50-year-old father to defend Twin Cities Marathon title

Mbarak Hussein is back.

The 50-year-old father won the men's masters race, which is the category for runners over 40, in last year's Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon. He crossed the finish line in two hours, 22 minutes and 26 seconds.

This year, he wants to defend his title, which he has also won four other times since 2005.

"It's a little hard now. I'm getting older," said Hussein, a Kenyan native who lives in New Mexico. "My goal is to win the masters. If things go very well I would like to qualify for the Olympic trials which is next year."

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His wife and son, who was born a few hours after Hussein won last year's race, will follow the race online from their home in Albuquerque.

When the 34th annual Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon gets underway on Sunday, Hussein will be among more than 20,000 runners expected to participate.

The forecast for Sunday is partly cloudy, with highs in the 60s. Thousands of spectators are expected to watch the race and cheer on their friends and families.

But the race will disrupt traffic along the 26.2-mile route.

Race-day traffic restrictions begin at 5 a.m. on Sunday at the race start at 6th Street and Portland Avenue near the U.S. Bank Stadium. Roads from 5th Avenue to 11th Avenue and from 6th Street to 3rd Street will be closed from 5 a.m. for start line setup, and will reopen around 9 a.m.

Along the marathon route, a slew of roads will be closed, with streets reopening on a rolling basis.

The marathon course passes the chain of lakes and follows Minnehaha Parkway, goes east to West River Parkway, crosses the Mississippi River on Franklin Avenue, and then continues on Summit Avenue before finishing at the Capitol grounds.

A complete list of street closures can be found on the race website.