Hall Earns Fourth Title, Bor Repeats at the USATF 10 Mile Championships

USATF Release

WASHINGTON, DC – Experience and strong finishes were the name of the game Sunday morning at the USATF 10 Mile Championships in Washington, DC, as Sara Hall ran to a thrilling finish in the women's race while claiming her fourth USATF 10 Mile title and Hillary Bor dominated the final miles in the nation's capital to repeat as men’s champion.

The USATF 10 Mile Championships, hosted by the Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run, are the fourth stop on the 2023 USATF Running Circuit. Race videos and coverage are available and can be viewed with a +PLUS subscription on USATF.TV.

With cold temperatures and a stiff wind at the start of Sunday’s contest in Washington, DC, the women’s race started at a conservative pace, with Susanna Sullivan grabbing the lead early with a large chase pack right behind her. 

A pack of ten women passed through the first 5 km split in 16:28, with all of the top contenders intact, with Sullivan continuing to set the pace. Sullivan, along with Emma Hurley, ran event splits up front, the lead group consisting of seven women as they came through 10 km in 32:47. At this point in the race, Sullivan and Hurley, along with Hall, Nell Rojas, and Molly Grabill started to separate themselves from the rest of the field.

By eight miles, it was a four women race, as Sullivan fell off the back of the lead pack, leaving Hall, Rojas, Hurley, and Grabill.

Hall, Rojas, Hurley, and Grabill continued to work together and push the pace. As the quartet passed through the nine mile mark, Rojas jumped to the lead and put in a surge she clearly hoped would break the field, but the move dropped no one. 

The four runners remained together until the final 200 meters of the race, when Hall shot past her competitors, arms churning, focused on the finish line. Only Rojas matched Hall’s pace and the duo battled to the finish. Hall was able to create separation in the final strides of the race, earning her fourth USATF 10 Mile Championship title in 52:37 with Rojas crossing the finish second in 52:38.

Hurley and Grabill battled each other for third, with Hurley narrowly edging Grabill to the finish, crossing the line in 52:41, with Grabill finishing one second back in fourth in 52:42.

Behind the lead quartet, Amber Zimmerman ran the final few miles of Sunday’s race alone in fifth. She would cross the finish line in 53:05, 20 seconds up on Sullivan, who hung on for sixth place in 53:25.

Veteran Carrie Verdon claimed seventh in 53:35, while Jessa Hanson earned another strong 2023 USATF Running Circuit finish in eighth in 53:47. Jeralyn Poe and Breanna Sieracki took home ninth and tenth in 54:41 and 55:52.

Rojas and Hurley each earned big points in the USATF Running Circuit standings. Rojas claimed 12 points for her runner-up finish, giving her 22 total points. Hurley’s third place effort added another 10 points to her USATF Running Circuit total, giving her 22 total points, thus leaving Rojas and Hurley tied atop of the standings. Jessa Hanson now sits third, with her eighth place finish adding three more points to her overall total, giving her 19 total points.

In the men’s race, despite the chilly temperature and wind, the start of the race saw the field get off to a quick start. After the first mile, the trio of Bor, Abbabiya Simbassa, and Emmanuel Bor grabbed the lead, as the rest of the top runners packed up together and managed their own pace.

The lead trio came through the 5 km mark in 14:38, ten seconds ahead of the chase pack. Things would remain the same for the next two miles, until Bor put in a move that pushed Emmanuel Bor off the back, with only Simbassa now hanging on. Bor would continue to drive the pace, eventually separating himself from Simbassa just before the 10 km split. Bor passed through 10 km in 28:36, 13 seconds up on Simbassa.

Bor would maintain form over the next 5 km of the race. Each mile ,the HOKA Northern Arizona Elite athlete would extend his lead over Simbassa and the rest of the field.

As Bor kicked home in the final mile, the World Championship finalist in the 3000m steeplechase continued to show big things lay ahead in 2023. Bor pushed all the way to the finish line, repeating as USATF 10 Mile champion in 46:11. While needing ratification from USATF, Bor’s time eclipsed the American 10 Mile record of 46:13, set by Greg Meyer in 1983.

Behind Bor, Simbassa maintained form over the final 5 km and easily held off the competition, running to a second place finish in 47:09, his fourth top three finish at the USATF 10 Mile Championships. 

Reigning USATF Half Marathon champion Jacob Thomson, Matthew McClintock, and John Dressel ran together much of the way after Bor and Simbassa split from the lead pack early on. The trio pushed each other along the streets of Washington, DC, with Thomson pulling ahead in the final stages of the race, taking third in 47:27. McClintock would end up fourth in 47:30, while Dressel placed fifth overall in 47:32.

Emmanuel Bor fell off the pace of Hillary Bor and Simbassa around mile five, and while he had a nice gap on the rest of the field, the early pace took its toll, as Bor fell back to sixth by the end, crossing the line in 48:14. Colin Bennie earned seventh in 48:18, well ahead of Joel Reichow’s 48:53 eighth place effort. Tyler Jermann and Blaise Ferro rounded out the top ten in 49:19 and 50:33.

With his win, Bor jumped to the top of the USATF Running Circuit standings with 33 total points. Leonard Korir sits two behind with 31 total points, while Thomson’s third place effort added another 10 points to his total, giving him 31 points, as well.

The next stop on the 2023 USATF Running Circuit takes place on the evening of April 25, as some of the top middle distance runners in the United States square off at the USATF 1 Mile Road Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, hosted by the Grand Blue Mile.

About the USATF Running Circuit

The USATF Running Circuit is a USATF road series featuring USATF championships from one mile through the marathon and consistently attracts the best American distance runners with more than $500,000 to be awarded in total prize money. A total of $25,000 in prize money will be awarded at the USATF 10 Mile Championships

The first ten U.S. runners earn points at each USATF Running Circuit race. For the USATF 10 Mile Championships, scoring is set as 15 for first, 12 for second, 10 for third, 7 ,6, 5, 4, 3, 2 and 1, with those earning the most points receiving prize money at the end of the series.

The mission of the USATF Running Circuit is to showcase, support and promote U.S. runners. Since its inception in 1995, the USATF Running Circuit and its races have provided over $7 million to U.S. distance runners.

Contributed by Scott Bush