Emma Grace Hurley Runs 2:20:47 to Smash American Debut Record at the Chicago Marathon
Emma Grace Hurley, an Asics-sponsored runner based in Indianapolis, ran the fastest American marathon debut in history in Chicago on Sunday, finishing in 2:20:47 for seventh place overall and first among Americans.
Her time—a 5:22 pace—betters the 2:22:10 record set by Fiona O’Keeffe en route to winning the 2024 Olympic Marathon Trials by nearly a minute and a half. It also makes her the sixth-fastest American ever at the distance.
Dakotah Popehn, 31, a 2024 Olympian in the marathon, placed 12th overall and second American in 2:24:00, a four-second personal best, while Elena Hayday, 26, was 13th overall and third American in 2:24:57. Hurley earns $15,000 for the top American spot, while Popehn earns $12,000 for second American and Hayday $10,00 for third.
Running with her personal pacer, Caleb Kerr, Hurley, 28, started quickly—the pair covered the first 5K in 16:24, a 5:17 pace, hoping for a sub-2:20 finish. From there, she settled into a steady rhythm, hitting the halfway point in 1:09:50.
At the post-race press conference, Hurley said she attempted to pick up the pace at mile 19, running a 5:15 mile. But whether it was the bright sun and heat or the new-to-her distance—the farthest she’d run in training was 22 miles—she slowed afterward.
“It was a little toasty over the last six miles. I lost it a bit,” she said. She covered the last 10K at a 5:28 pace and the final mile in 5:20 to finish strong, buoyed in part, she said, by the roar of the crowd and chasing the women in front of her. “It’s a great place to start. I’m very happy with it.”
Hurley’s debut has been hotly anticipated for years, beginning when she won the 2024 USATF Running Circuit, then ran 1:08:26 in her first half marathon, the Indianapolis Monumental Half Marathon, a race she decided to run just six days beforehand. That’s when Hurley herself started to shift her perspective and consider the possibility she might one day be world-class at longer distances, she told Runner’s World in late September.
The buzz around her intensified this year, when she nearly placed second in the USATF Half Marathon Championships in Atlanta before being led off course, then bounced back by setting a new American 8K record of 24:29 at the Shamrock Shuffle in March, then placing second at the USA 5K Road Running Championships in May. The Shuffle, which is also in Chicago, played a key role in her choice to debut here, she said.
And then, when she ran a personal best 1:06:23 to place at the USATF Half Marathon Championships in Copenhagen in late September, the noise reached nearly a fever pitch.
Hurley—who lives and trains in Indianapolis—handled the pressure with grace. “I’ve heard the chatter out there,” she told Runner’s World. “I’m not deaf.” But she also said she felt more excited and curious than nervous, thanks in part to the fact that she and her coach, Andrew Begley, have taken a long-term approach to building her fitness and confidence.
Begley told Runner’s World in late September he thought Hurley was capable of running a 2:20 marathon, or even faster, in ideal conditions. But they weren’t focused on the times—her goal coming in was a top-10 finish, and to walk away with a lesson or two to improve upon for next time.
In the immediate aftermath, Hurley said it might take a bit more time to process the day and what she could take away. One lesson, she said, was perhaps “to be two to four miles more patient”—waiting until 20 or 22 to start mentally pushing.
But one thing she’s sure she’s carrying forward is optimism for the future: “I was excited before today, and I’m even more excited after today,” she said.
With a stellar debut on her record, her name figures even more prominently than it already had in the conversation about Olympic contenders in 2028—a goal that’s been in her and Begley’s sights for years. First, she plans to spend the spring focusing on shorter distances before running a second fall marathon, either in Chicago or New York City, she and Begley told Runner’s World in September.
In addition to Hurley, today’s race produced three other new 2028 Olympic Trials qualifiers: Kelby Laughner (2:35:41), Alli Sefanov (2:35:50), and Sarah Chandler (2:36:06).
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Cindy is a freelance health and fitness writer, author, and podcaster who’s contributed regularly to Runner’s World since 2013. She’s the coauthor of both Breakthrough Women’s Running: Dream Big and Train Smart and Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries, a book about the psychology of sports injury from Bloomsbury Sport. Cindy specializes in covering injury prevention and recovery, everyday athletes accomplishing extraordinary things, and the active community in her beloved Chicago, where winter forges deep bonds between those brave enough to train through it.
