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UTICA, NY – (July 16, 2026) – On a beautiful, near perfect, sunny Sunday morning on July 12, at the 49th Boilermaker 15K presented by Excellus BlueCross BlueShield, the penultimate 2025-26 PRRO Circuit stop, Kenyan Alex Matata and Ethiopian Tsigie Gebreselama were the shining stars of the show in their race debuts with convincing wins, clocking 42 minutes, 24 seconds and 47:29, respectively, on the 9.3 mile road course. Gebreselama also shattered the women’s event record by 4 seconds; previous record 47:33 set by Jesca Chelangat in 2023. Each race champion earned $7000, and overall, Boilermaker awarded $65,100 in prize money, including $14,500 in U.S. prize money.
The race winners also earned eligibility to compete for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus at the 29th PRRO Championship hosted by the Quad-City Times Bix 7 on July 25, 2026 in Davenport, IA. In addition, Boilermaker finishers 2-10 earned points for the PRRO Circuit points system. At Boilermaker, Victor Shitsama of Kenya with his 6th place finish moved into second in the PRRO Circuit points final standings and race runners-up Kiprono Sitonik of Kenya and Melknat Wudu of Ethiopia tied for 5th place as the trio qualified to compete for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus at Bix 7.
The top 5 Super Bonus qualifiers by PRRO points are: for men, Graydon Morris (USA), Victor Shitsama (KEN), Mezgebu Sime (ETH), James Mwaura (USA), Wesley Kiptoo (KEN) & Kiprono Sitonik (KEN), and for women, Everlyn Kemboi (KEN), Rachael Rudel (USA), Molly Born (USA), Fiona O’Keeffe (USA), Cynthia Limo (KEN) & Melknat Wudu (ETH). NOTE: Ties in both men’s and women’s standings mean six will qualify per gender. Complete point standings, including the automatic Super Bonus qualifiers, can be found HERE.
In the men’s race, at the 10K mark, Matata, 28, had built a 22 second lead over countryman Kiprono Sitonik, 28:21 to 28:43, and from there, he went unchallenged to the finish line with a 29 second margin of victory over Sitonik who ran 42:53. Adam Lipschitz of South Africa took third in 43:14. Reid Buchanan, 2026 Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K winner and PRRO Super Bonus qualifier, finished fourth as top American in 43:38.
The women’s race followed a similar pattern as the men’s. Gebreselama, 25, led at the 10K by 3 seconds over countrywoman Melknat Wudu, 31:39 to 31:42. The 2023 World Cross Country silver medalist continued to increase her lead all the way to the tape with a 17 second event record win, 47:29 to 47:46 for Wudu. Kenyan Priscah Cherono, 46, was third and first Master (40 & older) in 48:15. Top American was Stephanie Bruce, 42, who finished 9th and second Master (50:40).
“Congratulations to Alex Matata and Tsigie Gebreselama on their dominant wins at Boilermaker and their automatic qualification to compete for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus at the upcoming PRRO Championship at Bix 7,” said Don Kardong, PRRO Circuit President. “Also, congratulations to the top 5 PRRO Circuit point scorers who earned Super Bonus eligibility as well.”
On Sunday at Boilermaker, there were 9,128 finishers in the sold-out 15K, the highest total since 2019, and 4,203 5K finishers, also sold-out. On Saturday, July 11, there were 1,700 participants in the Walk and Kids Run.
Find complete results, including race prize money awarded HERE.
The 2025-26 PRRO Circuit concludes at the 29th PRRO Championship presented by the Quad-City Times Bix 7 on Saturday, July 25 in Davenport, IA.
