Honestly, if you missed the 2023 New York City Marathon women’s results top 10, you missed one of the most tactical, mind-game-heavy races in the history of the Five Boroughs. It wasn't about raw speed from the gun. Not at all. It was about who had the nerves—and the legs—to survive a slow-burn jog that turned into a flat-out sprint in Central Park.
Hellen Obiri won. But that doesn't even begin to tell the story. She clocked a 2:27:23, which, on paper, looks kinda slow for an elite field. For context, the course record at the time was 2:21:31. But New York isn't Berlin. It's hilly, it's windy, and in 2023, the elite women decided to play a game of "chicken" that lasted for about 22 miles.
The Breakdown: 2023 New York City Marathon Women’s Results Top 10
When the dust settled and the screaming fans in Central Park finally caught their breath, the leaderboard looked like a "Who's Who" of distance running royalty.
| Rank | Name | Country | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hellen Obiri | Kenya | 2:27:23 |
| 2 | Letesenbet Gidey | Ethiopia | 2:27:29 |
| 3 | Sharon Lokedi | Kenya | 2:27:33 |
| 4 | Brigid Kosgei | Kenya | 2:27:45 |
| 5 | Mary Ngugi | Kenya | 2:27:53 |
| 6 | Viola Cheptoo | Kenya | 2:28:11 |
| 7 | Edna Kiplagat | Kenya | 2:29:40 |
| 8 | Kellyn Taylor | USA | 2:29:48 |
| 9 | Molly Huddle | USA | 2:32:02 |
| 10 | Fantu Zewude Jifar | Ethiopia | 2:34:10 |
Why the Times Look "Slow"
You’ve gotta realize that these women are capable of running sub-2:20. So, why the 2:27? Basically, nobody wanted to lead.
The pack stayed massive for a long time. They crossed the halfway mark in about 1:14:21. That is essentially a training run for someone like Letesenbet Gidey, who holds (well, held) world records on the track. Kellyn Taylor, the top American finisher, actually found herself leading for large chunks of the race because the East African powerhouse group was content to just sit and wait. Taylor was just 10 months postpartum. Think about that. She was out there setting the pace for the best in the world while her body was still recovering from having a human being.
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The Obiri Factor
Hellen Obiri is a different breed. By winning in 2023, she became the first woman in 34 years to win both the Boston Marathon and the New York City Marathon in the same calendar year. The last person to do that was Ingrid Kristiansen back in 1989.
Obiri’s strategy was pure restraint. She learned from her 2022 debut in New York where she finished sixth and ended up in a medical tent. This time? She waited. She watched. She let Viola Cheptoo make the first real "burn" at mile 22. When they hit the hills of Central Park, the pace dropped to a staggering 4:52 for the final mile.
That’s track speed. In a marathon. At mile 26.
The Battle for the Podium
Letesenbet Gidey didn't make it easy. She’s the 10,000m World Champion, and she knows how to kick. But Obiri’s experience in Boulder, Colorado, training under Dathan Ritzenhein, clearly gave her the strength to handle the undulating terrain of the park better than Gidey’s track-focused rhythm.
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Sharon Lokedi, the 2022 defending champ, hung on for third. It was a gutsy performance because she was coming off some injury struggles earlier in the year. Seeing her, Obiri, and Gidey all within ten seconds of each other at the 25-mile mark was peak sports drama.
American Resilience
We have to talk about Kellyn Taylor and Molly Huddle. They finished 8th and 9th respectively. Both are "moms on the run," and they basically kept the race honest when the elite pack was dawdling. Taylor’s 2:29:48 was a massive statement. She wasn't just there to participate; she was there to compete.
The depth of the 2023 New York City Marathon women’s results top 10 is also wild when you see Edna Kiplagat in 7th. She’s a legend of the sport, still crushing top-10 finishes in her 40s.
What You Can Learn From This Race
If you’re a runner, there’s a huge takeaway here.
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- Tactics over PRs: Sometimes, the goal isn't a "Personal Best" time; it's beating the person next to you. In New York, the course and the competition dictate the clock.
- Patience is a weapon: Obiri won because she didn't panic when the pace was slow, and she didn't panic when the surges started.
- Postpartum strength is real: Taylor and Huddle proved that the "motherhood effect" in distance running is a very real, very powerful thing.
If you’re looking to analyze these results for your own training, don't look at the final times. Look at the 5km splits from the 35km mark to the finish. That’s where the 2023 race was won.
For those planning to run New York themselves, remember that Central Park is where dreams go to die if you haven't saved anything in the tank. Obiri saved everything. And it paid off with a permanent spot in the history books.
Actionable Next Steps:
- Analyze the Splits: Go to the NYRR official results page and look at the "Last 7.2K" category for the top 10 women to see how drastically the pace changed.
- Study the Course: If you're running NYC, focus your long runs on the final 5 miles, specifically incorporating rolling hills to mimic the Central Park finish.
- Gear Check: Notice that almost every woman in the top 10 was wearing "super shoes" (carbon-plated). If you haven't tested these for a marathon yet, the efficiency gains are statistically significant for maintaining that "kick" at the end of 26.2 miles.