True, Kemp Shine at the USATF 20 km Championships

USATF Release

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana – With near perfect racing conditions Labor Day morning, Ben True and Erika Kemp came away victorious against strong fields at the USATF 20 km Championships presented by Toyota in New Haven, Connecticut, the fifth stop on the USATF Running Circuit.

Race highlights and coverage of the USATF 20 km Championships, hosted by the Faxon Law New Haven Road Race, are available and can be viewed with a +PLUS subscription on USATF.TV.

A conservative early pace left a massive contingent of runners in the lead pack of the men’s field. True and fellow veterans Leonard Korir, Emmanuel Bor, Clayton Young and Abbabiya Simbassa led the charge, along with Nico Montanez and Brian Shrader.

The field would slowly dwindle, but still have more than a dozen runners, as the men passed through the 10 km mark in 30:30, with True, Shrader, and Korir leading the charge. 

Korir, fellow Olympic Jared Ward, Young, Montanez and Shrader started to push the pace around mile nine, as the lead pack started to diminish even more. Ward would eventually drop back, while Reid Buchanan would jump to the front with Young and True.

For the next two miles the runners in the lead pack would jockey for position, with a few surges thrown in, thinning out the pack until by mile 12 there were only a few runners left, with True, Montanez and Simbassa leading the charge, and Young and Korir hanging just off the back.

As the finish line came into view, True, Simbassa and Montanez started a mad dash to the finish. As spectators cheered wildly in the final stretch, it was True pulling ahead ever so slightly in the last few strides, winning his eighth USATF Running Circuit title and first since 2015.

True crossed the finish in 59:53, one second ahead of both Simbassa and Montanez, who finished second and third, both with a time of 59:54. Korir tried valiantly to maintain pace with the lead trio over the final stretch, but faded ever so slightly back to fourth in 59:58, another fine performance for the three-time USATF 20 km champion.

Young charged home in New Haven to claim fifth in 1:00:09, just ahead of Fred Huxham, who added to his third place effort from the USATF 10 km Championships with a sixth place showing on Monday, crossing the finish in 1:00:10. 

Behind Huxham, there was a clear gap back to seventh. Buchanan hung on over the final mile to earn another fine performance this season, crossing the finish in 1:00:24. Jacob Thomson finished eighth a few seconds back in 1:00:27, just ahead of Bor, who crossed the line in ninth in 1:00:31. Ian Butler placed tenth overall in 1:00:36.

Similar to the early stages of the men’s race, the women’s field packed together with no one taking the early pacing duties, the pack seemingly content to let the race pace flow without any dramatic surges or pacing. The lead group of nearly ten runners kept pace together through the first three miles, but then the lead group dwindled to six by mile five.

As the runners hit the half way mark, the lead group had shrunk all the way down to four, with Kemp, USATF Running Circuit leader Emily Durgin, Lindsay Flanagan, and Makena Morley solidifying themselves up top. 

The quartet would maintain their pack for another couple miles, until Flanagan started to drop off pace, while Kemp and Durgin started to push the pace a bit up front. Kemp continued to drive, with Durgin dropping off ever so slightly, while Morley tried valiantly to keep on Kemp’s shoulder.

With two miles to go, Kemp shifted her pace, putting in a surge that Morley simply couldn’t match. As she charged around the streets of New Haven, Kemp proved to be the best on the day. Into the final stretch Kemp had a significant lead over the rest of the field, crossing the line in victorious fashion, nearly half a minute ahead of second in a time of 1:06:20.

Morley was able to hold off Durgin in the late stages of the race, as she earned her second career top two finish on the USATF Running Circuit, placing second in 1:06:59. Meanwhile, Durgin grabbed her fourth top three finish on the 2021 USATF Running Circuit, placing third in 1:07:03, while Flanagan placed fourth in 1:07:30.

Behind Flanagan, the race for fifth was on between Aisling Cuffe and Maegan Krifchin. In the final straight, it was Cuffe pulling away to claim fifth overall in 1:07:59, two seconds ahead of Krifchin in sixth in 1:08:01. 

Makenna Myler continued her strong 2021 campaign by placing seventh in 1:08:18. Minnesota Distance Elite’s Dakotah Lindwurm took home eighth place in 1:08:41, while Lexie Thompson earned ninth in 1:08:46 and Annmarie Tuxbury tenth in 1:10:17.

Durgin’s third place effort adds another 15 points to her USATF Running Circuit standings lead, sitting atop of the field with 49 total points. Kemp’s victory is worth 22.5 points, pushing her all the way up to second overall with 28.5 points, while Flanagan’s fourth place finish earns her an additional 10.5, giving her a third place total of 26.5 overall points.

On the men’s side of the USATF Running Circuit standings, Young grabs another 9 points, allowing him to maintain his top spot with 37 total points. Simbassa’s runner-up effort adds 18 points to his total, moving him up to second overall in the standings with 30 points. True’s victory puts him in the third place position in the standings with 22.5 points, just ahead of Montanez with 22 overall points. 

The next stop on the USATF Running Circuit is the USATF 10 Mile Championships presented by Toyota, set to take place on Sunday, September 12, hosted by the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run.

About the USATF Running Circuit

The USATF Running Circuit is a USATF road series featuring USATF championships from one mile through the marathon and consistently attracts the best American distance runners with more than $500,000 to be awarded in total prize money. A total of $38,000 in prize money will be awarded at the USATF 20 km Championships

The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USATF Running Circuit race. For the USATF 20 km Championships, scoring is set as 22.5 for first, 18 for second, 15 for third, 10.5 ,9, 7.5, 6, 4.5, 3 and 1.5, with those earning the most points receiving prize money at the end of the series.

The mission of the USATF Running Circuit is to showcase, support and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USATF Running Circuit and its races have provided over $7 million to U.S. distance runners.

Contributed by Scott Bush