ANCHORAGE — Nina Kemppel is making a triumphant return home, armed with an MBA, a killer resume that includes consultant work for Fortune 500 companies and a new job as the CEO and president of the Alaska Humanities Forum.

So of course her first interview upon arriving home is with a sportswriter.

Kemppel, for those who need reminding, was the original Kikkan Randall.

SEWARD, Alaska — Looking gritty in pink, Kikkan Randall and Holly Brooks staged one of the most stirring duels in Mount Marathon history Monday, running neck-and-neck almost the entire way in the 84th edition of Alaska’s most famous footrace.

In the end, it was Randall who emerged a first-time winner after pulling away from Brooks in the final few hundred yards of the 3 1/2-mile run up and down the 3,022-foot peak.

Eric Strabel, a four-time runner-up, won the race for the men.