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Boston Marathon Winner Desiree Linden Waited for Shalane Flanagan During Bathroom Break

On her way to winning Monday's Boston Marathon, Desiree Linden stopped and waited as a fellow elite women's runner from the U.S. stopped for a bathroom break.

Shalane Flanagan, who grew up in Marblehead, Massachusetts, was seen veering off the race track and into a portable toilet. Jonathan Gault of LetsRun.com clocked her pit stop at just 13.86 seconds.

Linden stayed behind as Flanagan caught up.

"Des Linden is kind of waiting back for her, almost to say, 'Hey, catch up to me, and then we'll catch up together,'" an NBC Sports commentator said. Another replied that it was "tremendous sportsmanship."

The elite women's winner later told NBC Sports that helping Flanagan proved beneficial to herself.

"I said, 'If there's anything I can do to help you out, let me know, because I might just drop out,'" Linden said. "Helping her helped me, and I kind of got my legs back from there."

Linden is the first U.S. woman to win the Boston Marathon in 33 years, finishing with an unofficial time of 2 hours, 39 minutes and 54 seconds.

Flanagan, the winner of the 2017 New York City Marathon, placed sixth among the elite women in Boston with an unofficial time of 2 hours, 46 minutes and 31 seconds.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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