Mile posts: Items on Reed Fischer, Annie Frisbie, Matt Hanson, Emanuel Galdino, Quinton Orr, Kaylee Tobaben
The WEEKEND UPDATE nearly went into stall mode. Most NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA track and field teams are in between seasons and won't start outdoor meets until this weekend.
But there were a few professional runners, as well as college athletes, competing last weekend in this abbreviated version of the best performances by Iowa-based collegiate and postcollegiate distance runners and triathletes.
Let's start with the roads, where former Missouri Valley Conference multi-time champion Reed Fischer of Drake University finished eighth overall and the fourth-best American in the United Airlines NYC Half Marathon in New York on Sunday. The Tinman Elite and Adidas athlete ran 1:03:02 in a world-class field in his return to New York City. The Boulder, Colorado, resident finished 10th overall in in the 51st New York City Marathon in November and was the second-best American that day. The winner Sunday was Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo in 1:01:31.
"One to be proud of today," Fischer wrote on Instagram. "I went into the race with little to no expectations, but trusted a strong “why” and the foundation I’ve built over the last few years to carry me through. It felt great to be racing again. There’s a freedom and lightness that comes with racing that I’ve always loved."
Former Iowa State All-American Annie Frisbie, now an athlete with Minnesota Distance Elite and sponsored by Puma, finished 11th overall in the women's pro race in 1:13:26. She was the sixth-best American. The race was the second for Frisbie since returning from a stress fracture in her foot. She was fifth at the Gate River Run in Jacksonville, Fla., last month and was fifth overall at the New York City Marathon in 2021. The winner Sunday was Kenya's Hellen Obiri in 1:07:21.
Four-time Ironman North American champion Matt Hanson started his 2023 triathlon season in strong fashion, placing runner-up at the Challenge Puerto Varas in Puerto Varas, Chile, on Saturday. The former Buena Vista University professor and student now living in Castle Rock, Colo., covered the 1.9-mile swim, 90-kilometer bike and 21.1-kilometer run in 3:50:50. The winner was Thomas Bishop in 3:45:02.
"Not a terrible season opener," Hanson, who was 15th at the Ironman World Championships at Kona in October, wrote on Instagram. "Some real positives and definitely a few things that need to get sorted out as well. Overall happy with the result."
Moving briefly to track and field, where Iowa State's Emanuel Galdino ran a personal-best time of 1 minute, 48.73 seconds to capture a win in the 800 meters at the UCF Invite in Orlando, Fla., on Saturday. The time by the freshman from Houston was just over a second off a top-10 time in program history. Junior teammate Tyler Carreon also ran a new best time of 1:50.52 to place fifth.
Former Humboldt High School athlete Quinton Orr defeated eight other runners to take the victory in the 2,000-meter steeplechase. Orr was timed in 5:45.91 to top Kentucky's Jackson Watts by nearly eight seconds. Orr is a Cyclone sophomore. Cyclone freshman Seth Clevenger was the top Iowa State finisher in the 1,500 after running 3:52.05. The winner was Kentucky's Dylan Allen in 3:47.89.
Finally, Iowa State freshman Kaylee Tobaben was the winner in the women's 5,000 in 17:25.21, topping a field of 25 finishers. The Olathe, Kan., native finished 2.24 seconds ahead of Stetson sophomore Cheyenne Durda.
In that same state, North Dakota State's Hunter Klimek took runner-up honors in the 2,000 steeplechase after running 5:55.48 at the USF Bulls Invitational in Tampa. The former Iowa Central Community College standout trailed only teammate Payton Smith (5:49.99).
Ending with the roads, where former Johnston High and Iowa Central standout Tyson Wieland prevailed at a frigid Des Moines St. Paddy's 5K at the Iowa State Capitol on Saturday. The Runablaze Iowa team leader ran 15:57 to win by more than two minutes.
Four men broke 3 hours in the marathon while battling a wind chill of below zero. The winner was former Wayne State athlete Matthew Fecht in 2:39:42. Former Central College and Norwalk athlete Angela Chaney of Bloomfield was the women's winner of the half marathon in 1:26:55. The Runablaze athlete won by 51 seconds over Melissa Blanchard. The men's winner was Peter Knoll in 1:16:22.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Mile posts: Items on Reed Fischer, Annie Frisbie, Matt Hanson, Emanuel Galdino, Quinton Orr, Kaylee Tobaben
