Honolulu, HI.—12 Olympians and four world champions will lineup tomorrow morning for the ninth Kalakaua Merrie Mile along Waikiki Beach. It’s the Kickoff event to the 2025 Honolulu Marathon weekend which is celebrating its 53rd running on Sunday morning.

In its Chase format—where race officials provide the professional women a head-start and the men try to run them down—the women’s division will take off with 31-seconds in hand, one second less than in 2024.

Last year the women’s division provided the overall champion for the first time when Nikki Hiltz blazed across the line in 4:28:39, barely edging Weni Kelati (4:28.49) and Sinclaire Johnson (4:28.54), with top man Hobbs Kessler coming hard in fourth, another whisker back. 

With a 32-second margin to make up, Kessler’s 3:56.51 just missed the podium. 

This year, for the first time, both genders will have a pacer to lead them out. For the women Canada’s Aurora Rynda from the Very Nice Track Club in Michigan will take them to the half in 2:13 which is relatively conservative compared to the men’s halfway split of 1:54–1:55.

It was interesting how the managers coaches and athletes negotiated the split times in an open forum at the technical meeting at the Outrigger Reef Hotel overlooking the wide Pacific Ocean. 

Initially, the men thought 1:55 might do. But then someone in the back of the room suggested 1:54 and the others agreed. But you can see where that comes from. 2025 World Indoor 800m champion Josh Hoey just ran a world indoor record last weekend at Boston University over 600 meters (1:12.74). That’s three straight 24-second 200s. A 57-second quarter is going to feel like sleepwalking. But we are going a mile, not 600. 

Still, 2025 USA 800m champion Donovan Brazier just shook his head afterwards and said,”If they’re going 1:54, then I’m gonna have to give them some line and hope they overcook it.”

Last year, Nikki Hiltz ran a negative split to win the overall title. But that’s a dangerous tactic, because it will draw the men in closer earlier. It would take a 2:10 half for women to equate to a 1:55 for men.

No matter how fast the women can close, the men can close a lot faster. And this year, for the first time, the men will have a pacer. In the past, the women have served as the rabbits for the chasing men. Last year, Hobbs Kessler did all the work in the second half to win the men’s division and just miss the overall title. 

This year none of the guys will have to do any of the hard work upfront. They’ll have Abe Alvarado leading them out, perhaps the best pacer in the world right now. 

But that’s why we’re going to run the race, to find out who plays their cards best in this high stakes game of speed along Waikiki Beach. 

You can catch the action in a live stream it on Citius Mag and on the Honolulu Marathon YouTube channel. The race starts at 7 AM for the 3000 citizen runners.  The pro women take off at 7:45 am. The men 32 seconds later.

A prize of $10,000 will go to the champion, $5000 for a second $3000 for third. The top man or a woman who does not win the Chase will get an additional $2500. A world record will score an extra $10,000 bonus.

The current world records are 4:20.98 for women set by Diribe Welteji of Ethiopia at the World Road Mile championships in Riga, Latvia 2023. The men’s mark is 3:51.3 set by Eliott Giles from Great Britain in Düsseldorf in 2024.

MEN’S FIELD:
Donavan Brazier, USA, 15-Apr-1997, Nike Swoosh TC, 3:35.85, 3:59.30
Geordie Beamish, NZL, 24-Oct-1996, On Athletics Club, 3:34.47, 3:49.09
Vince Ciattei, USA, 21-Jan-1995, UA Dark Sky Distance, 3:31.67, 3:49.37
Neil Gourley, GBR, 7-Feb-1995, UA Dark Sky Distance, 3:30.60, 3:47.74
Ollie Hoare, AUS, 29-Jan-1997, On Athletics Club, 3:29.41, 3:47.48
Josh Hoey, USA, 1-Nov-1999, adidas, 3:29.75, 3:52.61
Hobbs Kessler, USA, 15-Mar-2003, adidas, 3:29.45, 3:46.90
Festus Lagat, KEN, 10-Oct-1996, UA Baltimore Distance, 3:29.03, 3:48.93
Yared Nuguse, USA, 1-Jun-1999, On Athletics Club, 3:27.80, 3:43.97
Nico Young, USA, 27-Jul-2002, adidas, 3:34.56, 3:50.89

WOMEN’S FIELD

Susan Ejore-Sanders, KEN, 9-Nov-1995, UA Dark Sky Distance, 3:56.07, 4:20.61
Nikki Hiltz, USA, 23-Oct-1994, lululemon, 3:55.33, 4:16.35
Sage Hurta-Klecker, USA, 23-Jun-1998, On Athletics Club, 4:01.79, 4:19.89
Sinclaire Johnson, USA, 13-Apr-1998, Nike Swoosh TC, 3:56.75, 4:16.32
Dani Jones, USA, 21-Aug-1996, New Balance, 4:00.64, 4:22.45
Weini Kelati, USA, 1-Dec-1996, UA Dark Sky Distance, 4:10.88, 4:28.49 road
Emily Mackay, USA, 30-Apr-1998, New Balance, 3:55.90, 4:23.79
Heather MacLean, USA, 31-Aug-1995, New Balance, 3:57.79, 4:17.01
Aurora Rynda (pacemaker), CAN, 26-Oct-2000, Very Nice Track Club, 4:17.77, 4:28.9 road
Nozomi Tanaka, JPN, 4-Sep-1999, New Balance, 3:59.19, 4:23.4 road