Maggie Montoya wins Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon 2023

DULUTH, Minnesota (June 17) – Joel Reichow and Maggie Montoya secured the men’s and women’s respective titles today at the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon 2023. Under clear skies and in ideal cool temperatures, the athletes conquered the challenging course in Duluth on Saturday with Montoya breaking the women’s record.

Montoya, a 28-year-old athlete, stole the show in the women’s race, setting a blazing new course record of 1:09:26 for the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon. Her dominating performance shattered the 11-year-old record of 1:09:46, previously held by Kara Goucher, the 2007 world 10,000 silver medalist.

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It was a remarkable achievement for Montoya, who had never before broken the 70-minute barrier for this distance. Earlier this year, she competed in half marathons in Houston and New York, but never troubled her best mark.

However, today, she stayed committed to her coach’s words of keeping a fellow male training partner in her sights, and it resulted in her surpassing her previous personal best of 1:10:06.

“I was just trying to keep my teammate Carlos in site,” Montoya, who led from start to finish, said. “I have had a bad string of Half’s and I’m happy to have something good go here.”

Finishing more than two minutes ahead of the competition, Montoya secured a commanding victory. Jaci Smith claimed the runner-up spot, completing the race in 1:11:27, while Allie Schaich secured third place with a time of 1:12:57.

In the men’s race, Minnesota native Reichow, 29, displayed remarkable speed and determination. With a surge of pace in the final mile and a half, he broke away from the pack and claimed victory with a time of 1:02:30.

“I tried to get it out a little bit quick, and started with a little bit of a gap and then people kinda caught up to me.” Reichow said.

Despite starting out at a balanced tempo, and then facing fierce competition, Reichow managed to establish his dominance and emerge triumphant.

Afewerki Zeru secured the second position, clocking in at 1:02:40, while Habtamu Cheney rounded out the podium, finishing with a time of 1:03:19.

What is the Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon prize money?

For the wins, Joel Reichow and Maggie Montoya each collected Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon prize money of USD $3,000.

The total prize money for the 2023 Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon is $26,100.00 and will be delegated down to the top 10 finishers in the elite races.

Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon 2023

Women’s Results Top 10:

  1. Maggie Montoya, 28, Boulder, CO, 1:09:26
  2. Jaci Smith, 26, Colorado Springs, CO, 1:11:27
  3. Allie Schaich, 30, Seattle, OR, 1:12:57
  4. Lydiah Mathathi, 37, Davenport, IA, 1:13:25
  5. Shannon Smith, 32, Flagstaff, AZ, 1:13:37
  6. Jane Bareikis, 28, Crestwood, IL, 1:13:53
  7. Kim Krezonoski, 29, Toronto, ON, 1:13:58
  8. Margaret Ludick, 38, Minnetonka, MN, 1:14:05
  9. Gabriela Deleon, 27, Euless, TX, 1:14:07
  10. Kelsey Bruce, 30, Wichita Falls, TX, 1:14:15
  11. Emma Huston, 28, Des Moines, IA, 1:14:16
  12. Michelle Krezonoski, 29, Shuniah, ON, 1:14:20
  13. Anna West, 24, Austin, TX, 1:14:29
  14. Lynsie Gram, 25, Boulder, CO, 1:14:29
  15. Stevi Clark, 34, New Braunfels, TX, 1:15:20
  16. Kaitlin Donner, 33, Satellite Beach, FL, 1:15:49
  17. Meriah Earle, 45, Escondido, CA, 1:15:51
  18. Lillian Anderson, 26, Kings County, NY, 1:15:58
  19. Rachel Kennedy, 35, Fort Walton Beach, FL, 1:16:01
  20. Valerie Paredes, 32, Los Angeles, CA, 1:16:08
  21. Heather Oliva, 32, San Antonio, TX, 1:16:15
  22. Jori Galles, 28, Oro Valley, AZ, 1:18:45
  23. Sara Putterman, 32, Washington, DC, 1:19:22
  24. Hannah Weiss, 34, Waverly, IA, 1:19:26
  25. Alexandra Fossum, 27, Minneapolis, MN, 1:19:33
  26. Gracia Sich, 35, St Paul, MN, 1:19:41
  27. Missa Morey, 32, Plymouth, MN, 1:19:51
  28. Katherine Lacksen Mahlberg, 32, Milledgeville, GA, 1:20:11
  29. Meghan Roth, 36, Bloomington, MN, 1:20:40
  30. Whitney Penny, 36, Oro Valley, AZ, 1:20:58
  31. Sara George, 35, Oakwood, OH, 1:21:47
  32. Abbey Ewald, 29, Minneapolis, MN, 1:21:50
  33. Ellyssa Peterson, 24, Nashwauk, MN, 1:22:01
  34. Taryn Shank, 31, Madison, WI, 1:22:08
  35. Meaghan Strum, 34, Halifax, NS, 1:22:15
  36. Alexandra Mindel, 37, Burlington, MA, 1:22:16
  37. Caitlin Healey, 36, Chatsworth, CA, 1:22:18
  38. Emma Koenig, 29, Minneapolis, MN, 1:22:21
  39. Audrey Suttor, 29, Boulder, CO, 1:22:21
  40. Bridget Bergheger, 28, Minneapolis, MN, 1:22:49
  41. Felicia Lauwers, 27, Appleton, WI, 1:22:52
  42. Kate Eggers, 32, Minneapolis, MN, 1:22:53
  43. Lindsey Zimmer, 35, St Louis Park, MN, 1:23:03
  44. Sarah Klecker, 28, Portland, OR, 1:23:22
  45. Pamela Skrove, 31, Minneapolis, MN, 1:23:27
  46. Addie Rosecrans, 32, Oklahoma City, OK, 1:23:32
  47. Kari Campeau, 34, Denver, CO, 1:23:35
  48. Andrea Haus, 30, St Paul, MN, 1:23:40
  49. Caitlin Braithwaite, 35, Rochester, MN, 1:23:42
  50. Claire Strickler, 24, Matthews, NC, 1:24:04

