New York Marathon Results 2018: Men's and Women's Top Finishers

Alec Nathan @@AlecBNathanFeatured ColumnistNovember 4, 2018

LONDON, ENGLAND - APRIL 22: Mary Keitany of Kenya during the Virgin Money London Marathon on April 22, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Stephen Pond/Getty Images)

Stephen Pond/Getty Images

Kenya's Mary Keitany won her fourth New York City Marathon with a time of 2:22:48 on Sunday, while Ethiopia's Lelisa Desisa burned past defending champion Geoffrey Kamworor and held off compatriot Shura Kitata late to take home the men's crown as he crossed the finish line in 2:05:59.

The triumphant jaunt represented redemption for Keitany—the women's-only marathon world-record holder—after she finished second to American Shalane Flanagan in 2017.

TCS New York City Marathon @nycmarathon
Mary Keitany 🇰🇪 is your 2018 #TCSNYCMarathon women's open division champion! https://t.co/7VegTDOD5T

Runner's World @runnersworld
Keitany's winning time is the second fastest winning time in race history and third fastest in race history. Only the third sub-2:23 on this tough course. #NYCMarathon

Chris Chavez @ChrisChavez
Mary Keitany's #NYCMarathon history 2010 - 2:29:01, 3rd place 2011 - 2:23:38, 3rd place 2014 - 2:25:07, 1st place 2015 - 2:24:25, 1st place 2016 - 2:24:26, 1st place 2017 - 2:27:54, 2nd place 2018 - 2:22:48, 1st place Legend.

Vivian Cheruiyot, this year's London Marathon winner, finished second in 2:26:02 as she simply couldn't keep up with Keitany's five-minute, 27-second mile pace.

Flanagan, meanwhile, finished third in 2:26:22, although that result was hardly anything to be disappointed about:

Runner's World @runnersworld
Defending champ @ShalaneFlanagan 3rd in 2:26:21, more than 30 seconds faster than her winning time last year. #NYCMarathon

"It's cool if I win again, and if I don't, it's probably expected, because of how crazy hard it is to do," Flanagan told ESPN.com's Bonnie D. Ford in advance of the race. "How the actual race unfolds doesn't mean much. It's everything before the gun goes off that's important to me."

On the men's side, Desisa—a two-time Boston Marathon champion—experienced a breakthrough under sunny Big Apple skies after finishing second in 2014, third in 2015 and third again in 2017.

TCS New York City Marathon @nycmarathon
The 2018 #TCSNYCMarathon Champion: Lelisa Desisa! https://t.co/aH5H4VbXZe

Athletics Weekly @AthleticsWeekly
Like in the women's race, Lelisa Desisa's 2:05:59 is also the second-quickest time in men's race history #NYCMarathon

Jared Ward clocked in as the top American finisher in sixth place (2:12:24).

In all, four (Ward, Scott Fauble, Shadrack Biwott, Chris Derrick) of the top 10 finishers on the men's side hailed from the United States.

That story held true on the women's side too with four of the top seven finishers representing the Red, White and Blue.