The PRRO Circuit showcases world class competition at six of America’s Classic Road Races™, the Gate River Run 15K in Jacksonville, FL, the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile in Washington, DC, the Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K in Spokane, WA, the Steamboat Classic 4 Mile in Peoria, IL, the Boilermaker 15K in Utica, NY and the Quad-City Times Bix 7 in Davenport, IA. The 2025-26 PRRO Circuit offers more than $440,000 in guaranteed prize money overall with $148,100 for U.S. athletes. The PRRO Circuit, a nationwide series of premier non-marathon road racing events, is organized and promoted by the Professional Road Running Organization (PRRO), an alliance of race directors.
Schedule and PRRO Super Bonus event qualifiers below:
THE PRRO CIRCUIT 2025-26 SCHEDULE
Quad-City Times Bix 7, July 26, 2025, Davenport, IA
$50,000 in prize money
WINNERS: Alex Maier*, USA, 32:02 and Vibian Chepkirui*, Kenya, 36:41
Gate River Run 15K, March 7, 2026, Jacksonville, FL
$72,000 in prize money ($23,000 U.S. prize money) plus $5000 Equalizer gender race and World, U.S. & course record bonus money
WINNERS: Mohammed El Youssfi*, Morocco, 43:26 and Chloe Herbiet*, Belgium, 47:58
Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile, April 12, 2026, Washington, DC
$80,600 in prize money ($48,600 U.S. prize money) plus performance bonuses
WINNERS: Mohammed El Youssfi*, Morocco, 46:17 and Asayech Ayichew*, Ethiopia, 50:37
50th Lilac Bloomsday Run 12K, May 3, 2026, Spokane, WA
$81,000 in prize money ($20,000 U.S. prize money)
WINNERS: Reid Buchanan*, USA, 34:30 and Kasandra Parker*, USA, 39:21
Steamboat Classic 4 Mile, June 6, 2026, Peoria, IL
$43,200 in U.S. prize money plus 2 Mile Prime and U.S. record bonus money
WINNERS: Ahmed Muhumed*, USA, 17:57 and Kasandra Parker*, USA, 20:16
Boilermaker 15K, July 12, 2026, Utica, NY
$65,100 in prize money ($14,500 U.S. prize money)
WINNERS: Alex Matata*, KEN, 42:24 and Tsigie Gebreselama*, ETH, 47:29 (event record)
THE 29th PRRO CHAMPIONSHIP
Quad-City Times Bix 7, July 25, 2026, Davenport, IA
$50,000 in prize money as well as:
- $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus to male or female Bix winners who are either defending PRRO Champions, have won any of the PRRO Circuit 2025-26 races or finished top 5 in the points system (Super Bonus split if both eligible male and female win)
- $2500 to male or female Championship winners who have not won any races on the 2025-26 Circuit
- $1500 to eligible PRRO event champions, males and females, finishing in places 2-10
*Qualified to compete for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus at the 2026 PRRO Championship.
With their 2025 PRRO Championship titles at Boilermaker, John Korir and Veronica Loleo were the first two athletes eligible to compete for the $10,000 PRRO Super Bonus at the 2026 PRRO Championship hosted by the Quad-City Times Bix 7 in July. In pursuit of the Super Bonus, the pair will join the winners of the 2025-26 Circuit events as well as the top 5 per gender in the PRRO Circuit points system (2-10 finishers score points at each current Circuit race; except, 2-5 finishers score at a U.S.-only Circuit race).
To-date, PRRO Circuit events have produced 18 world and 24 U.S. road records, awarded more than $9.2 million in prize money and seen more than 2.9 million runners cross their finish lines. In addition, since 1996, the PRRO Championship race has paid out more than $2.2 million including $218,500 in PRRO Championship bonus money.
PRRO Championship and Circuit Year
The PRRO Circuit, launched in 1995, starts and finishes the Circuit Year at the same event that will also host the season-ending PRRO Championship race. The reigning titlists of the PRRO Championship, the event winners on the current Circuit and the top 5 in the PRRO points system are eligible to compete for the PRRO Super Bonus at the PRRO Championship.
Visit PRRO.org for more information, including its history and past champions, as well as how to join the PRRO Circuit.
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