Caldwell again leads Coweta runners at Peachtree Road Race
From Staff Reportssports@newnan.com
In Atlanta, the Fourth of July means baseball, apple pie, fireworks and of course, the annual Peachtree Road Race.
For running enthusiasts in Coweta County, there’s no exception.
For at least the second consecutive year, Newnan resident Mike Caldwell led Coweta runners by finishing 206th overall in 36 minutes, 51 seconds. The 43-year-old placed 26th overall in the men’s Masters division. Newnan had 401 recorded finishers in the field.
Steven Bothe, 36, also of Newnan, was the next local finisher to cross while placing 240th in 37:26.
The top local female finisher was Tiffany Bellucci. The 32-year-old finished first among 169 runners from Sharpsburg with a time of 45:39 while placing among the top 1,600 overall runners to cross.
Local runners ranged in age from at least five 10-year-old first-timers — Reagan Long, Sydney Marriaga, Gabe Gray, Parker Shelnutt and Anna Butler —to 85-year-old Sharpsburg resident Robert Bierman, who was making a return appearance.
Many Coweta residents ran the event as a family.
Peter Kirui of Kenya was the overall champion.
Kirui’s unofficial time of 27 minutes, 36 seconds ties the fourth-fastest time in race history. It is the first Peachtree victory for the 24-year-old.
The defending men’s champion, Sammy Kitwara of Kenya, finished eighth.
The top women’s racer was Mamitu Daska of Ethiopia, who also claimed her first victory in the 6.2-mile race on Wednesday. Daska’s unofficial time was 32 minutes and 21 seconds.
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TOP COWETA FINISHERS BY CITY
NEWNAN MEN
Place, Name, Age, Time
206 – Mike Caldwell, 43, 36:51
240 – Steve Bothe, 36, 37:26
377 – Shawn McKinnon, 40, 39:04
933 – Dennis Williamson, 40, 43:06
1385 – Jon Clifford, 37, 45:02
NEWNAN WOMEN
5188 – Amy Cox, 40, 52:28
5412 – Robin Osborn, 53, 52:46
6000 – Asia Johnson, 22, 53:29
6372 – Sara Mead, 30, 53:58
6910 – Carly Alford, 26, 54:34
SHARPSBURG MEN
2279 – Austin Freeman, 18, 47:32
2493 – Jim Gibbons, 55, 48:00
2526 – Kevin Middlebrooks, 29, 48:05
3792 – Scott Woodward, 31, 50:23
4116 – Brandon Barber, 19, 50:55
SHARPSBURG WOMEN
1544 – Tiffany Bellucci, 32, 45:39
7553 – Rachel Johnson, 30, 52:13
8389 – Brooke Barber, 12, 56:03
12231 – Gayle Bell, 21, 59:26
14848 – Meghan Kearney, 29, 1:01.28
SENOIA
Men – Jay Hudson, 44, 47:39
Women – Gloria Burns, 55, 53:10
GRANTVILLE
Men – Charles Brower, 51, 49:04
Women – Heather Smith, 41, 1:22:30
