Eleven Men Break Four Minutes, Led By Ellis' 3:55.30; Hazem Miawad, McKenna Keegan Win 800s

By Oliver Hinson of DyeStat

John Nepolitan PHOTOS

Sam Ellis broke the tape in the men’s mile at the Monmouth Mile on Friday evening, running 3 minutes, 55.30 seconds to beat Under Armour Dark Sky’s Sair Salgado and earn his first win of the 2026 season.

The field went out in 1:58 for the first half mile, then slowed in the third lap. Ellis’s kick over the last 150 meters propelled him to the win.

The 27-year-old has had a rough go of it in the last month. He initially qualified for the final of the men’s 1,500 meters at the USATF Outdoor Championships but was disqualified for jostling; as he phrased it on Instagram, “Gotta learn to keep my hands to myself.” 

He finished 13th in his next race in Belgium, then took ninth at Stumptown Twilight in Portland just a few days after announcing his move to the Atlanta Track Club. Friday’s race was a much more encouraging start to his time in Atlanta, which is close to his hometown of Decatur, Ga.

After Salgado (3:55.83), Ben Allen (3:55.95, third), Charlie O’Donovan (3:56.23, fourth) and Austen Dalquist (3:56.51, fifth) rounded out the top five. Further down in the results, Christian Brothers Academy alumnus Tim McInerney broke 4:00 for the first time in his career — on his former home track, no less — becoming the second runner in CBA history after Tim Gorman to achieve the milestone. 11 men broke four minutes in Friday’s field, bringing the total number of sub-4 performances in meet history to 41.

Meanwhile, Hazem Miawad took control of the men’s 800 meters, surging past Atlanta Elite’s Rynard Swanepoel to cross the line in 1:46.22 and put a win on the board for Empire Elite.

Friday’s race was the second win of Miawad’s season, one that has been rewarding for the 29-year-old. Miawad broke 1:46 for the first time last month at the Penn Relays Summer Showcase, running 1:45.73 at the Ott Center.

Last year, Miawad took fifth in the 800 at this meet. 

ASICS’ McKenna Keegan won the women’s 800 in 2:00.55, keeping her momentum rolling in what has been a stellar stretch to end her track season. Keegan passed Atlanta Elite’s Olivia Baker in the final lap and closed in just over 61 seconds, winning by nearly a second and a half over Swoosh TC’s Christina Aragon.

Keegan ran a personal best 1:58.54 at the Meeting Lignano in Italy in early July; she won that race by over a second. She also earned wins this outdoor season at the Copenhagen Athletics Games (1500), Down the Stretch Track Fest (Mile), and Penn Relays (800).