
Shari Klarfeld recorded her first major stair climb victory with a win at One World Trade Center in New York on Sunday.
The Long Island runner clocked 15:53 as she scaled the 2,226 steps of America’s tallest building.
Mexico’s Maria Elisa Lopez was second in 16:02, with Florida-based Filipino athlete Rosalyn Russell taking third spot some way back in 17:27.
It was a long overdue win for Klarfeld, who has finished in second or third place at every edition of the Tunnel to Towers Tower Climb since the inaugural event [on a shorter course] in 2015.
The tight race for top spot was a continuation of the battle Klarfeld and Lopez had for second place at last year’s Empire State Building Run-Up.
There, just three seconds separated the pair, with the Mexican managing to hold off the challenge of her American rival in a closely fought battle the whole way up 1,576 steps.
The two are likely to meet again at the ESBRU, which is expected to take place in October.
In the men’s division, Malaysia’s Soh Wai Ching picked up another straightforward win in the USA. His rapid 12:46 placed him way out in front of Roberto Velazquez (MEX) who finished in 16:52, while New York veteran Stephen ‘The Beast from the East’ Marsalese rounded out the podium in 17:07.