Anchorage Mayor's Marathon 2013 Results: Men's and Women's Top Finishers

The state of Alaska may not be known for their ideal weather conditions or marathon running, but that didn't stop the 2013 Anchorage Mayor's Marathon from featuring some of the world's best long-distance runners. 

Saturday, June 22, marked the 40th annual event, which includes the marathon, half marathon, marathon relay, a four-mile race and a youth race.

Alaska's biggest day for long-distance runners is also a USA Track and Field-sanctioned event, meaning top finishers can use their results to qualify for other notable marathons, including the Boston Marathon. 

Let's get right to it and break down the big winners and top finishers from the 2013 Anchorage Mayor's Marathon. 

Check out the official Anchorage Mayor's Marathon site for the full results of every event.

Men's Top Finishers—Marathon

Place	Participant	Time
1	David Kiplagat	2:23:23
2	Solomon Kandie	2:33:29
3	Tom Ritchie	2:36:27
4	Michael Adams	2:50:07
5	Jerome Ross	2:50:54
6	Ryan Beckett	2:56:25
7	Erin Phillips	2:56:44
8	Christopher Ashland	2:57:00
9	Gary Krugger	2:57:13
10	Sean-Patrick Oswald	2:58:04

David Kiplagat took the men's marathon in stunning fashion, with a blistering time of 2:23:23, more than 10 minutes faster than the second-place finisher. 

A former University of Alaska Anchorage long-distance star, Kiplagat represented his hometown with a performance in the 40th annual event that will go down in the event's history. After finishing third in last year's race, Kiplagat improved his time by more than 20 minutes, which left the rest of the field in the dust. 

For the second straight year, Solomon Kandie finished in the No. 2 spot. The 34-year-old Kenya native was a former runner at the University of Tulane and has long been one of the marquee participants at the Anchorage marathon and others around the nation. 

Meanwhile, Christopher Ashland notched his second-straight top-10 finish at the event after coming in 10th place in 2012. 

Women's Top Finishers—Marathon

Place	Participant	Time
1	Anna Dalton	3:09:01
2	Kirsten Kolb	3:18:36
3	Holly Grant	3:22:49
4	Roberta Braker	3:28:30
5	Stacey Buckelew	3:29:00
6	Mandie Samuels	3:29:25
7	Sara Sayre	3:33:44
8	Laura McDonough	3:34:18
9	Jennifer Masini	3:34:20
10	Polly Wheeler	3:35:05

Anna Dalton was the winner on the women's side, where seven of the top 10 finishers represented their home state of Alaska well.

Dalton, much like Kiplagat in the men's circuit, distanced herself from the competition by finishing nine minutes ahead of the second-place finisher, Kirsten Kolb. 

Kolb won't be discouraged with her finish, however. She cut down her time by almost 10 minutes from last year's event and improved her finish from 10th to second. 

Men's Top Finishers—Half Marathon

Place	Participant	Time
1	Aaron Fletcher	1:12:43
2	Alfred Kangogo	1:12:56
3	Zac Barrett	1:15:04
4	Ryan Quinn	1:15:54
5	Jason Dowell	1:17:09
6	Jeff Young	1:20:36
7	Vin Robinson	1:23:08
8	Spencer Mitton	1:23:23
9	Philip Sebastiani	1:24:02
10	Liam McMahon	1:25:32

Aaron Fletcher took the half marathon in the most closely contested race of the event, finishing just 13 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Alfred Kangogo.

Both Fletcher and Kangogo are from Anchorage. In fact, the only top-10 finishers who weren't from Alaska were Zac Barrett of Pocatello, Idaho, and Ryan Quinn of Los Angeles, California. 

Kangogo is originally from Kenya and just finished out a three-year stint at the University of Alaska Anchorage.

Women's Top Finishers—Half Marathon

Place	Participant	Time
1	Monica Ross	1:26:20
2	Emma Garrard	1:27:39
3	Kinsey Apperson	1:30:48
4	Kelly Quinn	1:31:39
5	Laurie Rasmussen	1:32:14
6	Greer Gehler	1:32:54
7	Danielle Pratt	1:33:29
8	Michelle Baxter	1:34:51
9	Brittany Sedlacek	1:34:59
10	Sarah Aarons	1:35:44

Monica Ross held off a host of competitors to take the women's half marathon. The 47-year-old is a longtime participant in Alaska races, winning the 2011 Anchorage Mayor's five-mile race. 

Emma Garrard took time off from training for triathlons to compete in the event, finishing just more than a minute shy of Ross' winning time of 1:26:20.

Kinsey Apperson improved to third place after finishing fifth in the 2012 half marathon. 

Course Map

The course layout for the Anchorage Mayor's Marathon and half marathon can be seen above, while a more detailed version can be found here.