National record holder Haftu Strintzos has produced the best performance by an Australian man at a marathon World Major in more than 30 years, finishing fifth in New York City.
The Australian clocked a time of two hours, six minutes and 34 seconds on Sunday (Monday AEDT), as Sweden's Andreas Almgren claimed victory in 2:06:01 in the final marathon major of the year.
Strintzos was just 14 seconds shy of the national record of 2:06:20 he set at the Gold Coast Marathon in July, which broke Andy Buchanan's previous mark set in Valencia, Spain in 2024 by two seconds.
The 27-year-old's fifth-placed finish in New York was the best by an Australian man at a mjaor since Steve Monehetti crossed the line in second place in London back in 1995.
"I am happy with the performance today as it is my second ever race at a world major," said Strintzos.
"I fought all the way to the finish line to secure a fifth-place finish and it’s also exciting to get the auto qualifier for the (2028 Los Angeles) Olympics today.
"My focus is always on performance and I gave myself a shot to get on podium.
"Close but not quite there yet."
About 60,000 runners were expected for New York on marathon day, approaching record numbers.
The event was celebrating the 50th anniversary of its five-borough course - across Staten Island, Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx and Manhattan - which was first staged in 1976.
Remarkably, Almgren was competing in his first marathon and strode to a convincing victory, finishing 13 seconds ahead of Italy's Yemaneberhan Crippa (2:06:14), with Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho third.
In the women's section, Kenya's Sheila Chepkirui (2:24:36) claimed her second victory in three years.
Kenya filled four of the first five places, their dominance only thwarted by second-placed American Jessica McClain (2:24:42).
