Defending champions Beadlescomb and Rodenfels are expected to be challenged at the USATF 5K Championships

The New York City Marathon weekend begins with the highly anticipated USATF 5K Championships at the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k on Saturday, November 2nd, one day before the 53rd running of the TCS New York City Marathon takes place.


The USATF 5K Championships at the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5k is the 11th stop on the 2024 USATF Running Circuit. Live coverage of this year's championships will be broadcast on USATF.TV beginning at 8:20 a.m. ET. The men's race begins at 8:30 a.m. and the women's race begins five minutes later at 8:35 a.m


Defending champions Morgan Beadlescomb and Annie Rodenfels return to the streets of Midtown Manhattan after winning the USATF 5K Championships in their respective races last year.


Former Michigan State Spartan Beadlescomb pulled away from Ahmed Muhumed, Tai Dinger and Daniel Schaffer down the homestretch to win last year's men's title in 13:44. He bested the field by a comfortable three seconds to claim his first USATF title.


Beadlescomb is looking to become the first repeat men's champion since Ben True in the 2011-12 season when the USATF 5K Championships were held in Providence, Rhode Island. Beadlescomb will be racing against another strong field that includes Muhumed (second), Schaffer (fourth) and Brian Barazza (fifth) from last year's race, as well as a handful of others with impressive credentials.


Beadlescomb could also become the first male athlete to win two USATF 5K championship titles on the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5K course, joining 2019 USATF 5K champion Anthony Rotich returning to the field for the first time since winning the 2019 title.


Muhumed is the only competitor in the field to win a USATF title on the USATF Running Circuit this year, winning the USATF 8K Championship in Kingsport, Tennessee in July. The USATF 8K Championships was also the last time Muhumed competed in a race this year.


Sam Chelanga, Sam Prakel and Josh Thompson join Beadlescomb, Rotich and Muhumed as three more USATF national champions competing, for a total of six national champions in Saturday's field.


Chelanga, a two-time USATF champion, is seeking his first USATF national title since 2016 when he won the USATF 10-mile title. He raced on the USATF Running Circuit twice this season, finishing third at the USATF 10K Championships and fourth at the USATF 20K Championships.


Prakel, the 2023 USATF Road Mile champion, and Thompson, the 2020 USATF Indoor 1500 champion, are both seeking their second national title.


Parlympian and New York native Michael Brannigan is expected to compete after competing for the United States at the 2024 Paralympic Games in Paris, where he won his second Parlympics medal in the men's T20 1500 in addition to his gold from 2016 Rio Bronze Games won.


Derek Johnson, Titus Winder and Kirubel Erassa are other names to watch out for among the men.


Rodenfels captured her first USATF national title by defeating Rachel Smith by four seconds in last year's women's race, 15:22.


Rodenfels has since won another USATF national title earlier this season, winning the 2024 USATF 6K championship race by 13 seconds on July 13 in Canton, Ohio.


With a win on Saturday, Rodenfels could join Weini Kelati as the only competitors to repeat the title of USATF 5K champion on the Abbott Dash to the Finish Line 5K course and become the sixth woman in USATF 5K history. Win consecutive national titles at km championships.


Challenging Rodenfels will be Emma Grace Hurley, who will be competing in her seventh USATF Running Circuit race this year. Her most recent success is a third-place finish at the USATF 10K Championships in Northport, New York, on September 21st.


Hurley, who placed ninth at the USATF 5K Championships last year, placed second in two USATF Running Circuit races this year at the USATF 8K Championships and the USATF Cross Country Championships.


Susanna Sullivan and Natosha Rogers are two veterans who have had great races in their recent outings and are looking to make some noise in the top half of the field.


Sullivan finished this year's Chicago Marathon as the top American woman, running a lifetime best of 2:21:56. This placed her seventh overall, making her the tenth fastest American marathon runner in history.


Rogers won the Medtronic Twin Cities 10 Mile in St. Paul/Minneapolis, Minn., in 52:29 on October 6, just two weeks after finishing second at the USATF 10K Championships.


Logan Jolly, Cailie Logue and Elena Hayday are other competitors competing in this year's USATF 5K Championships who have already achieved results on this year's USATF Running Circuit.


2023 cross-country champion Katie Wasserman is turning heads in the field with her first road race since 2022.

About the USATF Running Circuit

The USATF Running Circuit is a USATF road series with USATF championships ranging from one mile to the marathon and regularly attracts the best American distance runners with total prize money exceeding $500,000. The USATF 5K Championships will award a total of $60,000 in prize money.


The top ten U.S. runners earn points in each USATF Running Circuit race. At the USATF 5K Championships, the scoring is 15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1, with those with the most points at the end Prize money received from 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 racing have generated over $7 million for U.S. distance runners.



Contributed by Keenan Gray