WASHINGTON D.C. - Taylor Roe and Charles Hicks put on a show at the USATF 10 Mile Championship to secure national titles. The championships were part of the annual Credit Union Cherry Blossom in D.C.
In her debut at the distance, Roe blazed a 49:53 to put her name in the books as the first American woman to break 50:00 for an American record. The Oklahoma State graduate began to separate from Olympian and teammate Fiona O’Keeffe and Emma Grace Hurley just before the second mile mark and was racing the clock to the tape with over a minute lead.
Hurley placed second in 51:04, and O’Keeffe rounded out the women's podium in 51:49.
En route, Roe’s 10K split set a women-only national record of 30:56, and her 15k split of 46:24 earned her a second American record to better Weini Kelati’s 46:32 run earlier this year.
What was just intended to be a solid, competitive effort quickly became history.
“I didn't know what the record was,” Roe said. “I still don't know what it is. It just totally wasn't on my radar.”
Hicks – competing at the championships as a dual citizen of the U.S. and UK – battled it out with three-time champ Hillary Bor, the reigning USATF Half Marathon champ Alex Maier and Biya Simbassa until the final kilometer. Hicks made a dominant surge rounding the corner at the Washington Monument to break the tape in 45:14 as a USATF champion.
“I'm still processing it all,” Hicks said after the race. “I came into this thinking I wouldn’t be able to hang on to 45:50. I just wanted to place as well as I could.”
Second-place finisher, Maier, bettered the American record with his 45:15. The previous short-lived record was set by Conner Mantz earlier this year in an en-route split of 45:16 in the 2025 Chevron Houston half-marathon. Simbassa rounded out the top three in 45:23.
Due to UAATF rules 1 and 261, Hicks was eligible to compete in the Championships, however was not eligible to claim the American record.
Both Roe and Hicks will receive $10,000 for their first-place finishes and Roe and Maier will receive bonuses for their American records.
The USATF Running Circuit travels next to Des Moines, Iowa, for the USATF 1 Mile Championships on April 22 as a part of the Drake Relays.
Contributed by Lily Cincola