HOUSTON, TEXAS, January 19 — After running an American Record 66:25 in her debut last year here in Houston, Weini Kelati is now 2-for-2 in her half-marathon career as she lowered her national record to 66:09 taking 2nd in this year’s race.
Nineteen-year-old Ethiopian Senayet Getachew surged away in the final kilometer to take the win in 66:05, with fellow Ethiopian Buze Diriba 3rd in 66:48.
After finishing 8th in the Olympic 10,00, the 28-year-old Kelati has started ’25 merging swiftly onto the roads. “It feels amazing to come back to Houston; last year was my debut and to run it again and improve my time feels great,” she said.
The ’19 NCAA 10,000 and cross country champ while at New Mexico, she hasn’t broken stride in her pro career. After gaining citizenship in ’21, Kelati has worked her way to the top tier of U.S. women distance runners, featuring on Team USA cross, track and road teams. Last year she dropped her track PRs to 14:35.43 and 30:33.82.
Kelati’s future may veer more so to the roads following the ARs in both of her HM efforts. This year’s was certainly an effort as she battled blustery weather, world-class competitors and some severe stomach cramps.
It was a very fast and hectic start with the elite half-marathoners hitting the road in the dark at 6:45. Kelati said afterwards, “At the start, I went out with the elite men’s racers and it was crazy as I tried to find a spot to run in without getting tripped. I was checking for [pacer] Abraham [Tesfamariam], he was looking out for me, but he was saying, ‘You’re going too fast, you got to slow down.’”
Kelati added, “The first 2K was fast and also very hard because it was really windy. Then at the turn we get the wind with us and I was like, ‘Oh, this feels good.’”
The petite Kelati followed Tesfamariam’s large frame across the 5K mat in 15:30 — 65:24 pace — with the talented pair of Ethiopians a stride back. A formidable duo, indeed: Getachew won the ’23 U20 World Cross title before focusing on track in ’24 and producing PRs of 8:32.49 and 14:37.38.
The 30-year-old Diriba placed 5th in the 5000 at the long ago World Championships of Moscow ’13, and in this race last year finished a second ahead of Kelati, then paced 4th in both the Boston and Chicago Marathons.
All three were full of run, and riding a tailwind, the already fast pace quickened with Kelati noting later, “We were running really well, I checked the 5-mile split and we were going under 5:00 pace. I thought, ‘Wow, this is great.’”
Crossing 10K in 30:50 the trio was on 65:03 pace, but Kelati was already coping with some stomach issues. “It started at 8K, and after passing 10K it almost stopped me at some point.
“Last year before Houston I was dealing with stomach problems in every workout, I’ve never had it before, and after that I haven’t had any problems until today.”
Tesfamariam eased up as Kelati worked through her discomfort, and led the trio across the 15K mat in 46:32 — 65:27 pace. Despite her duress, Kelati laid claim to the 15K AR, then added the 10M record, 50:05, into her Sunday morning long run.
Those records in hand, the runners took on some challenging headwinds that soon proved too much for Diriba, who fell behind even as Kelati and Getachew slowed to 3:15–3:20 Ks.
It got worse as Kelati’s stomach problems returned at 19K. “I felt really bad. I was struggling and trying to process it, and that’s when I got dropped and I see that she was pulling away from me and I can’t help it, I’m running as fast as I can.”
To her credit, Getachew picked the right time to strike. “The race was very tough but as we approached the finish I was able to really make a break,” she said. “I’m a track athlete, so I use the finishing kick that I use on the track.”
With that speed, she quickly built a 50-meter lead only to see Kelati close the gap over the final 400.
In the end, Kelati ran the table, collecting the half-marathon AR along with those for 15K, 10M and 20K (1:02:43) despite a few laments.
“I’ve been working really hard and feel I am in much better shape than last year,” she said. “Every time I checked the training splits, I was like a minute or 2 minutes PR in every workout.
“The best thing about today was that I was able to cope with the stomach problems and still hold onto a fast pace. If I can run this time that way, I feel pretty good because if I have a race with good health and good weather, I can perform better, much better.”
HOUSTON HALF WOMEN’S RESYKTS
1. Senayet Getachew (Eth) 66:05 (leader splits: 15:30, 15:20 [30:50], 15:42 [46:32], 16:11 [62:43], 3:42);
2. Weini Kelati (US) 66:09 AR (old AR 66:25 Kelati ’24);
3. Buze Diriba (Eth) 66:48; 4. Amanda Vestri (US) 67:35; 5. Natosha Rogers (US) 68:35; 6. Lauren Ryan (Aus) 68:43; 7. Emily Venters (US) 68:48; 8. Taylor Roe (US) 68:48; 9. Mercy Chelangat (Ken) 68:57; 10. Susanna Sullivan (US) 68:59;11. Jessica Warner-Judd (GB) 69:07; 12. Miriam Dattke (Ger) 69:09; 13. Lindsay Flanagan (US) 69:17; 14. Paige Wood (US) 69:20; 15. Diana Chepkorir (Ken) 69:24; 16. Jessica Gockley-Day (US) 69:37; 17. Aubrey Frentheway (US) 69:42; 18. Molly Bookmyer (US) 69:44; 19. Makena Morley (US) 70:04; 20. Megan Hasz (US) 70:13; 21. Amy Davis-Green (US) 70:27; 22. Jessie Cardin (US) 70:28; 23. Anne-Marie Blaney (US) 70:54; 24. Elena Hayday (US) 70:56; 25. Danielle Polerecky (US) 71:08.
