Colorado's road racing talent was on full display on Saturday (6-June) at the USATF 4 Mile Championships, held in conjunction with the 52nd annual Steamboat Classic in downtown Peoria, Illinois. The national championship race attracted some of the country's top distance runners, and Colorado athletes responded with a strong showing that included five top-10 finishes in the men's race and four in the women's race.
On the women's side, Rachael Rudel (Fort Collins, Front Range Elite) continued her outstanding season by finishing runner-up in 20:23, while Allie Ostrander (Boulder, Oiselle) was just one second behind in third place with a time of 20:24. The race was won by Kassie Parker of Iowa in 20:16
Lauren Gregory delivered another strong performance, placing sixth in 20:51, while Layla Roebke (Colorado Springs) rounded out Colorado's top finishers with a ninth-place effort in 21:25.
The men's race was equally impressive for Colorado competitors, with five athletes finishing among the nation's top 10. Benard Keter (Colorado Springs) led the way in fourth place, clocking 18:05. Just behind him was Anthony Rotich (Colorado Springs), who matched Keter's time of 18:05 to finish sixth.
Acer Iverson (Boulder) added a seventh-place finish in 18:16, while Drew Hunter (Longmont) of ASICS crossed the line ninth in 18:34. Rounding out Colorado's contingent was Emmanuel Bor (Colorado Springs), who placed 10th in 18:50.