UW alum Lindsay Flanagan 17th at London Marathon...
Flanagan, who finished 12th at the US Olympic Trials in Atlanta in February, was looking to better her personal best of 2:28:08 set at last year's Bank of America Chicago Marathon.
For the most extraordinary elite marathon of modern times, naturally the athletes had an extraordinary start, most of them rising before 4:00am before being transported from their hotel outside London to the biosecure course, which was being soaked by driving rain.
Flanagan was in a group of seven athletes led by pacemaker Eilish McColgan through the 19-lap course, went through the first five miles at 27:33, and ten miles at 55:07.
Unfortunately, Flanagan began to drop back shortly after ten miles, as McColgan went through the half marathon mark with four others in tow at 1:12:26, with Flanagan 49 seconds back.
In a text to publisher Paul Merca afterwards, she said that shortly after ten miles, she suffered a hamstring strain and a potential tear.
"I felt good up until then and feel if my body cooperated I was ready for a solid day," she said.
When asked if she might have planted her foot awkwardly at some point during the first ten miles or so on the slick, rain covered course, she said that it might have contributed to her hamstring strain.
Fellow American Molly Seidel, the surprise second place finisher at the US Olympic Trials in her marathon debut, was part of the group that was paced by McColgan, and rode the wave to a personal best of 2:25:13 to finish sixth.
World record holder Brigid Kosgei of Kenya took the victory and the $30000 first place prize money in a time of 2:18:58.
From an American perspective, Stanford alum Sara Hall, who was one of the leading contenders for a spot on the US Olympic team before failing to finish, bounced back with a second place finish in a personal best 2:22:01, catching Ruth Chepngetich in the final 150 meters.
In the men's elite race, Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge’s reign of invincibility came to a crushing end with an eighth-place finish, as Ethiopia’s Shura Kitata won a dramatic, last-gasp sprint to take the victory.
With Kipchoge unable to respond with three miles left, a lead group of five soon turned into a three-way battle between Kitata, fellow Ethiopian Sisay Lemma and the towering Kenyan, Vincent Kipchumba.
Kipchumba was the first to strike for home, only to be overtaken on the line by the diminutive Kitata. Just a single second separated the two men as Kitata clocked a winning time of 2:05:41.
The World Athletics recap of the race is available here.
Complete results of the Virgin Money London Marathon are available here.
NOTE: The Virgin Money London Marathon and World Athletics contributed to this report.
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