Tag Archives: Lawrence Kipkoech

2025 Elite Men’s Field Announced

The 52nd running of the Horsetooth Half Marathon will see a number of former champions toeing the line, including fine previous winners and also the current course record holder. They will be pushed by a strong field of pros and recent collegiate runners.

The course record (1:05:46) was broken in commanding fashion in 2023 by Lawrence Kipkoech. The five-time All American (Campbell University) remains the only male in race history to go under 1:06. He finished third (1:08:26) last year and will be back this year to try and put pressure on his own course record. 

Tyler McCandless is the top returning athlete from last year. The Fort Collins local has run the race six time, finishing on the podium in five of those starts including a win in 2021. He holds a course PR of 1:06:45 (third fastest in race history while finishing second to Kipkoech).

Two-time winner Dominic Korir will also be among the favorites for the 2025 title. This will be Dominic’s fourth time running the Horsetooth Half. He won the 2019 (1:07:34) and 2022 (1:06:51) races, and finished third (1:07:34) in 2023 behind Kipoech and McCandless. In February, Korir ran 2:15:59 at the Hong Kong Marathon on what is considered a very hilly course. 

Two other past champions will be toeing the line on Sunday. Former course record holder Paul Peterson (2013 & 2015 champion) is back for another crack at the course. He’ll be joined by Michael Chavez (2014 champion). 

Other runners who’ll be in the mix on Sunday include:

  • Gilbert Boit, three-time All-American (University of Arkansas) with a half marathon PR of 1:04:28 from the 2022 Houston Half and a collegiate 10k PR of 28:09.
  • Ryder Searle ran 1:03:58 at Houston this year and has a 2:17:38 marathon PR from Chicago last fall.
  • Ben Schneiderman ran a marathon PR of 2:16:09 at the Twin Cities marathon last fall. He has a half marathon PR of 1:07:14 from the Indianapolis Mini Marathon last May.
  • Ben Randall won and set the Colorado Marathon course record (2:24:06) in 2023. The CSU graduate holds college PRs of 29:44 in the 10k and 14:33 in the 5k.
  • John O’Malley is another recent college grad (Mines) who is stepping up in distance to run his first half marathon on Sunday. He has college PRs of 29:32 (10k, altitude adjusted) and 13:56 (5k, altitude adjusted).
  • Andy Wacker is a familiar name to those who follow the mountain running scene, but the crossover athlete can do it on all surfaces. Most recently, he was 4th at the USATF Cross Country Championships (30:13) and won last year’s Bermuda Triangle 10k, (30:07).

The racing action starts at 8:00am on Sunday, April 13. Lead runners in the men’s race will hit the finish just after 9:00. Be there to see who takes home top honors!

2024 Horsetooth Half Marathon Men’s Elite Field Announced

The 51st running of the Horsetooth Half Marathon will see a number of former champions toeing the line, including fine previous winners and also the current course record holder. 

The course record (1:05:46) was broken in commanding fashion last year by Lawrence Kipkoech. Lawrence was the first male in race history to go under 1:06. He will be back this year to try and defend his title and perhaps nudge that course record down a little further. He has raced a couple of half marathons since last year’s Horsetooth Half, both under 1:03:00, suggesting good form coming into this year’s race.

 

Tyler McCandless finished second and a minute back of Kipkoech last year. His time of 1:06:45 is the second fastest in race history, and a minute quicker than his winning time from 2021. Tyler has run the race five times, posting a win and 3 second place finishes. 

There will also be three other men’s winners toeing the line on Sunday. Former course record holder Paul Peterson (2013 & 2015 champion) is back for another crack at the course. He’ll be joined by Michael Chavez (2014 champion) and Stephen Pretak (2016 men’s winner). 

Pushing our former champions will be a strong contingent of local and international elites. Kenyan David Bett is coming off a recent win and course record at the Macau 10k (29:02) in March. Bett is also a previous winner of the BAA 10k (28:08, 2019) and represented Kenya in the 2018 Commonwealth Games in the 5k. 

James Ngandu will also be among the favorites on Sunday. The 2022 Houston Marathon champion (2:11:03) and Tiffin University graduate has a couple of recent wins against defending champion Kipkoech. He ran 1:02:05 in Besser City, LA in October, beating Kipkoech by 50 seconds. He also finished second in May 2023 at the Pittsburgh Half Marathon (1:02:14), beating Kipkoech (4th) by a similar margin.

Other runners of note to look out for this year include:

  • Jeffrey Eggleston – 3-time world championship team marathoner for USA with personal bests of 2:10:52 (marathon), 1:02:41 (half-marathon,) & 28:34 (10km). Eggleston placed 8th in the 2014 Boston Marathon.
  • Brad Taylor – qualified for the 2024 Olympic Marathon Trials with a 2:17:34 at the 2023 Eugene Marathon. This will the Windsor local’s first attempt at the half marathon distance.
  • Carson Hume – fourth in the 2021 Horsetooth Half (1:10:35) in his first attempt at the distance, Hume will be representing the Fort Collins Running Club after an illustrious college career at CSU. 
  • Clint Anders – seventh in 2021, less than 20 seconds behind Hume, Anders will also be pushing for a top finish this year. 

The racing action starts at 8:30am on Sunday, April 14. Lead runners in the men’s race will hit the finish just after 9:30. Be there to see who takes home top honors!