Men’s Results Top 10:

  1. Joel Reichow, 29, White Bear Lake, MN, 1:02:30
  2. Afewerki Zeru, 23, Colorado Springs, CO, 1:02:40
  3. Habtamu Cheney, 24, Provo, UT, 1:03:19
  4. Shadrack Biwott, 38, Folsom, CA, 1:03:35
  5. Zach Herriott, 29, Washington, DC, 1:04:02
  6. Mohammed Bati, 23, Minneapolis, MN, 1:04:22
  7. Tyler Jermann, 30, St Paul, MN, 1:04:29
  8. Allen Sumrall, 29, Albuquerque, NM, 1:04:44
  9. Adam Walker, 23, Lexington, KY, 1:05:10
  10. Ben Payne, 41, Colorado Springs, CO, 1:05:11
  11. Will Norris, 28, Charlottesville, VA, 1:05:19
  12. Charlie Lawrence, 28, Boulder, CO, 1:05:46
  13. David Fassbender, 25, Slinger, WI, 1:06:00
  14. Paxton Smith, 25, Miami, FL, 1:06:19
  15. Ethan Cannon, 26, Minneapolis, MN, 1:06:23
  16. Tom Breuckman, 23, Andover, MN, 1:06:28
  17. Hunter Hicks, 25, Flagstaff, AZ, 1:07:08
  18. Mason Frank, 34, Aurora, CO, 1:07:23
  19. Charles Rodeheffer, 26, Dayton, OH, 1:07:26
  20. Christian Schaaf, 23, Phoenixville, PA, 1:07:40
  21. Matthew Williams, 36, Waco, TX, 1:07:47
  22. Juan Paredes, 33, Los Angeles, CA, 1:07:59
  23. Corbin Harris, 25, Campbellsville, KY, 1:08:01
  24. David Ecker, 23, Eau Claire, WI, 1:08:04
  25. Joe Coffey, 27, Minneapolis, MN, 1:08:16
  26. Nick Ross, 34, Minneapolis, MN, 1:08:21
  27. Matt Braithwaite, 34, Rochester, MN, 1:08:28
  28. Tyler Lance, 27, Algona, IA, 1:08:33
  29. Chad Berens, 27, Sandy, UT, 1:08:42
  30. Tom Sederquist, 34, Duluth, MN, 1:08:47
  31. Gerard Connelly, 25, New York, NY, 1:08:47
  32. Connor Reck, 30, Minneapolis, MN, 1:08:55
  33. Tyler Owens, 26, Springfield, IL, 1:08:56
  34. James Weissensel, 29, Park Ridge, IL, 1:09:05
  35. Carlos Fernandes II, 25, Boulder, CO, 1:09:15
  36. Ruben Sanca, 36, Salisbury, MA, 1:09:19

PHOTO: Maggie Montoya sets new course record for Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon. (WDIO video capture)

Overall Results | Overall Male | Overall Female

Glen Andrews is one of World-Track main writers for long distance and marathon running. Andrews, who competed in cross country during his High School and college years finds passion covering these events. He's also run a few marathons in his time, and still hopes to qualify for Boston.

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