Running News Daily

Why Benson Kipruto is Kenya’s best bet for marathon gold at Paris 2024 Olympics

Pulse Sports details the reasons that make 2024 Tokyo Marathon champion Benson Kiptruto Kenya’s best bet for marathon gold at the Paris Olympics.

Tokyo Marathon champion Benson Kipruto appears to be the early favorite to win Kenya gold at the Paris Olympics given his recent form.

Kipruto is still basking in the glory of his win in Tokyo last week when he clocked 2:02:16 to break the course record ahead of countrymen Timothy Kiplagat (2:02:55) and Vincent Ngetich (2:04:18).

That was Kipruto’s fourth win in his last seven marathons, having also won in Prague and Boston in 2021 and Chicago in 2022. During that period, the 32-year-old has also not finished outside the top three, third in Boston in 2022 and 2023, as well as a second place in Chicago last year.

Looking at the provisional Team Kenya marathon team to Paris Olympics selected last December, only Kelvin Kiptum had better numbers, but the world marathon record holder is now deceased, which leaves Kipruto with a head start.

Kenya’s provisional squad of 10 had Kipruto, Kiptum, two-time Olympics champion Eliud Kipchoge, Ngetich, Timothy Kiplagat, Bernard Koech, two-time New York Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor, Cyprian Kotut, 2022 London Marathon champion Amos Kipruto and Titus Kipruto.

With Athletics Kenya (AK) making their selection based on World Athletics Road to Paris Marathon Rankings, two-time Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet and Alexander Mutiso, third in Valencia in 2:03:29 on his debut in 2022, winner in Prague last year (2:05:09), before second place in Valencia 2023 (2:03:11) did not make the team.

Mutiso had not run Valencia when the team was unveiled while Chebet has been very consistent. After his marathon debut in 2013 in Seoul (2:11:26), Chebet has managed top four placings in all 15 marathons he has finished, including six wins and six runner-up finishes.

He won in Boston and New York in 2022 before defending his Boston title and he will be back again in April in a bid to make it three straight wins.

Athletics Kenya has yet to indicate if there will be alterations to the team in light of Kiptum’s demise, which could give Chebet or Mutiso a ticket to the Olympics, if they do well in Boston and London respectively next month.

If AK sticks to the original list, then Kipruto will be seen as the hot favourite given the recent form of defending champion Kipchoge.

Kipchoge finished a disappointing 10th in Tokyo after clocking 2:06:50, having come in as favorite following his win in Berlin last year (2:02:42) and the fact that he also won in the Japanese capital in 2021 (2:02:40).

However, his sixth place in Boston last year (2:09:23), which was blamed on the lack of pacemakers and the hilly course, and the latest in Tokyo prove that he is human after all, hence the need to look beyond him for gold in Paris.