Twin Cities Marathon 2014 Results: Men's and Women's Top Finishers
Residents from Minneapolis, St. Paul and the surrounding Minnesota area ushered in fall with the 2014 edition of the Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon.
According to Megan Stewart of KSTP News, over 29,000 runners took part in the annual event. The 26.2-mile course was unique and impressive, but it was made more difficult by the overcast skies competitors dealt with for the majority of the event.
On the men’s side, Tyler Pennel won with a time of two hours, 13 minutes and 33 seconds. The women’s champion was Esther Erb, who finished with a time of 2:34:00.
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Here are the top men’s and women’s finishers and a breakdown of the 2014 event.
| 1 | Tyler Pennel | 2:13:33 | Esther Erb | 2:34:00 |
| 2 | Jared Ward | 2:14:01 | Heather Lieberg | 2:34:08 |
| 3 | Scott Smith | 2:14:41 | Brianne Nelson | 2:34:22 |
| 4 | Nathan Martin | 2:15:46 | Ariana Hilborn | 2:35:20 |
| 5 | Ian Burrell | 2:16:38 | Claudia Becque | 2:39:12 |
| 6 | Sergio Reyes | 2:17:00 | Elizabeth Herndon | 2:39:18 |
| 7 | Brian Harvey | 2:17:06 | Christine Ramsey | 2:39:31 |
| 8 | Tyler McCandless | 2:17:07 | Allison Macsas | 2:39:58 |
| 9 | Scott MacPherson | 2:17:19 | Ruth Perkins | 2:40:02 |
| 10 | Eric Ashe | 2:17:57 | Meghan Peyton | 2:40:30 |
*Race results via mtecresults.com.
Breaking Down the Twin Cities Marathon
The event dubbed The Most Beautiful Urban Marathon in America, via Active.com, has become one of the largest races in the United States each year. The Twin Cities Marathon officially began in 1982.
The course starts in Minneapolis and winds its way past several lakes and the Mississippi River, before heading to Saint Paul and finishing at the State Capital. For those marathon runners unfamiliar with the Twin Cities area, the course is a great cross-section of the surrounding area.
With 31 percent of runners this year being first-time participants, according to Stewart, the course lived up to the expectations and was a gracious host for the droves of runners.
According to the marathon’s official Twitter account, Pennel’s win came in his first ever marathon. He is a highly-touted runner, but to win an event as large as the Twin Cities Marathon in his first attempt is impressive.
While there is no discounting how hard it is to run a time of 2:13:33, it was still well off the course record, held by Phil Coppess with a time of 2:10:05. Second-place finisher Jared Ward was 28 seconds behind Pennel, and Scott Smith was 40 seconds behind Ward. Nathan Martin and Ian Burrell rounded out the top five for the men.
On the women’s side, Erb took home the victory with a time of 2:34:00. The times were slower overall this year, and Erb was well off the 2:26:51 course record set by Zinaida Semenova in 2001.
Heather Lieberg managed a second-place finish, just eight seconds off Erb’s pace. Brianne Nelson finished third and just 22 seconds behind the winner. Ariana Hilborn was the last women in the lead pack, finishing 1:20 back, and Claudia Becque rounded out the top five.
The times may not have been great with the colder weather, but the crowds that lined the streets made the course even more enjoyable for the runners. With the beautiful scenery of the Minneapolis and St. Paul areas as the perfect backdrop, the 2014 Twin Cities Marathon was a success.
*Stats and information via TCMEvents.com, unless otherwise noted.
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