Flanagan emotional in victory
NEW YORK — Shalane Flanagan thought about the seven years building to this race, possibly her last. She thought about the running star striding next to her. She thought about her family. She thought about Meb Keflezighi. With one hellacious holler at the finish, it all poured out. Flanagan dethroned Mary Keitany on Sunday and became the first American woman to win the New York City Marathon since 1977, potentially ending her decorated career with her first major marathon victory. Flanagan’s breakthrough came in the last career race for American men’s great Keflezighi. The 2009 New York winner collapsed at the finish line, his 42-year-old body pushed to its limit in his 26th marathon. Keflezighi finished 11th, about five minutes behind 24-yearold winner Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya. This may have been Flanagan’s final race, too, although the fourtime Olympian wasn’t ready to commit. But she likes the idea of going out at the same time as Keflezighi. “I was thinking of Meb, and I was thinking of how I wanted to make him proud,” Flanagan said. Her win came five days after the bike path terror attack in lower Manhattan killed eight and raised questions about security for Sunday. That hit home for Flanagan, a Massachusetts native who completed the 2013 Boston Marathon shortly before a bomb went off at the finish line, killing three and wounding more than 260 others. “It’s been a tough week for New Yorkers, and a tough week for our nation,” Flanagan said. “I thought of, ‘What a better gift than to make Americans smile today?’” Flanagan ended a dominant stretch in New York by Keitany, a Kenyan runner who had won here three straight years. Flanagan stalked Keitany most of the way, hovering behind her during an unusually slow first 20 miles by the lead women. Flanagan, Keitany and thirdplace finisher Mamitu Daska of Ethiopia broke from the pack in the 21st mile, and with about three miles left, Flanagan hit the jets. She finished in 2 hours, 26 minutes, 53 seconds, about a minute faster than Keitany. Kamworor beat countryman Wilson Kipsang by three seconds, winning with a time of 2:10:53. Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa finished third.
TENNIS
› PARIS — After being one game away from going home early in the tournament, Jack Sock won the Paris Masters on Sunday to qualify for the season-ending ATP Finals in London. Sock beat Filip Krajinovic 5-7, 6-4, 6-1. It is easily the biggest trophy so far in the 25-year-old American’s career. Before coming to Paris the 16th-seeded Sock didn’t even think of London. But after winning his first Masters title, he will be making the short trip to England to compete against Roger Federer and the other six who made it from the ATP race. Sock left Paris with a check worth nearly $1 million and a jump up the rankings to No. 9 after earning his fourth career title. He is the first American winner of a Masters tournament since Andy Roddick at Miami in 2010.
› ZHUHAI, China — Julia Goerges defeated CoCo Vandeweghe 7-5, 6-1 in the WTA Elite Trophy final Sunday. Goerges fell behind 5-2 in the first set before rallying to win 10 of the next 11 games as she cruised to her second straight WTA title. Goerges will move up to a career high of 14 in the year-end WTA rankings. Vandeweghe, who entered the tournament seeded second, dropped five service games against Goerges.