DETROIT (WXYZ) — More than 18,000 people were in the streets of downtown Detroit on Sunday for the 45th Annual Detroit Free Press Marathon.
The course took racers into Canada and back into the U.S. again for the first time in two years.
The fastest time for the full marathon was two hours 24 minutes. Ryan Corby, who is from Novi, claimed the prize. This makes his second year in a row winning.
"You have to get tough and ignore the pain. Pain is temporary. The effect of a result like this is lasting forever. So my family gets me through a lot of those tough moments," said Corby at the finish line.
Corby is one of two winners to receive a $6,000 prize for completing the full marathon.
Mary Beasley, who is from Los Angeles, won the prize for being the first woman to complete the marathon. She says running the race was her first time in Detroit.
"You know, I’ve been training for the marathon for a long time. It’s the people out there. You want people to look at you and think ok you can do it," said Beasley.
This year, the marathon included a new route. Runners were able to pass through Indian Village, the Eastern Market and the theater district.
Race organizers say it was intentional to show the city off.
Local runners were the stars of the race. Sydney Devore says this is her third time running the half marathon. In her first two attempts, Devore says she landed in 2nd and 3rd place. Sunday, she landed in first place.
"It was hard. It hurt much more than I think I was ready for," said Devore.
Morsi Rayyan was the first man to finish the international half marathon. He says this comes as he celebrates the end of his residency.
"I feel great. I can finally relax a little bit, stop running and training so hard. Just enjoy life a little bit more," Rayyan said.
While some runners hoped to improve previous times and fitness records, others say they were running for people in their lives.
Linda Reider stood next to her family as she waited for her son to finish the half marathon. Reider says he decided to run this year for his aunt battling brain cancer.
"He started training about a month ago and mom said I'm getting a t-shirt, I'm coming down. I'm so proud of you. I love it," said Reider.
