INDIANAPOLIS — Bettering the American record* in the men's half marathon by 26 seconds, Conner Mantz (Provo, UT/USATF Utah) earned recognition as the second USATF Athlete of the Week award winner for 2025. Mantz, eighth in the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, overcame chilly and very windy conditions at the Aramco Houston half Marathon to clock 59:17 and narrowly miss out on the win in a photo finish with Ethiopia's Addisu Gobena, who was also timed in 59:17. Mantz bettered the ratified American record of 59:43 that was set at Houston by Ryan Hall in 2007. Going past the 5km mark in 14:02 and 10km in 28:01, Mantz bettered the AR in the 15km with a 42:05 split that was 17 seconds faster than the ratified AR of 42:22 by Todd Williams in 1995. Keeping up the torrid pace through 20km, Mantz also bettered the AR at that distance, his 56:23 chopping 25 seconds off Dathan Ritzenhein's ratified AR of 56:48 in 2009. Jostling with Gobena as both men lunged at the finish line, Mantz was beaten by hundredths of a second in one of the closest half marathon finishes ever. Other top performances from last week:
Weini Kelati bettered her own American record in the women's half marathon by 16 seconds at Houston with a 66:09 to place second.
Josh Hoey bettered the American indoor record in the men's 1000 at Penn with a 2:14.48 that was only .28 off the world record. He clipped 1.68 seconds off the ratified AR.
Tinoda Matsatsa of Georgetown set a collegiate record in the men's 1000 at Penn State, moving to No. 6 on the all-time U.S. performer list with a 2:16.84.
Andrew Salvodon set a national high school indoor record in the 500 with a 1:00.49 at the VA Showcase, taking .76 seconds off the previous best.
Jenoah McKiver of Florida ran the fastest time ever for 600 yards, a 1:05.75 at Texas Tech to take more than a second off the previous world best. He also improved the American best by almost two seconds.
*All records subject to verification by the USATF Records Committee. Now in its 24th year, USATF’s Athlete of the Week program is designed to recognize outstanding performers at all levels of the sport. USATF names a new honoree each week when there are high-level competitions and features the athlete on USATF.org. Selections are based on top performances and results from the previous week. 2025 Winners: January 15, Zariel Macchia; January 22, Conner Mantz. We welcome your nominations! To nominate an athlete for USATF Athlete of the Week, please send a detailed email about their performance to communications@usatf.org. Join the conversation with USATF on X, Instagram, and Facebook using the hashtag #USATF. Photo Credit: Kevin Morris