With the sun shining and temperatures in the mid-40s, runners at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile (CUCB) faced stiff headwinds at times, but not stiff enough to keep top American Hillary Bor of Colorado Springs from breaking the 40-year-old American Record of 46:13, set by Greg Meyer here in the 1983 Cherry Blossom 10 Mile, as Meyer, one of nine past winners in town to celebrate the 50th anniversary, looked on at the finish line. Bor’s time of 46:11 earned him a $50,000 bonus from CUCB organizers and the title of 2023 USATF 10 Mile National Champion.
When asked about seeing his record broken, Greg Meyer had this to say: “It was exciting to see the record fall on the 40th anniversary of my setting it and the 50th anniversary of the race. That capped a perfect race weekend. Hillary ran a spectacular race in tough conditions. I had dinner with him last night and he is such a nice person. I see great things to come in the future for him.”
Bor finished second overall in a very close race with Tsegay Kidanu from Ethiopia, whose winning time was 46:08. The two ran together throughout the race, leaving an ever-dwindling pack of men in their wake, creating a gap to third place of almost a minute by the time they crossed the finish line.
In the women’s race — which started 12 minutes prior to the men’s start to avoid men pacing women and to ensure “women’s only” status for any records set — Ugandan Sarah Chelangat pulled away from her competitors midway through the race to win handily in a time of 52:04. American Sara Hall was second in 52:37 and, like Bor, earned the title of 2023 USATF 10 Mile National Champion. There were no records set in the women’s race.
Chelangat and Kidanu were crowned 2023 PRRO Circuit Champions and earned $2500 each for these titles. No athlete claimed the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus which is awarded to the winners of the 2022-2023 circuit events who also win the championship. Defending CUCB champion Susanna Sullivan was the only eligible athlete. Sullivan finished seventh overall and earned $1500 as an eligible athlete finishing in places 2-10 at the PRRO Championship. With the 2022-2023 Super Bonus unclaimed, it will increase to $15,000 for the 2023-2024 PRRO championship at the Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K on May 5, 2024. The PRRO Circuit is comprised of the Boilermaker 15K in Utica, NY; the Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K in Spokane, WA; and the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile.
Here’s a compilation of times, prize money, and bonuses earned by the elite runners today, organized in order of top-10 overall, followed by the top Americans who also earned prize money:
Top men:
- Tsegay Kidanu 46:08, Ethiopia — $8,000 for the overall victory.
- Hillary Bor 46:11, Colorado Springs, CO — $4,000 for second place overall, $5,000 for first American, $50,000 American Record Bonus. Total earnings: $59,000.
- Abbabiya Simbassa 47:09, Flagstaff, AZ — $2,000 for third place overall, $2,500 for placing second among Americans, and $1,500 for placing first among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Total earnings: $6,000.
- Charles Langat 47:25, Kenya — $1,500 for placing fourth overall.
- Jacob Thomson 47:27, Flagstaff, AZ — $1,000 for fifth place overall and $1,500 for third place among Americans. Total earnings: $2,500.
- Matthew McClintock 47:30, Flagstaff, AZ — $900 for sixth place overall, $1,000 for placing fourth among Americans, and $1,000 for placing second among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Total earnings: $2,900.
- John Dressel 47:32, Chapel Hill, NC — $800 for seventh place overall and $800 for being fifth American. Total earnings: $1,600.
- Shadrack Kimining 47:46, Kenya — $700 for eighth place overall.
- Emmanuel Bor 48:14, Sierra Vista, AZ — $600 for ninth place overall and $600 for placing sixth among Americans. Total earnings: $1,200.
- Colin Bennie 48:18, San Francisco, CA — $500 for 10th place overall, $400 for placing seventh among Americans, and $500 for placing third among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Total earnings: $1,400.
- Joel Reichow 48:53, White Bear Lake, MN — $300 for being eighth American.
- Cody Baele 48:56, Des Moines, IA — $200 for being ninth American.
- Zach Herriott 48:57, Washington, DC — $200 for placing 10th among American men.
Top women:
- Sarah Chelangat 52:04, Uganda — $8,000 for the overall victory.
- Sara Hall 52:37, Flagstaff, AZ — $4,000 for second place overall, $5,000 for first American woman, and $1,500 for placing first among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Total earnings: $10,500.
- Nell Rojas 52:38, Boulder, CO — $2,000 for third place overall and $2,500 for placing second among American women. Total earnings: $4,500.
- Emma Grace Hurley 52:41, Roswell, GA — $1,500 for fourth place overall and $1,500 for placing third among American women. Total earnings: $3,000.
- Molly Grabill 52:42, Louisville, CO — $1,000 for fifth place overall and $1,000 for fourth place among American women. Total earnings: $2,000.
- Amber Zimmerman 53:05, Philadelphia, PA —$900 for sixth place overall and $800 for placing fifth among American women. Total earnings: $1,700.
- Susanna Sullivan 53:25, Reston, VA — $800 for seventh place overall, $600 for placing sixth among American women, $1,000 for placing second among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni, and $1,500 for the PRRO Event Champion’s Bonus. Total earnings: $3,900.
- Carrie Verdon 53:35, Boulder, CO — $700 for eighth place overall and $400 for seventh place among American women. Total earnings: $1,100.
- Weynshet Weldetsadik 53:47, Ethiopia — $600 for placing ninth overall.
- Jessa Hanson 53:47, Flagstaff, AZ — $500 for 10th place overall and $300 for placing eighth among American women. Total earnings: $800.
- Jeralyn Poe 54:41, Flagstaff, AZ — $200 for placing ninth among American women and $500 for placing third among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Total earnings: $700.
- Breanna Sieracki 55:52, Burnsville, MN — $200 for tenth place among American women.