2017 Bank of America Chicago Marathon winner Galen Rupp is heading to Tokyo for the Summer Olympic Games after he finished in first place in the U.S. Marathon Trials in Atlanta over the weekend.
Rupp, who became the first American to win the men’s race in Chicago in 15 years when he captured the crown in 2017, won the Olympic trials for the second consecutive time. Rupp is looking for an even better finish this time around in the Olympics after earning the bronze medal in the 2016 race in Rio de Janeiro.
Jake Riley, who finished in ninth place in the 2019 Chicago Marathon with a time of 2:10:36, finished in second place in the Olympic trials, punching his ticket to Tokyo. He was part of an epic three-way duel for the final two guaranteed spots, finishing in second place while 43-year-old Abdi Abdirahman finished in third.
Abdirahman is the oldest men’s runner to finish in a top three spot in the marathon trials, according to the U.S. Olympic Committee.
In the women’s race, Aliphine Tuliamuk captured first place, with Molly Seidel finishing in second. The marathon was the first 26.2 mile race that Seidel has completed in competition, and she’ll represent Team USA in Tokyo as a result.
Sally Kipyego finished in third to cement her spot on the Olympic roster.
Laura Thweatt, who finished in eighth place in last year’s Chicago Marathon, barely missed out on automatically qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics, finishing in fifth place in the race.
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Also finishing short of qualifying was Jordan Hasay, who finished in 26th place. She had her best finish at the Chicago Marathon back in 2017, finishing in third place in the race.
