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Ethiopia’s Asefa Mengstu breaks Kenya’s Honolulu Marathon dominance

After sparring toe-to-toe for over half the race, Ethiopia’s Asefa Mengstu outpaced his cross-border Kenyan rival Barnabas Kiptum to cruise into Kapiolani Park and win the 50th anniversary Honolulu Marathon, breaking a long-standing Kenyan stranglehold of Hawaii’s flagship race.

Mengstu won in two hours, 14 minutes and 40 seconds with Kiptum second in 2:17:45, some 10 minutes ahead of third-placed Japanese Yuhi Yamashita (2:27:45) in the race run under brutally windy conditions.

Ethiopia’s Asayech Bere made it an Addis Ababa sweep taking the women’s title in 2:30:58 with her compatriot Abebech Afework Bekele (2:34:39) second and Japan’s Yuhi Yamashita third in 2:27:45.

Kenyan men had been unbeaten here since 2007, Ethiopia’s Ambesse Tolossa having interrupted the clean run by winning the 2006 edition.

Prior to that, Kenyans were unbeaten since Eric Kimaiyo took over as champion from South Africa’s Josiah Thugwane in 1996.

But it was Ibrahim Hussein, the legend, who made the breakthrough as the first African winner on this island city of O’ahu - birthplace of former US President Barack Obama - clinching a back-to-back hat-trick of victories from 1985 to 1987.

Sunday’s golden jubilee race started in it’s traditional night settings at 5am, local time, with spectacular fireworks and, as expected, it was the two Ethiopians, Mengstu and Shifera Tamru, who broke away together with Kiptum, crossing the 10-kilometre mark in 30 minutes and 30 seconds, paced by Kenya’s Reuben Kerio who is also preparing for next month’s Mumbai Marathon.

They then crossed the halfway mark in 1:06:38 under a slight drizzle at the Aina Haina sector after which pacemaker Kerio dropped off at the 30km mark (1:21:00).

There was drama shortly after when Kiptum and Mengstu dropped Tamru, racing on shoulder-to-shoulder as the sunrise launched in spectacular fashion at East O’ahu.

But at 33km, Mengstu broke away and ran a solo race all the way to the finish.

“It was a tough race… I’ve never competed under such tough conditions,” Mengstu said, referring to the furious headwind.

“My strategy was to attack at 35km and I was determined to win,” added Mengstu who trains under the Rosa Associati stable in Addis.

Kiptum was happy with his race, saying the atrocious winds slowed him down, but he remained confident of fighting for a place in Team Kenya to next year’s World Championships in Budapest.

“I ran in conditions similar to these in Hong Kong in 2018, but today’s wind was just too crazy,” he said.

“My body feels fine and I will now fight for a place in the team to the World Championships so that I can represent my country…

“I have what it takes, and I just have to throw in a race in spring and confirm my place in Kenya’s team to Budapest.”

Sunday’s golden Jubilee Honolulu Marathon celebrated the return of full racing and public events after two years of uncertainty occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic, much to the satisfaction of its long-standing President and CEO Jim Barahal.

After Kenya’s Titus Ekiru won back-to-back races here in 2018 and 2019, including setting a course record 2:07:59 in 2019, the race was held as a non-competitive event in 2020 due to the pandemic with Kenya’s Emmanuel Saina winning the title last year in 2:14:32.

Expect an Ethiopian Flavor For Sunday's 50th Honolulu Marathon

After a marathon journey to get to Hawaii, a quartet of Ethiopian runners are looking forward to making the most of their first visit to the Aloha State. The group of athletes, coached by Yirefew Birhanu Derb, will line up Sunday before dawn for the 50th running of the Honolulu Marathon, America's fourth-largest marathon. The race features a more robust elite athlete roster following last year's slimmed down line-up coming off the pandemic.

