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CreditUnionCherryBlossom: Women’s 10 Mile World Best Is Shattered and New 10 Mile American Records Set for Men and Women at 52nd Credit Union Cherry Blossom

Apr 7, 2025


Americans Taylor Roe and Alex Maier shine with historical performances
April 6, 2025, Washington, DC: Ideal temperatures and cloud coverage set the stage for a record-breaking race day in the men’s and women’s elite fields at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile (CUCB), as American Taylor Roe set the new women’s World Best* with a blazing 49:53, which is now also the women’s American Record. Alex Maier ran a 45:15 to set the new men’s American Record.   In the women’s race — which started 12 minutes prior to the men’s start to avoid men pacing women and to ensure “women’s only” status for any records or bests set —Roe pulled away from her competitors early and maintained her commanding lead to earn the title of 2025 USATF 10 Mile National Champion and the overall winner of the CUCB. Roe’s world-class performance won her $30,000 in prize money.   “The plan was to take it out, kind of get the race going, and help push it along. It just so happens that I was not on pace [running faster than planned] and just kind of had to keep going,” stated Roe.“I knew I was in the ballpark [of the World Record]. With about a mile to go, my coach told me I was on pace so basically just keep it together.”   Finishing in second place overall was Adane Animew from Ethiopia with a time of 51:00. Roe and Animew received time bonuses for running sub-52 minutes. She was closely followed by American Emma Grace Hurley who finished third overall and second in the USATF 10 Mile Championship in 51:04. U.S. Olympian Fiona O’Keeffe was the third American female finisher in 51:49.   Despite setting an American Record, Maier finished second overall and second in the USATF 10 Mile National Championships. The champion title goes to Charles Hicks, who blazed across the finish line in 45:11 for first place overall. Due to a technicality in the USATF rules, dual citizens are eligible to win the championships but are not eligible to hold an American Record. Therefore, overall champion Hicks, who is a dual citizen of Great Britain and USA, cannot hold the record.   Amy Begley, Director of Long Distance Running Programs for USATF, provided the following explanation:   According to USATF Rule 1 and Rule 261, Charlie Hicks is the USATF 10 Mile Champion and Alex Maier is the American Record Holder.   Rule 1.1b states in Long Distance Running and Race Walking, US citizens who are not eligible to represent the USA in International competition are allowed to participate in any USA National Championship that is not the sole selection event for an International team.   Rule 261.1a defines An American Record, which shall be the best performance in an athletics event made by an individual or relay team such that the individual or each member of the relay team, at the time of the performance, is a citizen of the United States and is eligible to represent the United States in all levels of International competition.
This is the third year in a row that the American Record has been set at the CUCB as the host event for the USATF 10 Mile Championship. Biya Simbassa finished third overall and third in the USATF Championships with a time of 45:23. Hicks and Maier received a time bonus for running sub-46 minutes.   Road Runners Club of America (RRCA) prize money totaling $6,000 was available for the top three male and female RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Aidan Reed earned $1500 as the winner of this subset of elite male athletes. No women applied to be eligible.
Here’s a compilation of times, prize money and bonuses earned by the elite runners today, organized in order of top 10 overall, followed by the top Americans who also earned prize money:   Top men:
Charles Hicks 45:14, Eugene, OR — $6,000 for the overall victory, $10,000 for first place among Americans, $1,000 time bonus, $3,000 for the course record. Total earnings: $20,000 Alex Maier 45:15, Chapel Hill, NC — $3,000 for second place overall, $5,000 for second American, $5,000 for American Record, $750 time bonus. Total earnings: $13,750 Biya Simbassa 45:23, Flagstaff, AZ — $2,500 for third place overall, $2,500 for third American. Total earnings: $5,000. Hillary Bor 45:30 – $1,500 for fourth place overall, $1,000 for fourth American. Total earnings: $2,500 Wesley Kiptoo 45:55, Kenya — $1,000 for fifth place overall. Total earnings: $1,000. Aidan Reed 45:48, Boulder, CO — $600 for sixth place overall, $800 for fifth American, $1,500 for first place among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni. Total earnings: $2,900. Peter Lynch 45:59, Ireland — $500 for seventh place overall.. Patrick Dever 46:05, Great Britian — $400 for eighth place overall. Joe Klecker 46:08, Longmont, CO — $300 for ninth place overall and $600 for sixth American. Total earnings: $900. Drew Hunter 46:16, Boulder, CO — $200 for 10th place overall and $500 for seventh American. Total earnings: $700  Daniel Mefsun 46:18, Flagstaff, AZ — $400 for eighth American.  Aferwerki Zeru 47:03, Flagstaff, AZ — $300 for ninth American. Joey Berriatua 47:16, Boulder, CO — $200 for 10th American. Andrew Whitinger 48:44, Indianapolis, IN — $1,000 for second place among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni Joseph Minor-Williams 48:47, Minneapolis, MN — $500 for third place among RRCA RunPro Camp Alumni
