Records Fall at 28th Annual Flying Pig Marathon

Story and photos courtesy of Gamd Day Communications

CINCINNATI, OH -- In a weekend that saw a record number of participants, the 20-year-old event record for the Flying Pig Marathon fell on Sunday as Zach Kreft, 26, from Sunbury, Ohio, won the marathon in a time of 2:17:40.

Kreft’s time was 2:44 faster than the previous event record, set by Cecil Franke in 2006 in 2:20:24.  Kreft’s running resume goes back to Buckeye Valley High School, where he set the Ohio High School 5K record and won four state titles, two in cross country and two in track. In college, he ran for the University of Notre Dame, where he placed first at the Winrow Valparaiso Open and set a personal best time in the 2021 Blue & Gold Invitational.

“I wanted to go into it pretty conservative and then really work the back half,” Kreft said. “I was targeting the course record and everything executed really well. The crowd really brought us home, and the energy of Cincinnati was special.”

Ohio marathons have been good to Kreft, as he now has won Columbus (2023), Cleveland, Air Force (both in 2025) and now the Flying Pig in 2026.

Second in the men’s division was Emerson Wells, 24, of Cincinnati in 2:23:52 and third was Garang Madut, 30, of Dayton, OH, in 2:25:38. In the new handcycle division, Steve Chapman, 61, of Cedar Springs was first in a time of 1:41:33. Second was Yoshinori Tomoyasu, 52, of Oxford in 1:48:54 and third was Jason Wilke, 32, of Lexington in 2:28:07. James Garman, 47, of Danville, KY won the men’s wheelchair in 3:01:42.

In the women’s division, Katie Hallahan, 32, of Cincinnati, a former runner-up in the Flying Pig Marathon, took first place this year in a time of 2:48:43. The Indian Hill High School graduate came in second in the marathon in 2023 and won the Queen Bee Half Marathon that same year.

“The Cincinnati running community is so awesome,” Hallahan said. “You’re out on a Saturday and see lots of people running around, everyone’s so positive and encouraging other people. The support for the Pig is special. You’re running through all the neighborhoods, and the energy and positivity are great.”

Second for the women was Daniella Townsend, 38, of Cincinnati in 2:49:46. Townsend was the winner of the Paycor Half Marathon in 2021. Third was Morgan Gaskins, 24, also of Cincinnati, in 2:53:28.

This was the largest field in Flying Pig weekend history, with 45,197 registered over the three days of events. The previous record field was in 2018, when 43,127 participated in the “Pig.”

In the Paycor Half Marathon, Simon Heys, 24, from Wilmington, Ohio, won the men’s division in 1:09:58. Second was Eric Gruenbacher, 34, of Loveland in 1:10:21. Gruenbacher was third in the event last year and second the two years before that. Third was David Riddle, 44, of Cincinnati in 1:12:12. On the women’s side, Amanda Zerhusen, 20, of Cincinnati won in her second Paycor Half Marathon in 1:19:50. Second was the 2025 half marathon winner, Madeline Trevisan, 28, of Cincinnati in a time of 1:21:34. Third was Christina Sharp, 37, of Olathe, KS, in 1:23:08.

In the Paycor Half Marathon handcycle division, Bart Burgess, 41, of Hillsboro won in the men’s division with a time of 1:11:25. In the women’s handcycle division, Mikiahya Greene, 23, of Erlanger won in 1:35:20 after winning the Toyota 10K on Saturday.

Also in Saturday’s Toyota 10K, former Flying Pig Marathon winner Jack Randall, 31, of Cincinnati took the title in the men’s division with a time of 32:37. Second in the men’s division was Ben Merk, 29, of Cincinnati in 33:08 and third was Sean Smith, 21, of Newport, KY, in 33:56. For the women, Alisha Detmer, 22, of Patriot, IN, won in a time of 36:55. Second in the women’s division was Sophia Delisio, 25, of Covington in 37:45 and third was Sam Mikula, 27, of Cincinnati in 38:08.

In the Toyota 10K handcycle division, Brayden Bastin, 19, of Okeana, OH was first with a time of 32:17. In the women’s handcycle division, Mikiahya Greene, 23, of Erlanger won in a time of 39:05.

In the Queen City Running 5K, William Doering, 32, of Fort Thomas defended his men’s division title in a time of 15:24, nearly 20 seconds better than his winning time in this event last year. Second was Jersson Pachar, 30, of Cincinnati, in 15:27. Pachar finished second in the Toyota 10K last year and also won the Flying Fur event in 2025. Third was Nolan Hefferman, 25, of Burlington, in 15:37.

For the women, Katie Ruhlman, 36, of Dayton, Ohio, won in 17:37, also defending her title from 2025. She also won the Thanksgiving Day Chick-fil-A 5K this past November. Second for the women was Hannah Wyler, 21, of Mineral City, Ohio, in 18:30 and third was Melanie Pliskin, 41, of Cincinnati, in 18:48. Among many other area races where she’s placed, in 2015 Pliskin won both the Flying Pig Friday Mile event and the Saturday 5K.

In this year’s Fifty West Mile Friday night, Mark Shannon, 26, of Twinsburg, OH won the elite men’s division in 4:15. Second was Elliot Rodstrom, 24, of Cleveland Heights in 4:17 and third was Nicky Alexander, 25, of London, OH in 4:17. In the women’s elite division, Liz Gurko, 26, of Cincinnati won in 5:05. Second was Shelby Nolan, 28, of Burlington in 5:07 and third was Katie Ruhlman, who won Saturday’s Queen City Running 5K. Ruhlman’s time in the mile was 5:07.

2026 Registration Numbers per Race: 45,197 (2025: 42,809) total participants

More News from Lebanon

• ODNR to host Earth Science Summer A series of events will celebrate America 250 and Collaborative Summer Library Program’s 2026 theme: “Unearth a Story”
• Mason Community Players: You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown Brings Joy to May There is still time to see "You're A Good Man Charlie Brown" this weekend.