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

The 2015 Los Angeles Marathon took place in sweltering Southern California heat, but that didn't deter thousands of runners from taking to the pavement early Sunday morning for this milestone event.    

Out of approximately 26,000 runners, there could only be one top finisher in the men's and women's divisions. It turned out to be a big day for Kenya, as Daniel Limo paced the men and the overall standings with a time of two hours, 10 minutes and 36 seconds. ESPN Endurance provided a look at him as he crossed the finish line:

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Your #LAMarathon Champion! Daniel Limo comes out victorious on this hot day. pic.twitter.com/aihuZyPLXw

— ESPN Endurance (@ESPN_Endurance) March 15, 2015"

Fellow countrywoman Ogla Kimaiyo was well ahead of her competition when she crossed the finish line for a time of 2:34:10. 

The L.A. Marathon gave a shoutout to Scott Parson for winning the wheelchair division:

James Queally of the Los Angeles Times provided details on the amount of people treated by paramedics in the hot conditions:

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Paramedics have treated 47 patients, including a man who went into cardiac arrest, as runners continue to trudge through increasingly stifling conditions along the L.A. Marathon route.

[...]

As of noon, 15 runners had been taken to local hospitals in stable condition. 

Earlier Sunday, a Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman said specific descriptions of injuries and illnesses suffered by the 47 patients were not immediately available.

"

There was also a race within the race on Sunday, as the L.A. Marathon counted as the USATF Marathon Championship, a competition for the top runners from the United States.

Jared Ward of Provo, Utah, was the winner in the men's division, with a time of 2:12:56, while 39-year-old Blake Russell of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, led the American women with a time of 2:34:57.

Here's a look at the leaderboards of the men's and women's divisions:

Place	Men's Division	Time	Women's Division	Time
1	Daniel Limo	2:10:35	Ogla Kimaiyo	2:34:10
2	Lani Rutto	2:12:42	Natalya Puchkova	2:34:33
3	Jared Ward	2:12:56	Blake Russell	2:34:57
4	Edwin Koech	2:13:35	Mao Kuroda	2:35:04
5	David Kiyeng	2:15:34	Heather Lieberg	2:35:32
6	Matt Llano	2:16:13	Brianne Nelson	2:36:07
7	Mike Morgan	2:16:56	Jodie Robertson	2:36:18
8	Daniel Tapia	2:17:14	Rebecca Wade	2:37:30
9	Max King	2:17:31	Kathleen DiCamillo	2:37:59
10	Stephan Shay	2:18:07	Lauren Jimison	2:39:16

Despite the hostile weather conditions (reached 91 degrees in downtown Los Angeles) and the early start time in the 30th edition of this event, Limo actually managed to improve upon the top time from last year, a 2:10:37 mark turned in by Ethiopia's Gebo Burka.

Kimaiyo, on the other hand, was well off last year's winning pace: 31-year-old Ethiopian Amane Gobena finished with a time of 2:27:37 in 2014. Kimaiyo may have been completely alone when she crossed the finish line by the Santa Monica Pier, but it took her quite some time to pull away from her competition, per the Los Angeles Times:

Mario Fraioli noted a breakaway from the women's pack earlier in the race:

Limo's race was no less competitive. He battled for much of the morning with fellow Kenyans Lani Rutto and Edwin Koech. The Los Angeles Times' Austin Knoblauch noted that the latter two were actually in the lead at the 17-mile mark:

FloTrack noted a dramatic push by Koech soon after:

Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press

Still, it was Limo's race to win as he surged down the final stretch. Rutto will either be mildly disappointed or proud, depending on how he frames his performance, after he finished in second place for the second year in a row.

Ward, America's top male and overall finisher, had a fine day scuttling from Dodger Stadium, the start of the "Stadium to the Sea" route, to the Pacific Ocean. He managed to set a personal best on the day while coming in third, per FloTrack:

Many fans were likely following the saga of husband-and-wife duo Ryan and Sara Hall, two 2016 Olympic marathon hopefuls. Unfortunately, Ryan dropped out of the race at the midway point, per ESPN Endurance:

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Ryan Hall has dropped out.

— ESPN Endurance (@ESPN_Endurance) March 15, 2015"

Sara was able to make her way across the finish line in a time of 2:48:02. While that may seem like a disappointing result, it should be noted that this was her first marathon. She spoke of her training routines before the contest.

Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press

"I've done high mileage and trained with some of the best marathoners in the U.S. over the years," Sara said, via Knoblauch, "and I've always been excited to take my shot at the distance."  

While it's easy to get caught up in celebrating the elite distance runners at any marathon, all those who choose to compete in these daunting runs are worthy of praise. 

Marathons are intensely personal events, and there is no shame in coming up short in such a grueling event, whether it's missing out on a personal best or falling behind the leaders of the pack.