— Through 70 kilometers at UTMB on Friday, it looked as if Flagstaff’s Jim Walmsley was well in contention to become the first man in 13 years to win the Western States-UTMB double. But a previously undisclosed knee injury ended his chances shortly after that course mark.
Walmsley dropped at the Courmayeur Aid Station. He was the defending champion, becoming the first American to win in 2023.
His wife, Jen, posted on social media that Walmsley injured his knee while winning his fourth Western States 100 in late June and had been trying to train through the injury.
Vincent Bouillard of France won in 19:54:23.
— Meanwhile, at a Grand Prix track meet in Dresden, Germany, two Mike Smith-trained runners reached the podium.
Woody Kincaid bounced back from his disappointing Olympic 5,000 performance to win the Dresden 5,000 on Friday in 13:15.84, nearly two seconds ahead of former Stanford star Ky Robinson.
In the women’s 5,000 meters, Elly Henes cracked the podium by finishing third in 15:03.14, behind Ethiopian Molla Birtukan (14:59.10) and Kenya’s Jepkoech Maureen (15:01.57).
Henes easily outdistanced American rival Josette Andrews, who was fourth in 15:07.75. American Katelyn Tuohy was sixth in 15:21.92.
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