NEW YORK CITY (NEWS CENTER Maine) — After wins in Maine and Boston, New York City is the latest and biggest stage yet for Ben True to display his running dominance.
True won the United Airlines NYC Half on Sunday with a time of 1:02:39. He is the first American male open division winner in the race's 12-year history.
True is 32 years old and grew up in North Yarmouth. His run in the 2017 Boston Athletic Association 5K set a record for fastest time in a race of that length. True reached another career milestone in 2016 as the first American man to win the TD Beach to Beacon 10K in Cape Elizabeth.
Extending through the streets of New York City for 13.1 miles, the NYC Half showed that True can compete and win on longer courses.
“My goal was just to hide for the majority of the race and then get dragged for 20K, and then hopefully that last [kilometer] I was able to use my speed to get around people," True said. "That was my strategy. Hang on for dear life.”
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The starting temperature of 29 degrees with headwinds blowing into the faces of the runners likely contributed to a slower-than-usual start. True said he didn't feel confident about his ability to win until the last mile.
