Houston Marathon 2015 Results: Men's and Women's Top Finishers

The most grueling long-distance running event made its way to Houston, as the Houston Marathon took place on Sunday and a number of participants looked to etch their names in the history of the race.    

Below, you'll find the top finishers from the men's and women's event, along with a recap of the action.

Men's Results

Position	Name	Time
1	Gedefa, Birhanu (ETH)	02:08:03
2	Burka, Gebo (ETH)	02:08:12
3	Tolossa, Debebe (ETH)	02:09:07
4	Ondoro, Dominic (KEN)	02:09:40
5	Limo, Silah (KEN)	02:10:37
6	Mose, Erick (KEN)	02:12:52
7	Braun, Aaron (USA)	02:12:54
8	Shumie, Gadisa (ETH)	02:14:03
9	Leon, Craig (USA)	02:14:43
10	Ndhlovu, Pardon (USA)	02:16:51

Women's Results

Pos.	Name	Time
1	Arage, Yebrgual (ETH)	02:23:23
2	Imana, Guteni (ETH)	02:23:32
3	Degefa, Biruktait (ETH)	02:23:51
4	Dalasa, Sechale (ETH)	02:27:12
5	Sado, Fatuma (ETH)	02:28:27
6	Taylor, Kellyn (USA)	02:28:40
7	Burla, Serena (USA)	02:31:46
8	De La Rosa, Vianey (MEX)	02:32:01
9	Flanagan, Lindsay (USA)	02:33:12
10	Ward, Taylor (USA)	02:38:30

Recap

For the seventh year in a row, an Ethiopian man claimed first place at the Houston Marathon. This time, however, there was plenty of drama to finish the race.

Despite Gebo Burka holding the lead for much of the race, fellow Ethiopian Birhanu Gedefa provided a dramatic climax, blowing past him with about 400 meters remaining in the race to take the title. Burka finished second while Debebe Tolossa made it a clean sweep for Ethiopia in the top three, finishing third.

On the women's side an Ethopian won for the eighth straight year, as Yebrgual Arage edged out fellow Ethiopian Guteni Imana by a mere nine seconds and posted the second-fastest time in the history of the women's event. Like Gedefa, Arage waited until late to make her final surge, passing Imana in the 25th mile.

The Ethiopian women dominated the event, securing the top five times in Houston.

Simone Eli of KPRC in Houston passed along pictures of the winners:

Both Gedefa and Arage set personal records on the day.

Aaron Braun was the top male American finisher, as he came in seventh, while Kellen Taylor finished first amongst the American women, finishing sixth overall.

It certainly appears as though the Ethiopians will be tough to top at the annual event. The previous winner of the last two Houston Marathons on the men's side, Ethiopian Bazu Worku, wasn't even present at this race, as he was forced to pull out of this year's event for undisclosed reasons.

His possible return next year, along with the country's historical dominance at the race, will make it hard for anyone to break through. But there will certainly be more than a few willing challengers.