An American runner has not won the men’s race of the Boston Marathon since Meb Keflezighi broke the tape on Boylston Street in 2014. But 28-year-old Conner Mantz came very close to accomplishing the feat on Monday — ultimately finishing fourth in the 129th edition of the storied race with a final time of 2:05:08. Mantz’s time is the second-fastest time ever run by an American at the Boston Marathon — just 10 seconds short of Ryan Hall’s 2:04:58 finish during the 2011 race. Kenya’s John Korir won the men’s elite division with a sterling time of 2:04:45, standing as the second-fastest winning time in the race’s history. “You always have a goal to win, but the goal was to prove that I could be in a position to win,” Mantz said after the race. “And that was being on the podium. Because people who are consistently on the podium eventually win things like this. “So missing it and getting out kicked the last 300 meters is a little bitter. But it was still probably my best race I’ve had, and so I was very happy about that.” Expectations were high for Mantz entering Monday’s race, especially after establishing himself as the top U.S. distance runner during the 2024 Summer Olympics. Here are five things to know about Mantz after an impressive performance on Monday: Mantz shattered his personal record in the marathon on Monday Despite missing the podium at the 2025 Boston Marathon by just four seconds, Mantz put together the best performance of his already impressive career on Patriots Day. Even with all of the challenges presented by the hilly terrain stretched across the Boston Marathon’s 26.2-mile course, Mantz blew past his previous career-best performance in the marathon — with his 2:05:08 showing surpassing his previous PR (2:07:47, 2023 Chicago Marathon) by well over two minutes. In his last showing at the Boston Marathon, Mantz finished 11th overall in the 2023 race with a time of 2:10:25. Mantz (along with fellow BYU alums Clayton Young and Rory Linkletter) remained in the lead pack alongside Korir for a majority of Monday’s race, but were unable to keep pace with Korir once he made his move to separate from the field with about six miles to go. “The last 1000 [meters] when there were just three of us, I made my hard move, and they responded as if I wasn’t even making a move,” Mantz said of the final stretch of the race. “So it was a little bit humbling. “And then I was hoping that when we got to 26 miles, I could go again, but you know, I was pushing into the ground, and it just felt like the ground was not pushing back to me. So a little bit tough to swallow.” Still, Mantz’s final mark stands as the best finish for a U.S. runner in the men’s field since Shadrack Biwott finished third at a rainy 2018 Boston Marathon with a time of 2:18:35. Despite finishing just 10 seconds short of Hall’s all-time record for a U.S. runner in Boston, neither Mantz nor Hall’s times are eligible for an American record as Boston’s unique course layout and varied elevation make performances during the race ineligible for major records. Mantz is a U.S. record holder in one race Mantz’s performance on Monday may not be etched in the record books, but the Utah native does stand alone in one race. During the 2025 Houston Half Marathon in January, Mantz finished with a time of 59:17, breaking the record for the fastest time set by an American (Ryan Hall, 59:43) in 2007. Just a few weeks later, he posted an even better time during the New York City Half Marathon (59:15), although that course was not eligible for the record books. That record-breaking performance in Houston served as the ideal lead-in for Mantz ahead of Boston, where he acknowledged his desire to become the first U.S. men’s victor in 11 years. “I think there’s a possibility for this year,” Mantz said in a podcast interview with Citius Magazine of winning Boston. “In the future… I’m pretty confident that one day I can do it.” Mantz was the top American marathoner at 2024 Summer Olympics Mantz had a valid reason for missing out on the 2024 Boston Marathon: He was just a few months removed from taking part in the Olympic marathon trials in Orlando. Mantz once again established himself as one of the top U.S. distance runners during that competition — winning the race and punching a ticket to the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris with a final time of 2:09:05. Just a few months later, Mantz was the top American finisher at the 2024 Men’s Marathon in Paris with an eighth-place time of 2:08:12. “It was a great race today,” Mantz told the Deseret News following his performance in the Olympics. “I had hoped to medal, but it didn’t happen today. I was happy I put myself in position to medal early on, but I think it is helping to prepare both of us [fellow Olympic Clayton Young] to go for a medal in L.A. in 2028. “I’m grateful for all the support I’ve had, from family and friends to training partners and coaches.” His 2023 Boston Marathon performance taught him a valuable lesson Despite his 11th-place finish at the 2023 Boston Marathon, Mantz has been candid about the struggles that presented themselves down the stretch in that race. He told the Deseret News that he nearly blacked out over the final mile of the course after pushing too hard in the first 15 miles to keep pace with the leaders. “I’ve been haunted ever since by that race,” Mantz told Doug Robinson. “It’s something I’ve had to deal with in every marathon since then. I’ve really worried about blowing up again. … “In the last two miles, I saw stars. I looked at my watch and things started to go black. I had tunnel vision. “If I slowed down, my vision would kind of come back. There were a few moments where I started to black out. I pretty much walked at one point. I thought, if I don’t finish, I don’t get anything.” After that difficult end in Boston, Mantz focused more on not exhausting all of his energy in the early goings of a marathon — a task that is easier said than done, as BYU track coach Ed Eyestone told the Deseret News. “He takes (rivals) into the Mantz Zone, or the Mantz Pain Chamber. He can handle running a race up front at a high intensity,” Eyestone said. “He has a high tolerance for pain.” He took a break from competitive running to become a missionary Ahead of an illustrious collegiate career at BYU, Mantz took a two-year hiatus from running in order to serve as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ghana. Even with his extended break from competitive athletics, Mantz believes his time spent in Africa gave him a critical perspective before he rose through the ranks as one of the top U.S. distance runners. “It taught me athletics and sports, it can’t be something that defines you. Because, to be quite honest, most people don’t care,” Mantz told The Guardian of his two-year tenure in Ghana. “I love this sport. I have so much fun doing it. But there’s so much more important things in this life.” View this post on Instagram