Defending Women's Champions Returning to Peachtree
ATLANTA - June 1, 2023 - The two defending women's champions of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race will return to Atlanta to defend their titles next month. Atlanta Track Club, organizers of the annual 10K, announced Susannah Scaroni (Urbana, IL) will headline the Shepherd Center Wheelchair division while Senbere Teferi of Ethiopia tops the list of contenders in the women's open division at the 54th Running of the race on July 4.
Teferi - who outleaned Irene Cheptai at the line last year to claim victory before crumpling to the ground in exhaustion - will have to fend off an all-star field including two of the fastest 10K runners of all time − if she wants to retain her title. Six-time world-record holder Joyciline Jepkosgei of Kenya has a personal best of 29:43, third on the all-time list. The winner of the New York City and London marathons, is making her Atlanta debut this summer, in her first 10K road race since 2019. Fellow Kenyan Sheila Chepkirui, who will also be making her Peachtree debut, is the fourth-fastest 10K runner of all time and coming off a fourth place finish at the London Marathon in April.
"I am excited to defend my title in the 2023 Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race," said Teferi, the 5K world-record holder for a women-only race. "I look forward to the challenge from the best athletes in the world and am praying for cooler weather than last year; as the heat and humidity was very difficult in 2022"
Another top contender will be 2022 TCS New York City Marathon winner Sharon Lokedi of Kenya. Lokedi will return to racing this summer in a string of 10Ks that include the Peachtree. She was the upset winner in New York last fall, winning her marathon debut by seven seconds.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race course record in the women's open division is 30:22, set by Brigid Kosgei in 2019. In the Shepherd Center Wheelchair division, that record is held by Scaroni who won the race in 21:14 to claim a $53,000 bonus. Scaroni said she looks forward to seeing how fast she can race the course in 2023.
"I am really looking forward to competing at Peachtree this year," said Scaroni, the 2023 Boston Marathon winner. "I am always pushed to have a fun and fast race and plan to give this year's everything I have."
Registration for the 54th Running of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Peachtree Road Race is open through June 4. To register click here.
The race will be streamed live around the world for free on Atlanta Track Club's YouTube channel with commentary from Carrie Tollefson, Lewis Johnson and Amanda McGrory. It will be simulcast in the Atlanta area on WXIA 11Alive.