Top women:   Taylor Roe 49:53, Raleigh, NC — $6,000 for the overall victory, $10,000 for first place among Americans, $5,000 for World Record, $5,000 for American Record, $1,000 time bonus, $3,000 for course record. Total earnings: $30,000  Adane Animew 51:00, Ethiopia— $3,000 for second place overall, $750 time bonus. Total earnings: $3,750. Emma Grace Hurley 51:04, Indianapolis, IN — $2,500 for third place overall, $5,000 for second American. Total earnings: $7,500 Fiona O’Keeffe 51:49, Durham, NC — $1,500 for fourth place overall, $2,500 for third American. Total earnings: $4,000. Aubrey Frentheway 51:58, USA — $1,000 for fifth place overall, $1,000 for fourth American. Total earnings: $2,000. Annie Frisbie 52:10, Hopkins, MN —$600 for sixth place overall, $800 for fifth American. Total earnings: $1,400 Carrie Elwood 52:23, Boulder, CO — $500 for seventh place overall, $600 for sixth American. Total earnings: $1,100 Molly Bookmyer 52:42, Columbus, OH — $400 for eighth place overall, $500 for seventh American. Total earnings: $900. Emily Venters 52:55, Salt Lake City, UT — $300 for ninth place overall, $400 for eighth American. Total earnings: $700. Susanna Sullivan 53:01, Reston, VA — $200 for 10th place overall, $300 for ninth American. Total earnings: $500. Amy Davis-Green 53:36, USA – $200 for 10th American.   The elite athletes were followed by approximately 20,000 10 mile finishers, one of whom was Ben Beach, the only person to have competed in and completed every Cherry Blossom 10 Mile.   The Credit Union Cherry Blossom 5K presented by ASICS kicked off the running events on Saturday morning. This fan favorite event was recently awarded the designation of Best 5K Race by the 2025 USA Today 10Best Readers’ Choice poll, a testament to the event’s quick sell out and over 7,000 finishers. This marked the third year that the 5K ran at Freedom Plaza on Saturday before the 10 Mile. Lucite awards were given to the top five men and women, the top three non-binary runners and the non-binary Master’s winner.    Men:   1.    Zachary Prescott 15;13, Arlington, VA 2.    Jason Fambrough 15:40, Mission, KS 3.    Lisandro Berry Gaviria 15:41, Arlington, VA 4.    William Stappert 15:52, Baltimore, MD 5.    Paul Loeser 15:52, Washington, DC   Women:   1.    Julia Fenerty 17:03, Franklin, MD 2.    Sabrina Zator 17:39, Arlington, VA 3.    Michelle Navarro 18:05, Red Bank, NJ 4.    Sophia Maynard 18:08, Washington, DC 5.    Nilani Duarte 18:16, Fairfax, VA   Non-binary:   1.    Sean Rankin 19:14, N. Bethesda, MD 2.    Lane David 23:26, Arlington, VA 3.    Ls Low 24:22, Washington, DC   Non-binary Masters:   1.    Sean Rankin 19:14, N. Bethesda, MD   The Credit Union Cherry Blossom Kids Run presented by Amazon followed the 5K with 600 registered participants. Children, ranging in age from 4 to 10, raced with Stumpy the mascot along a fun down and back course. This is the second year that the Kids Run has been located at Freedom Plaza.   For the past 23 years, Credit Union Miracle Day has been the title sponsor of the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile and 5K, adding the Kids Run to its portfolio when the event debuted in 2016. ASICS was the presenting sponsor of this year’s 5K, and Amazon presented the Kids Run. Wegmans has been the presenting sponsor of the Health and Fitness expo for four years. The Credit Union Miracle Day’s partnership with CUCB organizers and charitable runners has generated over $12 million for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. This year’s fundraising effort totaled $460,000, which included $190,000 from runners, the highest amount raised by participants ever.
* 10 Miles is not a recognized distance for records by World Athletics, which is why this is a World Best rather than a World Record.   ###
About Credit Union Cherry Blossom:
The Credit Union Cherry Blossom, organized by Cherry Blossom, Inc., a 501(c)(3) chapter of the Road Runners Club of America, is known as “The Runner’s Rite of Spring®” in the Nation’s Capital. The staging area for the 10 Mile is on the Washington Monument Grounds and the course passes in sight of all of the major Washington, D.C. Memorials. The 5K begins at Freedom Plaza and proceeds down Pennsylvania Ave. to the U.S. Capitol building, tracing the route of Presidential Inaugurations. The event serves as a fundraiser for the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, a consortium of 170 premier children’s hospitals across North America. About one-third of the funds raised support Washington, D.C.’s own Children’s National (“Children’s Hospital”). The event also provides a $6,000 purse for recent “graduates” of the Road Runners Club of America’s “RunPro Camp,” a program to teach top recently-graduated U.S. collegiate distance runners about life as a professional runner.   Credit Union Miracle Day, Inc., a consortium of credit unions and credit union suppliers, is the title sponsor of the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile, 5K and Kids Run. Presenting sponsors include ASICS, the presenting sponsor of Saturday’s 5K, Wegmans, presenting sponsor of the Health and Fitness Expo held in conjunction with packet pick-up, and Amazon, presenting sponsor of the Kid’s Run; supporting sponsors include Valera, Embassy of Japan, DrinkMore Water, TruStage, Outside+, Potomac River Running, Gatorade Endurance, Suburban Solutions Moving, Select Event Group, and United Lifestyle Brands.    The 10 Mile is sanctioned by USA Track & Field and the Road Runners Club of America. It is a proud member of the PRRO Circuit. The 5K was voted the Best 5K in the country by USA Today polls in 2023 and 2025. To learn more, visit https://www.cherryblossom.org/.
About Credit Union Miracle Day:
Credit Union Miracle Day is a partnership of over 100 credit unions, CUSOs and partner organizations united to sponsor the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile & 5K benefitting Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals nationwide and promoting the difference credit unions make in their communities.
About America’s Credit Unions:
Credit unions are financial cooperatives that provide consumers choices for financial services such as checking accounts, investments and loans of all kinds including mortgages. Funds are federally insured, but unlike banks, there are no stockholders at credit unions. Earnings are returned to member-owners in the form of lower loan rates, higher savings rates, low or no-fee products and services. The credit union philosophy of placing members’ needs first is why more than 142 million Americans do their banking at a credit union.