Victor Kiprop and Leahrose Mami have lists of accolades longer than a Dollar General receipt. Both added to their honors Saturday morning in the 4th annual Rocket City Marathon 10K.
Kiprop, 27, of Junction City, Kan., sped to a record time of 31:51 to win the kickoff to the marathon weekend races. More than 750 runners took to the sunny but chilly streets of Huntsville at 7 a.m. The 5K and 1-mile family run/walk followed, all starting in front of the Von Braun Center and ending inside the VBC South Hall.
Sunday’s races include the 49th annual Rocket City Marathon, at 7 a.m., and half marathon, which starts at 9 a.m. Half marathon runners will merge with the marathon at about 15 miles and both will finish in the VBC South Hall.
Kiprop, a native of Iten, Kenya, ran cross country and track for the University of Alabama from 2021-25. He holds seven Top 10 school records: Outdoor 10,000m, 5,000m and 1,500m, and Indoor 5,000m (two), 3,000m and Mile. Kiprop was a four-time first-team All SEC cross country selection, two-time SEC Cross Country Runner of the Year and two-time Outdoor SEC 10,000m champion.
He jumped out Saturday morning in the 10K and took off smoothly, finishing with a 5:08-per-mile pace. It’s the best winning time in the four years of the race, which was added with the others to the marathon weekend in 2022.
William Shaver, 19, of Huntsville, was second in 38:16, and Alex Tucker, 28, of Madison, was third in 38:25.
Leahrose Mami, 25, of Northport, finished fifth and won the women’s title. She finished in 38:52, a race record by about six minutes. A native of Cullman, she ran track at the University of Alabama and was a multiple state and meet champion for outdoor and indoor events. She was a 1A-2A state cross country champion in 2017 and runner-up in 2015 and 2016 at St. Bernard Prep.
Hawley Cheney, 34, of Winchester, Tenn., was 11th and second in the women’s division. She finished in 40:01. Marja Lopez Tello, 27, of Harvest, was 17th (3rd) in 42:45.
Kristopher Marin, 43, of Centerville, Ohio, won the Men’s Masters title in 38:58.
Linda Royce, 42, of Meridianville, won the Women’s Masters title in 45:39.
The 10K had 753 registered runners and an average pace of 10:54. Of the total, 420 were women with an average pace of 11:32, and 333 men in 10:09.
RCM 5K Results
In the 5K race, Henry Ahrens and Samanatha Menikheim took top honors.
Ahrens, 17, of Acworth, Ga., won the race in 17:31. Jake Bryan, 18, of Madison, was right behind in 17:42.
Menikheim, 19, of Madison, finished 13th in 20:20 and won the women’s division.
The race had 752 entries and 600 official finishers, split evenly between the men’s and women’s divisions. The average pace was 11:28.
See all of the 10K results here and the 5K results here. To check stats or other info, click the “Home” button in the top menu to toggle to other pages.
Photos taken by Spencer Cox and Pete Schreiner will be available soon. They took ‘leventy zillion images and it takes a while to process everything, so be patient.
RCM Nuggets
COOL PARTNERSHIP: The Huntsville Track Club partnered this year with Huntsville Hospital Foundation, with proceeds benefitting the new children’s therapy playground at the Women & Children’s Pediatric Therapy and Audiology Department. Read more about this here.
WEATHER UPDATE: Little has changed in the forecast, with temperatures in the high 20s for the 7 a.m. marathon start. It will be dry, frigid and windy with north winds between 15-30 mph. Aid stations will be open throughout the course. Aid station volunteers will have numbers for local EMS or the SAG Wagon.
SUNDAY RUNNERS: Registrations shattered records this year for all races, with about 5,800 total. That’s about 1,500 more than 2024. Today’s marathon has 1,869 official entries and the half-marathon has 1,807.
EARLYBIRDS: A group of hearty marathon runners will begin at 6 a.m. Sunday, thanks to the special early start for those who need extra time. From the RCM rules:
The Rocket City Marathon has a 6-hour time limit, but an early 6 a.m. start allows participants up to 7 hours to finish. Any runner crossing the finish line before 1 p.m. will have their time officially recorded. After this time, the finish line will close, and no additional results will be published. To ensure safety and fairness, early starters must maintain at least a 16:02 min/mile pace and reach the halfway point (Providence Classical School on White St.) by 10 a.m. Runners falling behind this pace will not be allowed to continue and will be offered a return ride to the Von Braun Center.
Special requirements must be met to get into the early starting group. See the requirements here.
FUTURE RACE DATES: Here are the future dates for the RCM Weekend:
2026: Dec. 11-13
2027: Dec. 10-12
2028: Dec. 8-10
WEEKEND HOSTS: The Rocket City Marathon and races are put on by the Huntsville Track Club and presented by the Huntsville Sports Commission. The weekend generates a financial impact of some $4 million in the area, with runners from 48 states and several countries.
