Andreas Almgren wins the New York City Marathon on his debut.

Some races are won. Others are announced. Today in New York, Andreas Almgren of Sweden ran his first ever marathon and won the TCS New York City Marathon in 2:06:01. He did it on one of the hardest courses in the Abbott World Marathon Majors, against one of the strongest fields of the year, and he finished it off with a second half that was more than two minutes faster than his first.

I watched it this evening with a cup of tea, still feeling my own run in my legs, and I wanted to write something down while it still feels this big.

The race

New York doesn't use pacemakers, so nobody tows the leaders through halfway on a perfect schedule. That's one reason Almgren chose it for his debut. The lead pack went through halfway in 1:04:01 and stayed together until 35 km, with Conner Mantz, Geoffrey Kamworor and Zouhair Talbi all taking turns at the front.

Almgren was fifth at 35 km. Then he went. He covered the last 7.2 km in 20:27, which is under 2:51 per kilometre, after 35 km of racing, over the bridges and up the long drag of Fifth Avenue into Central Park. He crossed the line 13 seconds ahead of Italy's Yemaneberhan Crippa (2:06:14), with Kamohelo Mofolo of Lesotho third on his 21st birthday (2:06:26) and defending champion Benson Kipruto fourth (2:06:27). It was the fastest winning time in New York since Tamirat Tola's course record of 2:04:58 in 2023, and four seconds outside the Swedish record. Sheila Chepkirui won the women's race.

What 2:06 actually means

It's hard to picture how fast that is, so here's how I think about it. A 2:06 marathon is an average of just under three minutes for every kilometre, 42 of them in a row. On a running track, that's about 71 seconds a lap, for 105 laps. Most of us couldn't hold that pace for one lap.

What strikes me most isn't the speed. It's the patience. He sat in the pack for 35 kilometres, trusted his preparation, and only moved when it mattered. There's a lesson in that for far more than running.

His journey: from 800 metres to the marathon

What makes today even more special is how long the road has been. Andreas Almgren was born in Sweden in June 1995, and he didn't start as a distance runner at all. He was an 800 metre runner, and a very good one. At 19 he won bronze at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Eugene, and a year later he was racing 800 metres at the senior World Championships in Beijing.

Then, slowly and patiently, he moved up. The 1500 metres. Then the 5000 metres, where he finished fourth at the 2022 European Championships in Munich and won silver at the 2023 European Games. Then the 10,000 metres, fourth at the 2024 European Championships in Rome. Lots of near misses, and plenty of years when the big medals went to someone else.

The breakthrough, when it came, was enormous. In 2024 he set a Swedish 10,000 metre record of 26:52.87. In 2025 he ran 12:44.27 for 5000 metres in Stockholm, a European record, and took bronze in the 10,000 metres at the World Championships in Tokyo. And 2026 has been something else entirely:

• January: a European 10 km record of 26:45 in Valencia.
• Summer: European 10,000 metre champion in Birmingham, in a championship record of 27:23.44.
• September: world half marathon champion in Copenhagen, in a European record of 58:06.
• Today: winner of the New York City Marathon, at his first attempt.

Twelve years from a junior medal over two laps of a track to winning one of the biggest marathons in the world. No shortcuts, just steady progress, year after year. That, more than the medals, is what I find so inspiring.

The shoes everyone is talking about: Nike Apex

The other running story this autumn is the shoe. Nike announced the Nike Apex in September as its most advanced marathon racing shoe yet, and it goes on sale in January 2027. Here's what Nike says about it:

• Double-stacked Air Zoom: four Air Zoom units in two stacked pairs in the forefoot. Nike calls it the most Air it has ever put in the forefoot of a running shoe.
• ZoomX LT foam: a new race-specific foam that Nike says is lighter, softer and returns more energy than ZoomX.
• A raised carbon Flyplate: redesigned to push load into the Air units and help you roll forward.
• Zero drop, 40 mm stack: the same height at the heel and forefoot, with a wider outsole and rocker shape for stability.
• The numbers: Nike claims up to 40% more energy return than the Alphafly 3, at more than 10% less weight, in a men's size 10.

Shoes don't run the race for you, and the best athletes in the world would still be the best in plimsolls. But for the rest of us, chasing a few minutes off a personal best, it's exciting to see the technology keep moving.

Closer to home

This week was my biggest week of running yet: 107.42 km across 12 runs. And today, with an Abbott World Marathon Major taking place on the other side of the Atlantic, I ran a half marathon at Norman Park in 1:40:46, just under four minutes quicker than my best.

I'm nowhere near the elite, and I never will be. But that's the beauty of this sport. On the same day Andreas Almgren wins New York, a dad from Beckenham can run his best ever half marathon on a local track, and both of those things count. I'm inspired by athletes like him: the discipline, the patience and the willingness to try something for the first time on the biggest stage.

So here's my next goal, out in the open to keep me honest: another five minutes off my half marathon in the next six weeks. That means going under 1:36. I'll share how it goes here on the Notebook, and you'll find me on the paths of Norman Park and Kelsey Park most days while I chase it.

If you're thinking about your first run, your first race or your first marathon, start where you are. Every kilometre counts. Congratulations to Andreas Almgren, to every runner who finished in New York today, and to everyone lacing up this week.

Race results from published reports on 1 November 2026. Nike Apex details are from Nike's own announcement; it isn't available until January 2027. I'm not sponsored by Nike, and nothing here is paid for.