Haftu Strintzos runs fifth at New York Marathon to book Olympics
Haftu Strintzos finished fifth at the New York City Marathon, meeting the Olympic entry standard for Los Angeles 2028.
Strintzos crossed the line only 33 seconds behind winner Andreas Almgren of Sweden. Strintzos was just 14 seconds off his own Australian record.
Under World Athletics rules, a top-five finish at a Platinum Label marathon during the qualifying window counts as an automatic Olympic entry standard. Strintzos ran a controlled race with a strong second half.
He went through halfway in 64:06 and ran the final half in 62:28. His closing pace was his fastest of the race, a sign his coach says he will need for competition at Olympic level.
The 27-year-old was one of six men to break 2:07 at New York overnight, compared with only seven in the previous 54 editions combined. Strintzos said he was happy with the performance in his second-ever world major race.
- 2:06:34
- New York finish time
- 33 seconds
- Margin to winner
- 2:06:20 at Gold Coast
- Australian record
- 27 years old
- Strintzos age
Why it mattersStrintzos has taken a major step toward competing at the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, one of Australian distance running's best chances at a medal in years.
AustraliaAustralian athletics has a genuine medal prospect for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics after Strintzos's strong marathon showing at one of the year's biggest international races.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago
