Running News Daily

Kipruto comes second as Ethiopians dominate Amsterdam Marathon

Kenyan Titus Kipruto on Sunday finished second as neighboring rivals Ethiopia dominated both the men's and women’s races in the 2022 Amsterdam Marathon.

Kipruto clocked 2:04:54 to finish second behind Ethiopia’s Tsegaye Getachew who clocked 2:04:49 to win the race.  The men’s race saw the top 10 slots split between Kenyans and Ethiopians.   

Kenyans Abraham Kiptoo finished fourth (2:05:04), Cyprian Kotut sixth (2:05:15), Laban Korir eighth (2:05:41), and Josephat Boit 10th (2:06:34) as the remaining slots went to the Ethiopians.  In the women's race, Ethiopian track greats Almaz Ayana, Genzebe Dibaba and Tsehay Gemechu completed a sweep all on their debuts.  

2016 Olympic Gold medalist Almaz Ayana ripped the Course Record on her debut, winning in 2:17:20.  Genzebe Dibaba who is also the 1500m World Record holder on the track came second also on her marathon debut, clocking 2:18:05.  

Tsehay Gemechu, also on her debut, completed the Ethiopian sweep after clocking 2:18:59.  

Celestine Chepchirchir was the only Kenyan in the top 10 as she finished seventh in 2:26:50. 

Three global title winners ready to clash in Amsterdam

The TCS Amsterdam Marathon on Sunday (16) will bring together three winners of global titles. Almaz Ayana and Genzebe Dibaba will be making their marathon debuts at the World Athletics Elite Platinum Label road race, while 2017 world champion Rose Chelimo is also in the field.

The incredibly deep men’s field, meanwhile, includes nine men with PBs faster than 2:06, led by 2016 Boston Marathon champion Lemi Berhanu.

Ayana and Dibaba, who won the world 5000m and 1500m titles respectively back in 2015, have battled injuries in recent years but have still managed to make a promising transition to the roads. Ayana, the 2016 Olympic 10,000m champion, clocked 1:07:12 on her half marathon debut when winning in New Delhi in 2017. And since returning this year after a three-year break, she has placed fifth in Madrid in 1:08:22 and third at the Great North Run in 1:07:10.

Dibaba, meanwhile, hasn’t raced on the roads since 2020, but her performances then were impressive. The world 1500m record-holder won the Valencia Half Marathon on her debut at the distance in 1:05:18, then three weeks later won over 5km in Barcelona.

The Ethiopian duo have never raced one another on the roads, but they have clashed 12 times on the track. Dibaba has the upper hand, 8-4, but Ayana won their more significant duels, including the 2015 World Championships, 2015 Diamond League Final, and 2014 African Championships.

The marathon is another beast entirely, though, and experience can count for a lot. Chelimo has plenty of experience on the roads, having won 2017 world gold and 2019 world silver, but the 33-year-old from Bahrain has always been more of a championship performer than a big city marathon runner. Her most recent marathon was in Rotterdam earlier this year, where she placed 19th in 2:44:22.

Celestine Chepchirchir is a late addition to the field, following her withdrawal from last week’s Chicago Marathon. The Kenyan set a PB of 2:20:10 in Seoul earlier this year, making her the fastest entrant for this weekend’s race.

Ayana and Dibaba aren’t the only notable marathon debutants lining up in Amsterdam. Their compatriot Tsehay Gemechu, the fourth-place finisher over 5000m at the 2019 World Championships, has a strong record at the half marathon and heads to the Dutch city in good form. A two-time winner in New Delhi and Lisbon, Gemechu recently reduced her half marathon PB to 1:05:01 when finishing second to Yalemzerf Yehualaw in Antrim.

Fellow Ethiopian Azmera Gebru will be returning to Amsterdam, following her third-place finishes there in 2018 and 2019. Compatriot Gebeyanesh Ayele also returns, following her fourth-place finish last year, while Sintayehu Tilahun could be one to watch, following her recent PBs over the half marathon (1:07:41) and marathon (2:22:19).

After nine successive men’s victories in Amsterdam, Kenya’s winning streak came to an end last year. But Cybrian Kotut hopes to kick-start the trend on Sunday.

The 30-year-old has won his past three marathons, his most recent victory coming in April in Hamburg, where he set a lifetime best of 2:04:47. The Kenyan challenge is strengthened by the likes of Titus Kipruto, who won this year’s Milan Marathon in a PB of 2:05:05, Norbert Kigen, runner-up in Amsterdam in 2017 and winner in Prague earlier this year, and Laban Korir, who will be making his sixth appearance in Amsterdam.

But 2016 Boston Marathon champion Lemi Berhanu leads a strong Ethiopian contingent. Berhanu’s PB of 2:04:33 dates back to 2016, but his runner-up place in Boston last year shows he is still competitive.

He will be joined on the startline by compatriots Tsegaye Getachew, winner in Riyadh earlier this year and owner of a 2:05:11 PB, Adeladlew Mamo, who ran 2:05:12 on his marathon debut earlier this year, and 2:05:52 performer Adugna Takele.

Other contenders in the field include Eritrea’s Afewerki Berhane, Japan’s Shuho Dairokuno, and marathon debutant Victor Chumo.

Leading entries

WomenCelestine Chepchirchir (KEN) 2:20:10Azmera Gebru (ETH) 2:20:48Gebeyanesh Ayele (ETH) 2:21:22Sintayehu Tilahun (ETH) 2:22:19Rose Chelimo (BRN) 2:24:14Fikrte Wereta (ETH) 2:26:15Almaz Ayana (ETH) debutGenzebe Dibaba (ETH) debutTsehay Gemechu (ETH) debut

MenLemi Berhanu (ETH) 2:04:33Cybrian Kotut (KEN) 2:04:47Titus Kipruto (KEN) 2:05:05Tsegaye Getachew (ETH) 2:05:11Adeladlew Mamo (ETH) 2:05:12Norbert Kigen (KEN) 2:05:13Afewerki Berhane (ERI) 2:05:22Adugna Takele (ETH) 2:05:52Laban Korir (KEN) 2:05:54Masreshe Bere (ETH) 2:06:44Abraham Kiptoo (KEN) 2:06:59Shuho Dairokuno (JPN) 2:07:12Bazezew Asmare (ETH) 2:07:13Josphat Boit (KEN) 2:07:20Godadaw Belachew (ISR) 2:07:54Yuki Sato (JPN) 2:08:17Jake Robertson (NZL) 2:08:26Akira Tomiyasu (JPN) 2:08:55Deribe Tefera (ETH) 2:09:15Bekele Muluneh (ETH) 2:09:51Khalid Choukoud (NED) 2:09:55Victor Chumo (KEN) debutHuseydin Mohamed (ETH) debut

Ethiopia’s two-time 5000m world champion, Muktar Edris eyes course record at Delhi Half Marathon

Muktar Edris, has set his sights on breaking the course record at the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon, scheduled to be held on a beautifully laid out race route here on Sunday. Edris, whose summer season was derailed by an untimely calf injury, has landed in India with a target of producing the fastest half-marathon time ever seen in the country and beating the course record of 58:53 set by his compatriot Amedework Walelegn in 2020.

It would earn him a $12,000 bonus in addition to a winner’s cheque of $27,000.

Edris had made an impressive debut in Delhi in 2020 and finished fourth on that occasion with a timing of 59:04. The 28-year-old improved his personal best in the Spanish city of Valencia 12 months ago to 58:40 to make him the fastest runner in the 17th edition of the World Athletics Elite Label Race, which is one of the world’s most prestigious races over the distance.

“Sunday will be only my third half marathon but I will certainly try for the course record. I am now back in good shape. I ran well [over 5000m on the track] at the Diamond League in Rome in the summer but had some calf problems after another race in Paris. When I went to Eugene [to defend his world title], I didn’t get a good result but now everything is much better,” commented Edris at the pre-race press conference.

Just two weeks ago, Edris had his first race since the World Athletics Championships in July and got a morale-boosting 10km win on the roads in Trento, Italy over a high-quality field.

Among Edris’s challengers on Sunday will be Kenya’s Felix Kipkoech and Ethiopia’s Chala Regasa, the second and third fastest men in the field with personal bests of 58:57 and 59:10, respectively.In the elite women’s section, Kenya’s Irine Cheptai – already a winner in India at this year’s TCS World 10K Bengaluru in May – revealed that she would soon end her track career to focus on marathons.“Next year, I want to run my first marathon and so this race is a preparation for that,” said the 2017 world cross country champion and the fastest woman in the international elite field with a personal best of 66:43.

Cheptai’s main rival will be Ethiopia’s Lemlem Hailu, the 2022 world indoor 3000m champion, who will be making her debut over the distance having never run further than four miles before.

New York City Marathon: Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir out, Keira D’Amato in

Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir withdrew from defending her New York City Marathon title on Nov. 6, citing an unspecified injury.

Keira D’Amato, the second-fastest American female marathoner in history, was also added to the field in Friday’s announcement.

Jepchirchir, 29, is the only person to win the Olympic, Boston and New York City Marathons in a career, doing so in a nine-month span in 2021 and 2022. She won New York City last November in 2:22:39, prevailing by five seconds over countrywoman Viola Cheptoo.

D’Amato, a 37-year-old mother of two, broke a 16-year-old American record in the women’s marathon on Jan. 16 by clocking 2:19:12 in Houston. Emily Sisson took the record last Sunday in Chicago in 2:18:29.

D’Amato, who went nearly a decade between competitive races after a middle-distance stint at American University, will make her New York City Marathon debut six weeks after running the Berlin Marathon in 2:21:48.

Elkanah Kibet also withdrew from the Nov. 6 race, a year after he was the top finisher among American male runners in fourth place. Kibet, a lieutenant in the U.S. Army, received orders to report overseas, according to the New York Road Runners.

Other race headliners include: 2018 Boston Marathon winner Des Linden and world champions Gotytom Gebreslase of Ethiopia and Edna Kiplagat of Kenya for the women. And two-time Olympic medalist Galen Rupp, defending champion Albert Korir of Kenya, reigning Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet, Olympic silver medalist Abdi Nageeye of the Netherlands and 2020 London Marathon winner Shura Kitata for the men.

Africa’s only Gold Label Marathon, Cape Town Marathon is this Sunday

Catch all the action from the Cape Town Marathon, Africa’s only Gold Label Marathon, on SuperSport this Sunday morning, with a stellar cast giving you their insights all the way through.

Tune in to SS Variety 4 from 6am on Sunday, October 16, where the likes of Thato Moeng, Bruce Fordyce, Gerda Steyn, Mosibodi Whitehead, and Cuan Walker will guide you from start to finish and break down every aspect of the race.

Defending champion Steven Mokoka and debutant Jenet Mbhele will spearhead the South African challenge for glory but will face stiff competition from their counterparts.

2021 runner-up Gebru Redahgne, from Ethiopia, will renew his rivalry with Mokoka at the front of the pack but Sibusiso Nzima, returning from an injury, will be hoping to make a successful comeback by at least claiming the final podium place, if not challenge the favourites for the win.

Mbhele’s title credentials will be put to the test by Peninsula Marathon winner Stella Marais, while Ethiopia’s Mereset Dinke will fancy her chances of mounting a challenge having set her marathon PB in Valencia at the end of 2021.

Ethiopians Dibaba and Ayana set for marathon debuts

Ethiopia’s world record-breaking duo step into the unknown by tackling 26.2 miles in Amsterdam on Sunday

Genzebe Dibaba and Almaz Ayana have earned their reputation on the track as world record-breaking endurance runners but on Sunday the Ethiopian duo make their marathon debut in Amsterdam.

Dibaba, 31, holds the world record for 1500m with 3:50.07 set in Monaco in 2015 but has also broken world records indoors at the mile, two miles, 2000m, 3000m and 5000m.

The furthest she has ever raced in 13.1 miles but she clocked a fast 65:18 when winning in Valencia in 2020. It was the fastest half-marathon debut by a woman in history at the time, but she has raced very sparingly since.

Ayana has also not raced much lately but at her peak in 2016 she won the Olympic 10,000m title in a world record of 29:17.45. The 30-year-old’s half-marathon best is 67:10 when placing third at the Great North Run last month.

Speaking at the pre-event press conference at the city’s Vondelpark this week, Dibaba said: “I am going for a good time and a good position,” whereas Ayana looked similarly confident, saying simply: “I’m going to do well.”

The flat and fast course that winds around the Dutch city is known for producing fast times with the course records held by Tamirat Tola with 2:03:39 and Angela Tanui with 2:17:57 – both of which were set last year.

This year’s leading athletes in the men’s field are Cybrian Kotut and Lemi Berhanu. The former has won marathons in Hamburg, Paris and Florence and has a best of 2:04:47, whereas Berhanu run a best of 2:04:33 from Dubai in 2016 and he won the Boston Marathon in the same year.

The race for the Dutch title will be competitive, meanwhile, between Khalid Choukoud and Richard Douma in the men’s race and Jacelyn Gruppen and Eva van Zoonen for the women’s title.

The event is streamed on the event website and for UK viewers is being shown on Eurosport and Discovery+ channels.

Kipruto, Chepchirchir to compete at Amsterdam Marathon

Milano Marathon champion Titus Kipruto and the 2019 Sanlam Cape Town Marathon Celestine Chepchirchir have confirmed participation in the Amsterdam Marathon on October 16.

Chepchirchir will be Kenya’s sole representative in the women’s field and she is bound to face stiff competition from top Ethiopian athletes. Chepchirchir is the fastest in the field with a personal best time of 2:20:10 which she ran at this year’s Seoul Marathon to place fourth.

Ethiopians Azmera Gebru, Gebeyanesh Ayele, Sintayehu Tilahun and the 2016 Olympic 10,000m champion Almaz Ayana will also be in the race for top honours. Gebru has a PB of 2:20:48 which she attained when she placed third at the 2019 Amsterdam Marathon.

Ayele and Tilahun have respective PB times of 2:21:22 and 2:22:19 respectively. Ayana will be debuting in the distance after dominating track and half marathon.

Bahrain’s Rose Chelimo is also one of the athletes to watch. Chelimo is the 2017 world marathon champion and also the 2016 Seoul Marathon champion.

The men’s strong field has attracted the 2014 Zurich Marathon champion Lemi Berhanu, Tsegay Getachew and Adeladlew Mamo, all from Ethiopia. Berhanu has a personal best time of  2:04:33, a time he ran to place second at the 2016 Dubai Standard Chartered Marathon.

Getachew kicked off his season with a win at the Riyadh Marathon in 2:06:27 and has a personal best time of 2:05:11. Mamo, who has a PB of  2:05:12 ran to place second at this year’s Zurich Seville Marathon.

Kipruto is the fourth fastest in the field with a personal best time of 2:05:05. Other Kenyans in the field include Cybrian Kotut (2:04:47), Laban Korir (2:05:54), Josphat Boit (2:07:20) and debutants Charles Mneria, Victor Chumo and Bernard Soi.

Faith Chepng'etich nominated for World Athlete of the Year Award

Olympic and World 1,500m champion Kenya’s Faith Chepng'etich has once again been nominated for the 2022 Women’s World Athlete of the Year Award.

The 28-year-old Faith Chepng’étich will battle nine other top athletes for the coveted award whose winner will be revealed on World Athletics’ social media platforms in early December.

The announcement on Wednesday marked the opening of the voting process for the 2022 World Athletes of the Year ahead of the World Athletics Awards.

Chepngétich is up against world champions Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan (100m hurdles), American Chase Ealey (shot put), 2013 Women’s World Athlete of the Year, Jamaicans Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce (100m) and Shericka Jackson (200m) and American Sydney McLaughlin (World 400m hurdles and 4x400m).

Other world champions in the race are the 2020 Women’s World Athlete of the Year, Yulimar Rojas (Triple jump) from Venezuela, Shaunae Miller-Uibo (400m) from Bahamas and Peru’s Kimberly Garcia (20km race walk).

Also in contention is the World Indoor and World High Jump silver medalist  Yaroslava Mahuchikh from Ukraine.  

These athletes were selected by an international panel of athletics experts, comprising representatives from all six continental areas of World Athletics.

“It has been another memorable year for the sport and the nominations reflect some of the standout performances achieved at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon,  World Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade, one-day meeting circuits and other events around the world,” noted a statement from World Athletics.

Chepngétich recaptured the world 1,500m tile clocking three minutes and 52.96 seconds on July 18, before going on to win the Monaco leg of the Diamond League in a national record time of 3:50.37, missing the world record by just three tenths of a second.

It was the second fastest time in history of the women’s 1,500m race where Ethiopian Genzebe Dibaba holds the world record of 3:50.07 set in Monaco in 2015.

Chepngétich would retain her Diamonds League Trophy, winning in Zurich in 4:00.44 on September 8.  

Double Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah beat Chepngétich and Tokyo Olympics 10,000m/ 5,000m champion Sifan Hassan from the Netherlands to win last year’s award.

A three-way voting process will determine the finalists. The World Athletics Council and the World Athletics Family will cast their votes by email, while fans can vote online via the World Athletics social media platforms.

Individual graphics for each nominee will be posted on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube this week; a 'like' on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube or a retweet on Twitter will count as one vote.

The World Athletics Council’s vote will count for 50 percent of the result, while the World Athletics Family’s votes and the public votes will each count for 25 per cent of the final result.

