Mitch Klingler wins Detroit Free Press Marathon, denies Corby three-peat

Novi's Ryan Corby nearly made it a three-peat in the men's division at the Detroit Free Press Marathon on Sunday morning.

But his attempt was ended by Jackson's own Mitch Klinger, who finished first with a time of 2 hours, 22 minutes and 51 seconds.

For the 31-year-old Klinger, it was his first time ever running the marathon that took place in downtown Detroit, as he said it was cool to get a victory in his home state.

"I got hooked onto two marathoners for the first 15, 16 miles then I tried to make a move when I felt a tailwind," Klinger said. "I separated myself around the 16 and a half mile mark, and the rest was history."

One of those runners Klinger got hooked on in the beginning stage of the race was Corby, who ended up finishing second with a time of 2:26:02. Corby had won the last two men's marathons, including last year with a time of 2:24:28.

"I knew he was in the group of three of us, he knows the course well and I have respect for anyone that runs the full distance, I made sure not to mess around when I made my move, to make sure I was good for the rest of the field," Klinger said.

While he kept a decent pace the entire way through, Klinger said the last 3-4 miles were the toughest, with his body being done along with having tired legs for the final two miles. But when Klinger crossed the line in first around 9:23 a.m., he was excited to be done.

Kate Landau, of Tacoma, Washington, won the women's division in 2:50:06, followed by Marissa Ward of Maumee, Ohio, at 2:53:44 and Ann Arbor's Jennifer Prentice just seven seconds behind, at 2:53:51. Shannon Kohlitz of Ann Arbor finished fourth at 2:54:28 and Heidi Wobrock of Ferndale at 3:01:04.

"It was a really awesome race, I didn't feel good since I ran faster than I expected, I came out the first eight miles feeling good, then I was struggling," Landau said. "It was awesome because it was my top goal to win, not happy with how I raced, but happy to get the win."

The 47-year-old Landau had faced hamstring injuries over the past few years and began to look for races with prize money. Although she had never ran the Detroit marathon before, Landau said she came out of the race loving the city and the course's unique aspects such as running through the bridge to Canada.

"So many people out there for a marathon, lots of people cheering, and it was a great course," Landau said. "The temperature was perfect, no rain, it was just the wind that felt I bit off to me."

Marathon organizers enhanced the course, maintaining the route into Canada, and through areas of Detroit, including the Woodbridge neighborhood, District Detroit, Eastern Market, the Dequindre Cut and the finish line at Campus Martius.

The winner in the Open division for men and women each receives $3,000, along with a $1,500 prize for the second-place finisher, $1,000 for third place, $500 for fourth and $250 for fifth. In the Masters division, the winner in the male and female divisions each receives $1,500, with $750 for second place and $500 for third.

Kameron Goodwill is a freelance writer; Detroit News staff contributed.