Less than one month after winning the Honolulu Marathon in wet and humid conditions, Great Britain’s Calli Hauger-Thackery took another significant victory on US soil in the Houston Marathon on Sunday (11) morning.
Paced by her husband Nick, Hauger-Thackery broke the tape in 2:24:17 for a commanding victory ahead of former American marathon record-holder Sara Hall in 2:26:26 with Ethiopian-born American Biruktayit Degefa third in 2:28:07.
Hauger-Thackery won a bronze medal in the half marathon at the 2024 European Athletics Championships in Rome and the Brit will start as one of the favourites if she chooses to contest the marathon at the European Athletics Championships on home soil in Birmingham from 10-16 August.
But Hauger-Thackery, who is the second fastest British marathon runner of all-time with 2:21:24, could opt for the 10,000m. She finished 11th in the 10,000m at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.
In the adjoining half marathon, Israel’s Haimro Alame was the leading European finisher in 13th in 60:33 while Aaron Gruen was 23rd in 61:14, breaking Gunther Weidlinger’s long-standing Austrian record in the process.
Lauren McNeil was the leading British finisher in the women’s half marathon, clocking 69:38 to finish in 15th.