Shifera Tamru and Asefa Mengstu lead the men's elite field, while Abebech Afework and Bere Ayalew are the top entrants in the women's division. After a trip that required more than 21 hours of air travel across multiple flights --from their home base in Addis Ababa to Frankfurt, then Los Angeles before reaching Honolulu-- they arrived late Wednesday. They immediately popped into a McDonald's for dinner, and have been getting acclimated to the local time zone, 13 hours behind Ethiopia.

They were all very happy to be invited to this race because they know it's a very good marathon," Coach Derb told Race Results Weekly during a photo shoot for the athletes on Waikiki Beach. "They are looking forward to racing and happy to have the chance to visit Hawaii."

Tamru, 24, is coming off October  Chicago Marathon, where he clocked 2:07:53 to finish fifth for the second consecutive year. He says that he has recovered well and is ready to go for Sunday. He has won three marathons in his career, all in South Korea: Chunchon in 2018, Seoul in 2019 and Daegu this past April. His personal best of 2:05:18 came at the Dubai Marathon in 2019.

The more experienced Mengstu --who represented Ethiopia as far back as the 2010 IAAF Half Marathon Championships-- has a resume with 13 marathon finishes, including the 2018 Dubai Marathon, where ran his lifetime best of 2:04:06. His most recent race was eight months ago, so he should be well rested. "I'm happy to be here and I'm expecting to win the race on Sunday," he said with a quiet smile as the athletes posed for photographs and chatted with the media.

The two men work well together in training, Derb says. But on Sunday, he points out, "it must be a competition." In addition to each other, they will have to watch out for a strong Kenyan, 36-year-old Barnabas Kiptum, who has a personal best of 2:04:17 (Milan, 2021). He dropped out of the Chicago Marathon this fall, but in July he proved he is still a contender by placing 15th at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon. Stanley Biwott, the 2015 New York City Marathon champion with a 2:03:51 personal best, had planned to run here but scratched.

The women race is likely to come down to a duel between Afework and Ayalew. Like their male teammates, they also have a strong friendship and symbiotic relationship. "They are happy when they are training together, and they can help each other when they compete," Derb said.

Afework, 31, is by far the more seasoned of the two. Her international racing career dates back to the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, where she placed 18th. She has 20 marathon finishes to her name, and a personal best of 2:23:33 from Dubai in 2015. "I have a lot of experiences from other races and I'm expecting to use that previous experience to run well on Sunday," said Afework, who is coming off a DNF in October's Lisbon Marathon.

The 23-year-old Ayalew is a comparative novice, with four marathons in the books, but each one has been progressively faster. The most recent, in Eindhoven, Netherlands, in October, resulted in her quickest time yet (2:22:52). "My training has been good and I expect to show that on Sunday," she said.

The women's field also includes Canadian Olympian Lanni Marchant, who won this race a year ago on a short recovery from the New York City Marathon, and Japanese veteran Mai Ito (2:24:42 PB).

Should weather conditions cooperate --it's been very windy the last several days-- both the men's and women's course records could be in play. Titus Ekiru of Kenya holds the men's standard of 2:08:00 from 2019, while his compatriot Brigid Kosgei clocked 2:22:15 in 2017. (Kosgei set the current world record of 2:14:04 two years later.) Prize money will be paid three deep: $25,000-10,000-5,000.

The forecast for Sunday morning calls for a temperature of 74F/23C when the gun goes off at 5 a.m. Most of the race will be run in the dark, as the sun will rise just before 7 a.m. on race day.

Ethiopians And Kenyans Lead Elite Field at Historic 50th Honolulu Marathon

Athletes from Ethiopia and Kenya lead the elite field for the historic 50th edition of the Honolulu Marathon, scheduled for Sunday, December 11. Founded in 1973, and historically one of the five largest marathons in the United States based on finishers, this year's race will have its first full elite athletes program since 2019, paying prize money three-deep for both men and women: $25,000-10,000-5,000. The race will be run on its traditional course starting at Ala Moana Beach Park, making a loop through Downtown, wrapping around Diamond Head, going out along the Kalanianaole Highway to Hawaii Kai, then returning to Waikiki to finish in Kapiolani Park just after sunrise.

The race was held virtually in 2020 because of the pandemic, and had only a limited elite athlete program in 2021. Organizers are excited to have athletes this year who are strong enough to challenge the course records which were both set by Kenyans: 2:08:00 (2:07:59.02) by Titus Ekiru in 2019 and 2:22:15 by now world record holder Brigid Kosgei in 2017.

"We are excited to welcome top professional athletes to attack our incredible course records for the 50th anniversary race," said Honolulu Marathon Association President Dr. Jim Barahal. "At its core the Honolulu Marathon is an athletic competition, whether against others or against oneself, and we are excited to see what transpires on December 11."

Shifera Tamru is the leading entrant from Ethiopia. The 24 year-old has a personal best of 2:05:18 (Dubai, 2019) and has three marathon wins and five podium finishes in eight starts. He won the 2022 Daegu Marathon in Korea last April in 2:06:31, and was most recently fifth at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in October in 2:07:53. He'll be running the Honolulu Marathon for the first time.

His top rival is likely to be the Kenyan veteran Stanley Biwott, the 2015 TCS New York City Marathon champion who has a personal best of 2:03:51 (London 2016). Biwott, 36, has not completed a marathon since 2018 when he was fourth at the Abu Dhabi Marathon. He returned to racing after a long layoff earlier this year, clocking a 1:01:57 half-marathon in Padova, Italy. He has completed a total of 13 career marathons with four wins and eight podium finishes. Like Tamru, this will be his first run in Honolulu.

The other top contenders on the men's side are Asefa Mengstu of Ethiopia (2:04:06 personal best, Dubai, 2018) and Barnabas Kiptum of Kenya (2:04:17, Milano, 2021). Both men are veterans. Mengstu has completed 13 career marathons with 4 wins and 7 podium finishes. Kiptum has completed 18 marathons in 20 starts with 3 wins and 13 podium finishes. Neither man has ever run the Honolulu Marathon.

Two strong Ethiopian athletes lead the women's field. Abebech Afework (2:23:33 personal best, Dubai, 2015) and Bere Ayalew (2:22:52, Eindhoven, 2022) will both be making their Honolulu Marathon debuts. Afework, 31, is the more experienced athlete. She has completed 20 marathons in 21 starts, and has racked up three wins and seven podium finishes. She is coming back from a DNF at the Lisbon Marathon in October. Ayalew, 23, has only run four marathons. However, she's made the podium at all four including a second place finish at the Eindhoven Marathon in October of this year where she ran her personal best. Both athletes will be making their Honolulu Marathon debuts.

Reigning Honolulu Marathon champion, Lanni Marchant of Canada, is also in the field. The 38 year-old, who ran both the 10,000m and the marathon at the 2016 Rio Olympics, won last year's race in 2:41:25 on very limited training after finishing 11th at the TCS New York City Marathon a month before In her long marathon career, which began in 2011, Marchant has completed 15 marathons and made the podium three times. A criminal appeal lawyer based in Denver, she is the former Canadian record holder with a 2:28:00 personal best.

"It was a struggle out there," Marchant said after last year's race. "I dehydrated quick. Those last few miles I really had to find my purpose for running. I just got myself across the finish line."

Rounding out the elite field is Mai Ito of Japan. The 38 year-old --who competed in the 2016 Olympic Marathon and both the 2011 and 2015 World Championships Marathons-- has completed all 15 marathons she has started. Her personal best of 2:24:42 was set in Nagoya in 2015. This will be her first run ever at the Honolulu Marathon.

With strong fields, both course records are under threat at the Schneider Electric Marathon de Paris

Six months after its 46th edition, which was rescheduled due to the pandemic, the Paris event returns to its more usual place in the calendar.

The men’s line-up features six men who have already clocked sub-2:05 times, meaning the course record of 2:04:21 set by Elisha Rotich in 2021 could be improved.

Ethiopia’s Asefa Mengstu is the fastest man in the field courtesy of his 2:04:06 clocked in Dubai three years ago, but his compatriot Seifu Tura would look to be the favorite, having recently shown his good shape. The winner of the 2021 Chicago Marathon ran a half marathon personal best of 58:36 in February.

Tura’s marathon PB of 2:04:29 is 16 seconds faster than Hillary Kipsambu’s. The Kenyan, who turned 37 in February, will also be a serious threat. The Paris streets must be vivid in his memory, as he ran his PB of 2:04:44 last October in the French capital. On that occasion he placed third, finishing nine seconds ahead of Ethiopia’s Abayneh Degu, who set a PB of 2:04:53 that day and will also be in contention on Sunday.

Abayneh Degu and Deso Gelmisa will likely have a say as well. Degu ran 2:04:53 in Paris last year, while Gelmisa has a personal best of exactly the same time, run in Valencia in 2020.

Morhad Amdouni of France, who finished eighth at the 2020 World Athletics Half Marathon Championships, could target the French record of 2:06:36.

Julien Wanders will make his debut over the distance. The Swiss athlete is the European half marathon record-holder with 59:13.

The PB of Namibia’s Helalia Johannes – 2:19:52 set in 2020 – is more than a minute faster than the women’s course record set by Purity Rionoripo in 2017. Kenya’s Judith Jeptum should be the world bronze medallist’s main contender. Jeptum, who is 14 years younger than Johannes, proved her current form by clocking a half marathon PB of 1:05:28 one month ago.

The Kenyan is the third-fastest athlete in the elite women’s field with 2:22:30, 1:27 off Besu Sado’s personal best. The Ethiopian, who clocked that time of 2:21:03 in 2019, will also be looking for a top spot.

Not to be discounted are Ethiopia’s Tigist Abayechew and Beyenu Degefa. Abayechew has run 2:22:45 at her best, while her compatriot finshed third in Valencia in December in 2:23:04.

Previous champions will headline the men's and women's races at the 125th Boston Marathon

It’s official – Boston is back with 20,000 of the world’s best marathoners taking to the start line on Monday, Oct. 11. This year’s field is locked and loaded, for the first-ever fall edition of the marathon.

This race will feature a massive elite field of 140 athletes, headlined by previous champions Lelisa Desisa, Des Linden and Edna Kiplagat plus top American runners Jordan Hasay, Molly Huddle and Abdi Abdirahman.

The women’s race

The women’s race only features two women who have run under 2:20, Mare Dibaba of Ethiopia (2:19:52) and 2017 champion Kiplagat (2:19:50). Kiplagat has raced twice this year at NYRR races, finishing sixth and third. This will be her first marathon since finishing second at Boston in 2019. Dibaba had a DNF in 2019 and was plagued with an injury at the start of the pandemic. This race will mark the return of the 2015 world champion to the marathon distance.

Another athlete to keep your eye on is Kenya’s Angela Tanui, who won the Siena Marathon in Italy earlier this year, running a nine-minute personal best of 2:20:08. Atsede Bayisa of Ethiopia, who is a part of the NN Running Team, is competing as well, after taking four years off competition. Bayisa has two road race victories to her name, which came during her training build-up to Monday’s race. Former 10-mile world record holder Caroline Chepkoech makes her marathon debut, with a half marathon personal best of 1:05:07. Chepkoech has recently changed citizenship from Kenya to Kazakhstan and will be representing her new country at this event. 

Outside of the international favorites, American track fans continue to wait for Hasay’s breakthrough. She has been third at two major marathons and has been agonizingly close to Deena Kastor’s American record, running the second-fastest time by an American (2:20:57 at Chicago 2017). Since then Hasay has changed coaches, from the controversial Alberto Salazar to former marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe, when the Nike Oregon Project disbanded due to Salazar’s investigation. Linden was the last American to win the Boston Marathon, in 2018, and will be running Boston for her seventh time. She enters the race with a PB of 2:22:38.

Toronto’s Brittany Moran is the only elite Canadian in the women’s field, coming in with a personal best of 2:36:22. Moran won Toronto’s Yorkville 5K in mid-September in a time of 16:40.  

The men’s race

The men’s race is loaded, having eight men who have run under 2:06. It is headlined by two-time Boston champion, Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa. Desisa is one of the best marathoners in the world in recent years, having won the event twice in 2013 and 2015, and finishing second in 2016 and 2019. Desisa will be challenged by his countrymen Asefa Mengstu (2:04:06) and Lemi Berhanu (2:04:33). Berhanu beat Desisa to get on the 2016 Ethiopian Olympic team, but has only finished one of his last five marathons, which was a second-place finish at Toronto’s Scotiabank Waterfront Marathon in 2019.

Kenya’s Benson Kipruto (2:05:13) and Wilson Chebet (2:05:27) are two experienced racers in the field who can wear down opponents over the Newton hills. Kipruto won the 2018 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon. 2012 Olympian Dylan Wykes is the top-seeded Canadian in the field, with a personal best of 2:10:47. The last time Wykes competed in a marathon was at the Scotiabank Toronto Marathon in 2019, where he placed 30th. Rory Linkletter from Alberta will compete in his first Boston Marathon, and will look to follow in the footsteps of his U.S. Hoka NAZ Elite training partner Scott Fauble, to run under 2:10 at this race. Linkletter ran his marathon personal best of  2:12:54 at the Marathon Project in 2020. Thomas Toth (2:16:28) of Ontario is the other Canadian in the men’s elite field. 44-year-old American runner Abdirahman will be on the start line as the top U.S. athlete, only 64 days after he competed in the Tokyo Olympic marathon.

The 2021 Boston Marathon will mark the first time the race will take place on the same day as a Boston Red Sox playoff game. The Red Sox will play Game 4 of the ALDS series at Fenway Park on Monday evening. The weather is calling for 17 to 20 degrees C in the morning, with only a 20 per cent chance of precipitation. 

How to watch the 2021 Boston Marathon

Live coverage of the event will begin at 8 a.m. ET, with the men’s and women’s wheelchair races setting off at 8:02 and 8:04 a.m. ET. The elite female runners will begin at 8:32 a.m., followed by the men at 9:00 a.m. ET.

Live race coverage will be broadcasted on NBC Sports Network for cable subscribers from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. ET. If you are looking for an online stream of the race, it will be on RunnerSpace, where you can sign up to follow all the action.

Jemal Yimer, Yebrgual Melese, Edna Kiplagat and Asefa Mengstu among Boston starters

Olympians, big city marathon winners and several former champions will contest the Boston Marathon on October 11, in what will be the first time the World Athletics Elite Platinum Road Race has been held in autumn.

Nine women who have clocked sub-2:22 lifetime bests will line up in Hopkinton, including Ethiopia’s Yebrgual Melese, whose 2:19:36 personal best makes her the fastest in the field. She’ll be joined by compatriot Mare Dibaba, the 2015 world champion and 2016 Olympic bronze medalist. Ethiopian 2:20:24 marathon runner Workenesh Edesa, winner of past Xiamen, Lanzhou, and Marrakech Marathons, will make her Boston debut.

Five of the top seven finishers from the 2019 Boston Marathon return, aiming to break the tape on Boylston Street: Kenya’s two-time world champion Edna Kiplagat, USA’s Jordan Hasay, Des Linden, Kenya’s Caroline Rotich and Mary Ngugi.

A trio of Kenyans with prior top-five finishes in Boston look to contend for the win in the men’s race, as Wilson Chebet, Felix Kandie, and Paul Lonyangata will use knowledge of the undulating course to their advantage. They’ll be up against a trifecta of sub-2:06 Ethiopians in Lemi Berhanu, the 2015 Boston champion, and Dejene Debela and Asefa Mengstu, who finished second and third at the 2019 Chicago Marathon. Both Debela and Mengstu will be running their first Boston Marathon.

