Margaret Okayo was a dominant force in the marathon: She won the New York City Marathon in 2001 and 2003—setting a course record of 2:22:31 that still stands—and also racked up two San Diego Marathon wins and one victory each at the Boston, London, and Milan marathons. That record of seven wins in major world marathons shows extraordinary consistency. In her five finishes at the New York City Marathon, Okayo never finished lower than fifth place.

Okayo also showed a remarkable ability to bounce back from disappointments. Forced to drop out of the Chicago Marathon in 2001 due to dehydration, she came back to win the New York Marathon less than a month later. Similarly, she rebounded from a sub-par 2002 New York City Marathon to win the Milan Marathon within a month.