Watch CBS News

Stanford Student Wins SF Marathon

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- A Stanford astrophysics student was the winner of this year's San Francisco Marathon.

Twenty-five-year-old Keith Bechtol, running his first road marathon, finished the 26.2 mile race in 2 hours, 23 minutes and 28 seconds. He was followed by Michael Wardian of Arlington, Va., who finished with a time of 2:25:21. Harm Sengers of the Netherlands was third with a time of 2:29:23.

"I find it's a really good balance for me," Bechtol told the San Francisco Chronicle after the race, referring to his running and his work on a NASA satellite project. "It would be really hard for me to just study."

The first woman to cross the finish line was 24-year-old Emily Hardin of Madison, Ala., who finished with a time of 2 hours, 51 minutes and 54 seconds.

She was followed by Brandy Bengoechea of Nampa, Idaho (2:53:26), and San Francisco resident Morgan Robinson (3:01:11).

The weather during the marathon was overcast, which kept temperatures cool during the race, but blocked out views of the sunrise during the early start.

The course took runners along some of San Francisco's most scenic locations, including the Golden Gate Bridge, the city's Embarcadero and AT&T Park.

About 24,000 people registered for the race, some running in the half-marathon or 5-kilometer race.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.