Oz Pearlman Wins His Fourth Hamptons Marathon, Over 1,100 Finish Slate of Races

Oz Pearlman’s summer of running has apparently carried over into the fall.

Pearlman completed a roughly 130-mile continually run trek from the Montauk Point Lighthouse to Times Square in Manhattan in 24 hours. The New York City resident who has a home in Southampton Village also won the Firecracker 8K in July, and back in April, Pearlman ran 19 loops of Central Park, a total of 116 miles, setting the record for most loops completed in the New York City park in a single day.

On Saturday, Pearlman added yet another feather in his cap by winning the 15th annual Hamptons Marathon in his home-away-from-home Southampton in 2:40:56, finishing with a mile pace of 6:09. It’s the fourth Hamptons Marathon title for Pearlman, his first since 2014, having also won it in back-to-back years in 2008 and 2009 — he set a course record of 2:37:50 in 2008. It’s also Pearlman’s first victory since the venue moved from the Springs School in East Hampton to the Southampton Intermediate School, and as the mentalist and mind reader by trade joked, himself, it’s his first victory in the master’s division, having turned 40 this past July.

“Well, I ran from Montauk to Manhattan a month ago — 130 miles — which is like five of these, [on the] hottest day of the summer. This fell a little short, but this is much faster,” he explained after his win. “Last couple of miles were hard, but being a part-time resident of Southampton, this is amazing.

“I live half a mile from here, I ran here this morning,” Pearlman added. “This is like a home course. Every road during this run is something I run all summer and weekend. It’s a fun weekend with the family. My wife, my kids — Theo, Louis, Esme — my dad, all came out. Hearing them cheer always pumps me up, so this is great.”

Justin Peroff, 26, of New York City, finished second in the 26.2-mile race in 2:47:55. Pearlman said at about 15 miles, when he did the turn around Meadow Lane, Peroff was roughly 4 minutes behind him, and he had to decide then and there if he wanted to continue his winning pace, or let off the gas a little bit.

“It’s kind of one of those judgment calls where I still felt good,” Pearlman explained. “Last couple of miles are just, you know, digging deep where experience, even though I’m hurting, keeps it going. Looked over my shoulder a bunch of times, which I don’t like to do. If it came down to the wire, I hoped I had something left. I’ve had a lot of last minute nail-biters in my day.”

Carlos Glave, 38, of New York City placed third overall in 2:48:58, Kevin Collins, 36, of Orefield, Pennsylvania, finished fourth in 2:56:23, and Garrett Hill, 46, of the Bronx, rounded out the top five, crossing the finish line in 2:57:43.

Sarah Cottone, 28, of East Setauket was the female champion of the marathon, finishing in 3:11:31, a 10-minute improvement and new personal best. It was the second time Cottone had run in the Hamptons Marathon, the first time she picked up a win.

A runner throughout her high school and collegiate years at Ward Melville and SUNY Oneonta, Cottone shared an emotional moment with friends and family after finishing the race and said it takes a lot mentally just to finish a marathon.

“You definitely go through a lot of stages throughout the race depending on what mile you’re at,” she said. “You get to, like, mile 19, 20, the pain really starts to set in, so you’re just playing a mental game at that point. By the time you’re at 23, you’re just pushing and trying not to think about the pain.”

Overall, though, Cottone loves running, particularly on the East End, and said she wouldn’t be surprised if she returns next year to defend her title.

“I love this course, it’s a beautiful course,” she said. “Having fun is important and I feel like I can really have fun here because the water is beautiful. Passing the ocean, seeing the monarch butterflies brings me so much joy. I love it here.”

The Hamptons Marathon slate of races also includes a half-marathon as well as a 5K. Dominic Kiralyfi, 31, originally from London, but who now calls New York City home, won the half-marathon in a personal best 1:10:25, setting a blistering mile pace of 5:23. Alex Petrecca, 25, of Fairfield, Connecticut, finished second in 1:11:46 and Tilak Datta, 19, of Edison, New Jersey, placed third in 1:13:53.

Kiralyfi said he is training for the upcoming New York City Marathon, but wanted to get in a quicker race as part of his training regimen.

“It’s an amazing course because it’s pretty much flat all around,” he said. “You get some headwinds at the end, but no, it’s a great race and me and the guy in second were battling it out the first 6 miles.”

Corinne Fitzgerald, who placed second among women in the half-marathon in 2019, returned to champion this year’s race, crossing the finish line in 1:23:12. The Manhattan resident said she typically competes in the race most years as part of an early birthday celebration, with her upcoming 31st birthday on September 30.

“I love it so much because it’s such a community run,” she said. “We end up making friends on the course and it’s super fun.”

Will Friedlander, 30, of New York City won the 5K in 18:15 and Stephanie Popovitch, 25, of Medford, came in right after him as the female champion in 18:20.

Full results of all races can found at areep.com/results.php.

According to the results, 1,107 runners finished the full slate of races on Saturday with 729 finishing the half-marathon, 198 in the 5K and 180 in the full marathon. That overall number is slightly down from the 1,400 or so who welcomed the races back to in-person running last October. The races were about three weeks earlier this year.

Between the Hamptons Marathon and its parade of races and the Bridgehampton Half Marathon in May, the Run The Hamptons group, headed by Amanda Moszkowski and Diane Weinberger, has donated over $750,000 to its official charity partners throughout its 15 years, which include Stony Brook Southampton Hospital, Southampton Educational Foundation, Southampton Youth Services, the Southampton Volunteer Ambulance Corps, the Bridgehampton School and the Bridgehampton Museum.

Whether or not Pearlman plans on returning for next year’s race, already set for September 23, 2023, to try and win a fifth Hamptons Marathon, is, in his own words, “TBD.”

“You never know. I hope so," he said. “I just try and stay fit. Health is wealth, right? Every year I run a marathon I feel good, lucky to win it. It’s a matter of who comes in, what kind of day you have."