After much success over the half marathon and in cross country, Kenya’s Leonard Barsoton and Ethiopia’s Jemal Yimer will both make their long awaited marathon debuts in Boston. Barsoton earned a silver medal at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships, while Yimer owns the Ethiopian half marathon record of 58:33.

Eight of the top 12 finishers from the US Olympic Trials Marathon will also compete in Boston, led by 2021 Olympian Abdi Abdirahman.

B.A.A. Announces Participants In John Hancock Professional Athlete Team For Boston Marathon

The Boston Athletic Association announced on Wednesday that more than 140 athletes will participate as part of the John Hancock Professional Athlete Team in the 125th Boston Marathon on Oct. 11.

Included in that field are eight of the top 12 finishers in the Olympic trials marathon, including Abdi Abdirahman, Scott Fauble, Matt McDonald, and Jonas Hampton. Elsewhere in the men’s open field, Kenya’s Leonard Barsoton and Ethiopia’s Jemal Yimer will both make their long awaited marathon debuts in Boston. Dejene Debela and Asefa Mengstu will be making their Boston debuts.

For the women, five of the top seven finishers from the 2019 Boston Marathon will return: Edna Kiplagat (Kenya), Jordan Hasay (USA), Des Linden (USA), Caroline Rotich (Kenya), and Mary Ngugi (Kenya). Two-time Olympian and Providence resident Molly Huddle will also be running.

The women’s wheelchair race will include Team USA wheelchair Paralympians Susannah Scaroni and Jenna Fesemyer, along with course record holder Manuela Schär and five-time champion Tatyana McFadden. For the men’s wheelchair division, Aaron Pike will compete in the field that includes four champions – Daniel Romanchuk, Marcel Hug, Ernst van Dyk, and Josh Cassidy – with a combined 16 Boston Marathon titles.

As part of the inaugural Para Athletics Divisions at the Boston Marathon, many athletes will compete for prize money and awards within the vision impaired and lower-limb impaired divisions. Among those competing are 2016 Paralympians Chaz Davis (T12), Liz Willis (T64), and marathon silver medalist and current world record holder Misato Michishita (T12) of Japan. Davis, a Massachusetts native, holds the T12 American record of 2:31:48 for the marathon, while Willis is a converted sprinter-turned-distance runner for Team USA. Also competing is Marko Cheseto Lemtukei, the world best holder for the T62 marathon having run 2:37:23 in 2019. The Boston Marathon is the first major marathon to offer prize money and awards for athletes with vision, lower-limb, and upper-limb impairments.

“In October, many of the world’s best athletes will look to etch their names in the history books by winning the 125th Boston Marathon,” said Tom Grilk, B.A.A. President and Chief Executive Officer. “We very much look forward to October’s competition, bringing together winners from more than one hundred global marathons. The B.A.A. is eager to continue the tradition of athletic excellence as we return to the roads leading to Boston.”

“John Hancock is proud to support this year’s professional field for the monumental, 125th running of the Boston Marathon,” said Kate Ardini, Chief Marketing Officer at John Hancock. “In our 36th year as principal sponsor, John Hancock is committed to supporting the world’s top athletes as they aim for greatness in Boston. We look forward to cheering on every athlete as they make their way to the finish.”

An assault on both the men's and women's records is expected at the Tokyo Marathon, a World Athletics Platinum level, on Sunday

The best fields ever assembled for this race in the Japanese capital will be targeting Wilson Kipsang's 2:03:58 and Sarah Chepchirchir's 2:19:47 course records, both set in 2017.

Three entrants with lifetime bests faster than Kipsang's mark head the men's field, all three from Ethiopia. Birhanu Legese is the fastest at 2:02:48, Getaneh Molla next at 2:03:34 with Sisay Lemma just a couple ticks behind with 2:03:36. All three set their bests in 2019 - Legese and Lemma in Berlin and Molla in Dubai - so should be near top form now.

