Drawing its curtains, the US Olympic Marathon Trials has some promising names on top of the roster. Athletes with hopeful eyes had stepped foot on the picturesque Orlando earlier today. But after the race, only the most deserving ones walked home, securing their name in the Paris register.

But apart from that, they also bagged a decent amount as a token of triumph. Victors Fiona O’Keeffe and Conner Mantz won in their respective categories. But the whopping amount that came after, left them euphoric.

The US Olympic Marathon Trials awarded the athletes well

The total prize purse being $600,000, the Olympic Trials has wisely divided the money among the top finishers. Both O’Keeffe and Mantz stood with $80,000 each as the winners. The second finisher, in women’s case, Emily Sisson, and in men’s Clayton Young, both stood with $65,000 each. The third finishers in both categories stood on the podium with $55,000 each.

From fourth through ninth, the athletes bagged $25,000, $20,000, $15,000, $13,000, $11,000, and $9,000. $7,000 was awarded to the 10th place holder. Each country is allowed to send three athletes from men’s and women’s but it will be a tough call since the competition this time screams neck-to-neck finishes. Though the number of registrants was less for various reasons, several marathoners sat back before the event rolled in. Be it for a persisting health issue or a healing midway, many saw their Olympic dreams shatter. But special mention to the youngsters Mantz and O’Keeffe, whose performances were nothing short of spectacular.

The winners need a shout-out

Fiona O’Keeffe, fresh off foot surgery, had made her Olympic Trials debut. But little did she know that her hard work would come to fruition like this. Clocking  2 hours, 22 minutes, 10 seconds, she left the North American record holder Emily Sisson at silver. Most importantly, after several attempts to finish in pole position, she finally achieved it. Next up we have Connor Mantz, who along with his training partner Clayton almost finished at the same time with just a 1.19s difference.

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The former’s winning time is 2 hours, 9 minutes, 5 seconds. Having run at October’s Chicago Marathon, the podium comrades were the best in 2023. As more people celebrated their victories in the Floridian city, Scott Fauble, the popular marathon name, ruled himself out at the eight-mile mark. As saddening as the news was, this Trial leg was like a rollercoaster of emotions. And we could feel every inch of it through the event.

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