Manhattan man, 39, takes first Suffolk County Marathon men's title

Chao Zhou, 39, of Manhattan, won the inaugural Suffolk County Marathon in 2:46:50 on Sunday, crossing the finish line at a sun-soaked Heckscher State Park a little after 10:45 a.m.

Zhou said he found out about the marathon through a website five months ago and wanted to run it because it was the inaugural marathon. 

"It was great," Zhou said of the event. "The course was pretty flat, and the people were friendly." 

Zhou said the marathon was his 11th, and his first win. His previous best finish was third place.  He's run the Long Island Marathon three times.