Elisha Barno wins sixth Grandma’s Marathon; Volha Mazuronak sets women’s course record

DULUTH – Reputations gained in stature Saturday in the 48th Grandma’s Marathon on a cool, windy, wet morning along the North Shore.

Elisha Barno, a Kenyan who is the most successful runner in race history, earned a record sixth victory, while first-time entrant and two-time Olympian Volha Mazuronak of Belarus set the women’s course record.

Minnesota’s oldest 26.2-mile race braced for possible heavy rain but survived with light rain, mid-50-degree temperatures and a 12 mph east headwind-sidewind.

Decent racing weather led to impressive performances as a record field of 9,993 headed from south of Two Harbors to Canal Park Drive.

Barno, 39, broke away from two runners over the closing miles for a second straight victory in 2 hours, 10 minutes, 54 seconds. A year ago, he set a personal best of 2:09:14 after winning four straight times, 2015-18.

“I am surprised and very proud to win again. I’ll never forget this in my life,” said Barno, married and the father of three daughters. “This is my favorite race. When I come here, I think I’m going to do well. I think I’m going to win.”

He’s the second-oldest men’s winner in race history. No other men’s entrant has more than two victories. He won $12,000, including $2,000 for going under 2:11.

Jerrell Mock, 29, from Fort Collins, Colo., hadn’t raced seriously since the 2022 Boston Marathon and didn’t go with a pack that broke to the front Saturday. He bided his time and moved to second place with about three miles to go.

“I ran conservatively and I knew [Barno] was too far ahead to catch, so my goals kept changing during the race. But I really wanted to be in the top 10,” said Mock.

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He finished in 2:11:25 to earn $9,000. Kenyan Cosmas Kiplimo, 31, was third in 2:12:20 for $6,000.

East African men have won 24 of the last 27 Grandma’s titles and 14 in a row.

Mazuronak, 35, an immigrant living with her 15-year-old son in Irvine, Calif., was fifth in both the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro and in 2020 in Tokyo. However, the International Olympic Committee has banned Russia and Belarus from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

She won Saturday in 2:23:52.

“My Olympics was here,” Mazuronak said of Grandma’s. “A friend told me about this race and said the course was beautiful with scenery. My goal was to run for a good time, not for place, and to be honest, this [victory and time] was a surprise because my preparation hadn’t been the best.

“As it turned out, the training I did at altitude, in Flagstaff, Ariz., really was a big help.”

She broke the course mark by 36 seconds. The previous mark was 2:24:28 by American Kellyn Taylor in 2018. Mazuronak also broke a streak of five straight Grandma’s wins by American women.

Mazuronak became the third Belarusian woman to win a Grandma’s title following Elena Makolova, who set a course record in 1999, and Halina Karnatsevich in 2005. Mazuronak earned $15,000, including $5,000 for going under 2:27.

Kenyan Grace Kahura-Malang, 31, and living in Longmont, Colo., was second in 2:30:02 to earn $9,000; and Molly Bookmyer, 33, of Columbus, Ohio, was third in 2:30:16 for $6,500.

Kahura-Malang, in her fourth Grandma’s Marathon, saw Mazuronak move ahead at the 7:45 a.m. start and monitored the situation.

“My legs hurt for a while and I couldn’t find my rhythm, and I decided to keep an eye [on the leader]. When it got so I couldn’t see her, I made the decision: ‘I’m going to run my race and not worry about her,’ " said Kahura-Malang, who has lived in the U.S. since 2013.

Wheelchair winners were Luis Francisco Sanclemente, 36, of Colombia leading the men in 1:22:07 and Ivonne Reyes Gomez, 51, of Mexico was first among women in 1:48:24. Zoey Viavattine, 29, was first in the nonbinary division in 2:44:43.