillo Lake Worth 01:22:22
5 Tyler Vitullo Youngstown 01:25:06
6 Brandon Smith Palm Beach Gardens 01:25:24
7 Marcelo Fiusa Carneiro Boca Raton 01:26:02
8 Eric Petersen Orlando 01:27:10
9 Hernan Garbini Charlottesville 01:27:44
10 Daniel Yinh Palm Beach Gardens 01:29:23
11 Leonardo Lopez-Merlos East Northport 01:29:42
12 Joshua Thomas Lake Worth 01:30:22
13 Brent Mcquilkin West Palm Beach 01:30:34
14 Richard Wandoff West Palm Beach 01:30:39
15 Frederik Oliveira Pompano Beach 01:31:28
16 Daniel Pietrosanti Elmsford 01:31:31
17 Charles Elsey Sarasota 01:32:00
18 Evan Tremblay Salem 01:32:19
19 Emmanuel Galeote Hobe Sound 01:32:40
20 Aldo Virano Jupiter 01:32:54
21 Will Petersen Orlando 01:33:28
22 Matthew Oleszczuk West Palm Beach 01:33:34
23 Ivan Ruiz Port Saint Lucie 01:33:59
24 Roy Boulware Lake Worth 01:35:05
25 Ashish Pednekar New York 01:35:15
Women's Half Marathon
1 Madlen Kappeler Boca Raton 01:21:06
2 Staci Huelat Boynton Beach 01:28:01
3 Sylvanna Toledo 01:28:57
4 Emalie Clement Omaha 01:29:29
5 Mackenzie Dufour West Palm Beach 01:31:03
6 Amanda Jones West Palm Beach 01:33:35
7 Niki Desjardin North Palm Beach 01:34:16
8 Lauren Ludka Boca Raton 01:35:13
9 Olivia Nicholson Delray Beach 01:35:14
10 Jennifer Rapaport North Palm Beach 01:36:23
11 Sydney Schiff Palm Beach Gardens 01:37:46
12 Maria Paituvi Jupiter 01:38:09
13 Michelle Koenig West Palm Beach 01:38:10
14 Samantha Tanzer Jamaica Plain 01:38:33
15 Alina Morrison Palm Beach 01:40:16
16 Lynn Astrup Minneapolis 01:40:49
17 Sophia Racette St. Louis 01:41:27
18 Catherine Cope Jupiter 01:41:36
19 Kaori Alexander Wellington 01:42:00
20 Megane Bianco West Palm Beach 01:42:13
21 Sarah Williams Key West 01:42:37
22 Anays Murillo Jamaica Plain 01:42:41
23 Mia Delgado West Palm Beach 01:44:01
24 Hannah Anderson Lake Worth Beach 01:44:12
25 Lisa Buohler Fort Myers 01:44:17
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