US Olympic triathlon superstar clocks LIGHTNING half marathon PB in Houston as records are SMASHED

The fact Morgan Pearson described his performance in Sunday’s Houston Half Marathon as ‘a medium result’ tells you all you need to know about his run ability and aspirations.

The 31-year-old, twice a Mixed Relay medal winner for the US at the Olympic Games (most recently at Paris 2024), has shown time and again that his run is a lethal weapon in swim/bike/run combat. And it allows him to match up pretty well with some of the very best runners around.

Pearson was out again on Sunday in Texas, and started 2025 by lowering his half marathon PB on a day where times where lightning fast.

Pearson sets new half marathon PB

Morgan shaved seven seconds off his previous best (set in last year’s Valencia Half) by coming home in a time of 1:01:01. That was good enough for a 15th-place finish.

As stated though, Pearson was not wholly satisfied with that performance – he had been looking for even better returns going into the race.

Writing in a post on his Instagram account, he said: “Medium result for me in Houston today. 1:01:01 for 15th place over all. Was hoping for a bit more but my legs just weren’t there 😩”

Continuing his post-race debrief, Morgan admitted he had been inspired by the performance of another American star – 28-year-old Conner Mantz. He smashed the 18-year-old record of Ryan Hall (59:43) – set in this very race back in 2007.

Mantz just missed out on victory, clocking the same 59:17 time as winner Addisu Gobena but being pipped in a thrilling photo finish.

Pearson will next take in a cycling race in Colorado to sharpen his bike skills ahead of the first WTCS race of 2025 in Abu Dhabi next month.

The US women’s half marathon record also fell on a spectacular day of action in Houston, with Weini Kelati lowering her own mark by 16 seconds to come home in a time of 1:06:09. She also grabbed second place overall, behind brilliant Ethiopian teenager Senayet Getachew.

The half marathon and marathon landscape is fascinating from a triathlon perspective in 2025 – it’s not just Morgan hitting the headlines. Olympic king Alex Yee is preparing for the London Marathon in April and likely to take in a half before that.