By David Rogers. ATLANTA, Ga. — Blowing Rock’s Andrew Colley was the first American runner to cross the finish line on July 4, in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Road Race — but not the first place finisher among the reported 60,000 participants.
Starting in Buckhead and ending at Piedmont Park in downtown Atlanta, the historic Peachtree Road Race attracted roughly 50,000 runners for the 2023 edition, headlined by a strong international field of elite athletes.
Colley, 32, may have been the first American, but was the No. 13 finisher, overall, as an even dozen of internationals crossed the line ahead of him. Colley’s time for the popular 10K race was 28:47, an impressive 4:38 mile pace.
Kenya runner Charles Langat and Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay put on a show in the last few hundred meters of the race, leading a small pack of four other runners led by former NCAA champion Edwin Kurgat, also of Kenya.
With some 500 meters to the finish, Geay accelerated and put a gap of about 10 meters between himself and the others, but in the closing 200 meters Langat reeled him in and outpaced the Tanzania runner to the finish.
Charles Langat recorded a time of 27:42 (4:28 mile pace) and ran a personal best for the distance to pick up the winner’s check of $10,000, with Geay, 26, just one second behind. The top dozen internationals included athletes from Italy, Kenya and Ethiopia, among others.
Even though Colley was the first American runner to cross the finish line, he felt he should have done even better.
“Our plan today was to go out a little slower in the first half of the race,” said Colley, afterwards. “Looking back, while that strategy made for maybe a better second half of the race, I think it may have cost me 30-45 seconds, overall. In retrospect, I would like to have gone out with the leaders because that early separation is hard to overcome in a relative shorter distance like this. Post-race, I feel good. Maybe too good.
“Pointing toward next year’s U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in Orlando, though, this was a constructive race. It helps in our marathon training to run at a faster pace from time to time,” Colley added.
Van Ord drops back in Women’s Elite
Among the Women’s Elite, Blowing Rock’s Tristin Van Ord, like Colley a member of the ZAP Endurance elite professional running team, finished No. 23 in another strong international field, including Kenyan and Ethiopian top athletes.
The finish of the women’s division brought some unfortunate drama to the race. Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi was leading toward the end but just meters before the finish veered hard, off the course, following one of the motorcycle escorts exiting the course. As people yelled at her to get back on the course, she was overtaken by fellow Ethiopian Fotyen Tesfay (30:44) and Kenya’s Jesca Chelangat (30:46), Teferi was credited with No. 3 (30:47).
RELATED LINKS
- Atlanta Journal Constitution – race shuts down early
- ZAP Endurance
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