Five more runners - Asefa Mengstu, Dickson Chumba, Hayle Lemi, El Hassan El Abbassi, and Titus Ekiru – come armed with sub-2:05 bests. The favorite may be Legese, the defending Tokyo Marathon champion, who recorded his personal best behind Kenenisa Bekele's world record attack in the German capital.

Although Molla stated his time goal as 2:03:55, he may be ready to run faster given his PB was set in his debut over the distance. The most ambitious runner may be Lemma who said he's gunning for a 2:02:00 performance.

Dickson Chumba, who won this race in 2014 and 2018, is going for a record third victory. He has run in every Tokyo Marathon since 2014 and never finished further back than third.

Aga and Dibaba head deep women's field, Four runners with personal bests faster than Chepchirchir's course record time will start the women’s race: Ruti Aga, who clocked 2:18:34 in Berlin in 2018; Birhane Dibaba who ran 2:18:46 in last year's quality Valencia race; Kenyan Valary Aiyabei, who clocked 2:19:10 in Frankfurt last year; and Israel's Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, who has a 2:19:46 best set in Prague last year.

With 2:19:52 credentials, Tigist Girma rounds out the sub-2:20 field. Four others have dipped under 2:22.

Dibaba, who has run in Tokyo five times, is the only multiple winner, collecting victories in 2015 and 2018. She said she's targeting a 2:18:30 performance and a third victory. Aga, the defending Tokyo champion, is aiming for a lifetime best. Although her marathon best is only 2:24:11, Senbere Teferi, with a 1:05:32 career best one of the fastest half marathon runners in history and the Ethiopian record holder, should also be capable of running with the field's sub-2:20 runners.

"We have been preparing for the Tokyo Marathon 2020 while implementing preventive safety measures, however, now that case of COVID-19 has been confirmed within Tokyo, we cannot continue to launch the event within the scale we originally anticipated," organizers said.

Lawrence Cherono again made a last minute sprint to win the Chicago Marathon like he did in Boston earlier in the year

2019 Boston winner Lawrence Cherono made another last 400m sprint today in Bank of Chicago Marathon in a group of 4 athletes clocking 2:05:45.He was followed closely by Dejene Debela 2:05:46 and Asefa Mengstu 2:05:48.Mo Farah finished 8th in 2:09:58.

Lawrence has had a great form of consistent record of seven victories over 14 marathons.He crossed the finish line victoriously with arms in the air in celebration .He then knelt down on the ground and prayed.

The race started with Dickson Chumba leading the group cross the first mile at 4:42.The high speed forced runners to form two elite groups.The first pack consisted Chumba,Cherono,Debela,Bedan Karoki,Tura and Asefa Mengstu.The second pack was Mo Farah and Galen Rupp who came back after Achilles surgery. 

The Ieading group hit 5km  in 14:45 while Mo and Rupp did 14:47.At 10km ,the split was 29:27 and Mo and Rupp were already in the first group.Rupp started again dropping in the group followed by Mo Farah at 8 miles while the Dickson Chumba led team crossed it at 37:48.

At 15km, Karoki, Chumba, Cherono, Debela,Mengstu and Tura crossed it at 44:10.  At 21km, Chumba led it through with 1:02:14.

 Karoki up the pace to 25km in a group of six making it at 1:13:54.Chumba was back again in front but slightly struggling and led 30km at 1:28:58.This is the point where Chumba slowed and first group remain with 5 men.Debela charged and pushed hard making 35km split at 1:45:53 while Chumba struggled at 1:44:23.

 Debela who looked strong crossed 40km 1:59:08. At this point, the race was between four athletes.  The only thing to decide was final kick coz they were all running a tactical race.

At about 400m remaining, Lawrence Cherono made a surprise kick outshining the two Ethiopians and Bedan Karoki of Kenya. He finished with Debela in just a second behind.  Cherono is remembered for making a kick in Boston too to beat Ethiopian Lelisa Desisa.