Brooks maintained a sizable lead for much of the race, continuing a three-year streak of being the first woman to summit the mountain. She crossed the finish line with an official time of 51 minutes and 53 seconds, followed by Chugach runner Lauren Fritz with a time of 54:47.
Last year’s winner, fellow Olympian Kikkan Randall, opted not to run in this year’s race as she focused on Olympic training. Brooks, who posted a time of 52:22 in 2011 and came in second on Randall’s heels, was able to best Randall’s winning time of 52:03 in her Wednesday victory.
In the junior race held earlier Wednesday, runners Miles Knotek and Alison Ostrander were the first boy and girl down the hill, clocking in with respective times of 27:17 and 32:50.
The men’s race saw Matthew Novakovich retain a small but crucial lead over an experienced pack of race veterans, winning the 38-year-old Anchorage resident’s first Mount Marathon with a time of 44:07.
