2025 USATF 20 km Championships

Mantz Sets American Record, Frentheway Claims First Title in 20 km Champs
 
NEW HAVEN, CT – Conner Mantz continued a history-making 2025 as his Utah-based teammate Aubrey Frentheway claimed her first career national title at the U.S. 20km Championships in New Haven, Connecticut Monday morning.
 
With near-perfect, late-summer New England racing conditions, a pack of six men led by Isai Rodriguez pushed a blistering early pace. They covered the first mile in 4:23 before settling into a consistent 4:30-per-mile cadence and whittling the pack of six down to a pack of three by the fourth mile. From there, it was Rodriguez, Mantz and defending New Haven Road Race champion Hilary Bor taking turns controlling the tempo and matching each other’s moves.
 
Crossing the 10K in 27:50, it was clear the course record was in imminent danger and the American record, held by Mantz, was under threat. None of the three men relented with Rodriguez, the former Oklahoma State All-American, trying to shake the pack at 12K and Bor doing the same at 13K. Heading into East Rock Park, Mantz, who won here in 2022, showed his strength on the hills, moving to the front and beginning to put some daylight on Bor and Rodriguez. In the final mile, Rodriguez fell off the back and it was Mantz and Bor sprinting to the New Haven Green. Inside 1000-meters to, Mantz repeatedly looked over his shoulder at a hard-charging Bor. He was finally able to pull away in the closing meters, breaking tape in 56:16.
 
After the race, Mantz said he was not expecting the race to be that fast.
 
“I thought we were going to run closer to 58 minutes,” said Mantz, who bettered his own national record by seven seconds. “That was really painful the way we ran this race today, but I was grateful to come away with the win.”
 
Mantz also broke Khalid Khannouchi’s course record of 57:37 set back in 1998. He is aiming to break Khannouchi’s American marathon record of 2:05:38 at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon next month. In January, he broke the longstanding American record in the half marathon, running 59:17 in Houston.
 
Bor was second in 56:32, barely beating Rodriguez who had a career-making day in 56:34.
 
The women’s race could not have played out more differently. A massive pack went out conservatively with 11 women still in contention by the third mile. Teammates Emily Venters, McKenna Myler and Aubrey Frentheway as well as 2023 runner-up Ednah Kurgat all took turns leading the group. Early miles were clocked in 5:15 with no one willing to push the pace until mile five when Biruktayit Degefa made a move to try and drop some of the women. The group, now controlled by Degefa, Kurgat, Frentheway and Myler ran their fastest mile at mile seven with a 5:08 split before heading into the park and hitting the hills.
 
That’s where Frentheway made her move. Like Mantz, the BYU All-American used the hills to her advantage, opening a gap on Kurgat and Degefa at 15K. By the time they exited the park, she had a five-second lead and began to stretch it out in the closing kilometers and she never looked back.
 
Despite a late final surge, Frentheway held off Degefa and won her first ever U.S. title in 1:05:36.
 
“I feel like I didn’t have a very solid plan going in. I had no idea how I’d feel. Workouts have been hit and miss,” said Frentheway, who like Mantz, will run Chicago next month. “I know I do good on the hills, so I had mapped out which miles they were at. The competition was great. I had no idea when I came into the race what would happen,”
 
Degefa was second in 1:05:42. Kurgat took third in 1:05:46.
 
Both winners receive $9,000 for their victory. Mantz gets an additional $1,000 for the course record.
 
With just one race remaining, Taylor Roe leads the USATF Road Racing Circuit with 45 points over Carrie Ellwood, who finished fifth today. Casey Clinger, also fifth today, is the men’s leader with 45 points over Alex Maier. The U.S. Marathon Champs will end the series on December 7 in Sacramento, California.
 
Full results can be found here.