Sarah Hall Dream Of Becoming Top Lady Marathoner Remains, Want To Best Kastor Record

For some people, being second-best would be fine. But in the case of Sarah Hall, the dream to become the nation’s fastest female runner remains on her radar.

Hall becomes the second-fastest marathoner ever when she clocked 2:20:32 at The Marathon Project in Chandler, Arizona on Sunday.

The 37-year-old admits she was hoping to run faster than that and become the fastest among women, Athlinks reported. Keira D’Amat and Kellen Taylor followed her with a time of 2:22:56 and 2:25:22 respectively.

The record-holder for that feat is Deena Kastor who did the trick during the 2006 London Marathon, the New York Times reported. The 14-year-old who clocked 2:19:36 to defeat Lyudmila Petrova of Russia and Susan Chepkemei of Kenya.

“I was hoping to run a little faster than that,” Hall said on USATF.TV. “But it’s a big PR, and No. 2 all-time in the U.S., I should be happy with that. But the competitor in me is a little bit like, uh, I want to run faster, but maybe next time.”

The Marathon Project is a specially organized event despite the hindrances that the pandemic has created. Most major marathons in the fall and next spring have been canceled.

None of the three men or women who made the U.S. Olympic marathon team during the Feb. 29 trials participated.

Hall was the one that most kept their eye on. Though she dropped out in the 23rd mile of the Olympic Trials, she had a personal best of 2:22:01, good enough to finish second at the London Marathon last Oct. 4.

Hall’s Olympic dream remains afloat. However, this will depend on her performance in the 10,000-meter on the track at trials in Eugene, Oregon next June.

Sarah is in good company with her husband, Ryan Hall, coaching and guiding her. Incidentally, Ryan owns the record for being the fastest marathon by a US man with a time of 2:04:58.

He did this at the Boston Marathon in 2011 although not on a record-eligible course, Yahoo Sports reported.

With Hall’s feat, she is now ahead of Jordan Hasay in the record books of Fastest Marathons by US women. Hasay owns a record of 2:20:57, something she set at the Chicago Marathon in 2017.