Former UMKC, Mizzou runners are overall winners at 2023 Garmin Kansas City Marathon
.jpg "Jason Fambrough, at left, and Samantha Famer were Saturday’s overall men’s and women’s winners in the 2023 Garmin Kansas City Marathon.")
The 2023 Garmin Kansas City Marathon began with a literal bang.
Fireworks illuminated the sky around 7 a.m. Saturday as the annual event commenced near the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.
Soon, runners started their quest to conquer one of four road courses: the 5k, 10k, half-marathon or behemoth marathon.
Entrants participated for various reasons. Some even arrived from around the globe to challenge their personal best or simply have a good time.
The winners of the namesake 26.2-mile marathon were local. Jason Fambrough, a native of Mission and former collegiate runner at UMKC, won the men’s race, while former Missouri Tiger Samantha Farmer took home the women’s title.
Fambrough finished in 2 hours, 28 minutes, 43 seconds, just ahead of runner-up Griffin Humphreys. The victory served as vindication after Fambrough finished second here in 2021.
“I had a little bit of unfinished business this year,” he said. “I really wanted to get that win.”
Fambrough, 27, credited the victory to his training partner. He said the duo worked relentlessly to stay fit and get ready for Saturday’s grueling competition.
Fambrough said the course’s long stretch near Ward Parkway was difficult, but he knew the goal was to finish in victory lane.
“I have a friend that is training for the Olympic Marathon trials,” he said. “He is faster than me and I just tried to hold onto him during all the workouts. That usually gets me pretty fit and that was my plan.”
Fambrough outpaced last year’s winning time. In fact, five of Saturday’s finishers bested Kyle Baldwin’s 2022 pace of 2:42:58.
Farmer, a 26-year-old from Columbia, also had a special morning. She cruised to victory with a final time of 2:48:28 in just her second marathon.
Farmer finished more than 24 minutes ahead of second-place runner Holly Rozelle.
“It feels really good,” Farmer said. “I have been training for so long and it all came together today. It’s a really good feeling. It’s a tough course and really hilly. The last four (miles) was downhill and that helped a lot. The crowd was awesome coming in.”
Farmer said she had been training for months. She said she ran 60-70 miles per week to prepare. Her training also included multiple track and tempo runs.
“I ran track and cross country at Mizzou,” Farmer said. “This is a whole different ball game with the marathon.”
Farmer, who starred at Rock Bridge High before competing at nearby MU, has experience in multiple events. She ran the 6,000 meters in cross country and was a mile runner in track and field.
Along with being just her second marathon ever, Saturday’s race was Farmer’s first KC marathon. She was ecstatic to share the victory with family and friends.
“It really helped me finish strong,” she said.
The KC marathon celebrated anyone who crossed the finish line. All entrants earned medals for their participation, not to mention the appreciation of perhaps several thousand well-wishers in attendance.
“This is a bigger event with more people spectating and racing,” Fambrough said. “It’s great to see in Kansas City.”
This story was originally published October 21, 2023 at 3:04 PM.
