Rudel wins Abbott Dash 5K in 15:35 for third straight win

Rachael Rudel won the Abbott Dash To The Finish 5K in 15:35, pulling away from runner-up Josette Andrews, who ran 15:41. It is her third straight road win, per CITIUS MAG.

David Monti reports the 32 year old has now made eight road race podiums in 2026, including four wins and one national title. CITIUS MAG lists top three finishes at Bolder Boulder, the Boston 10k and the U.S. 4 mile champs earlier in the year, then back to back to back wins at the U.S. 20k champs, the Boston 5k for Women and now Abbott.

"This is a fun year," Rudel told Monti. "I'm trying to see what I can do, and it's just like worked out really well."

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This is a fun year

The training behind it

In an interview with LetsRun, Rudel said she took eight years off competitive running before this comeback. She started working with her coach, David, in February, and she is now building toward roughly 70 miles a week, more than double what she was running when they started. She works in construction tech for a fully remote company, and she credits the mental side and the support around her as much as the mileage.

She also said she had not raced a 5K at sea level outside Colorado before this one, which makes the 15:35 a first attempt as much as a result.

What is next

Rudel told LetsRun she wants to get back on the track for the 10,000m, the event she ran in college. The marathon is not on the list yet. She said it is the one thing she is not itching to do.

What it actually means is simple enough. A runner who was unknown to elite road racing fans a year ago is now winning national level 5Ks off a training block that is still ramping up, and the ceiling has not been tested. Her coach, she said, told her early on that reshaping her training would be like taking someone straight out of high school.