Voting for the World Athletes of the Year closes at midnight on October 31. At the conclusion of the voting process, five women and five men finalists will be announced by World Athletics.

Ethiopia’s Andualem Shiferaw breaks Lisbon course record

Ethiopia’s Andualem Shiferaw broke his own course record at the EDP Lisbon Marathon that was held on Sunday (9th October).

Winner in the last two editions (2019 and 2021, this one with the previous course record of 2:05.52), the 30 year old athlete finished the race in 2:05.43, improving his time by 7 seconds. Haftu Asefa (2:06.33) and Birhan Tesfaye (2:07.04), both also from Ethiopia, completed the podium.

In the women’s race, the Kenyan Bornes Kitur took the top honors cutting the tape in a time of 2:24.17, only 3 seconds shy of the course record. Ethiopia’s Sorome Amente and Buzunesh Gudeta finished second and third, with 2:25.57 and 2:26.01.

Andualem Shiferaw: “I’m happy to win the race for the third time and, also, to break the course record. Lisbon is like a second home for me. The course is good, the weather also. I’m happy to come back here. If the organizers invite me, I’ll come again. I can improve the course record a little more.”

In the 21k, the Luso Half Marathon that started a few hours after the full marathon, the winners were the Kenyan Charles Langat and the Ethiopian Emebet Mamo, both with personal bests.

Langat won in 1:00.44 hours, improving his best time by more than 2 minutes (his best time was 1:02.59). Dinkalen Adane, from Ethiopia, was second, just two seconds away from the winner. In the third place came the Ugandan Isaac Kibet, with 1:01.23.

In the women’s race, Emebet Mamo won in 1:09.35 – another personal record, by 24 seconds – ahead of the Kenyans Ludwina Chepngetich (1:10.31) and Faith Jeptoo (1:10.54).

The men’s winner Charles Langat said: “I was not expecting to win, but I did it. I felt strong in the end and I pushed. We [with Dinkalen Adane] helped each other in the race.”

Kenyans Philimon Kipchumba and Agnes Keino break Munich Marathon course records

Both course records were smashed during the comeback of international elite runners at the Generali Munich Marathon.

Kenyan debutant Philimon Kipchumba crossed the finish line in Munich’s Olympic Stadium in 2:07:28. Behind him the 23 year-old Mengistu Zelalem of Ethiopia and Eritrea’s Berhane Tesfaye followed in 2:07:56 and 2:08:10 respectively – times that were well faster than the previous course record of 2:09:46. Fourth placed German Sebastian Hendel ran a fine debut with 2:10:37.

There was a triumph for Kenya in the women’s race as well: Agnes Keino clocked a personal best of 2:23:26, improving the course record by almost nine minutes. The 34 year-old was ahead of the 2015 marathon World Champion Mare Dibaba. The Ethiopian ran 2:24:12 while Souad Kambouchia of Morocco finished third with 2:27:35. Seven women were inside the former course record of 2:32:11.

A total of 18,322 athletes entered the 36th edition of the Generali Munich Marathon, which is a World Athletics Elite Label Road Race. 4,334 of them were marathon runners. The marathon was started by Frank Shorter, who won the Olympic marathon in Munich in 1972. The American had been invited as a guest of honor by the organizers.

“This was a very special day for the Generali Munich Marathon. We are extremely happy with the great course records. We have reached new dimensions today and we intend to build on this success,“ said Race Director Gernot Weigl. It was the first time in over 20 years that organizers brought back a proper elite field. That was the reason why the long standing course records were smashed by several minutes on Sunday: Kenya’s Michael Kite was the former record holder with a time of 2:09:46 from 2000. Germany’s Susanne Hahn held the women’s mark with 2:32:11 from 2012 when she won the German Championships’ race.

In ideal weather conditions with temperatures of 9 Celsius at the start, hardly any wind and a cloudy sky a leading group of ten runners reached the half marathon mark in 63:41. However Tsegaye Mekonnen was no longer among them. The Ethiopian, who still holds the unofficial world junior record of 2:04:32 and was the fastest runner on the start list, had lost contact shortly before and later dropped out. But a compact group remained together in the lead until the late stages of the race. Five of them passed the 35k mark in 1:45:33. Once pacemaker Bonface Kiplimo of Kenya dropped out shortly afterwards a duel between Philimon Kipchumba and Mengistu Zelalem developed. The Kenyan was then able to put in a surge just before the 41st kilometer and dropped Zelalem. “I did not quite expect to run such a fast debut. But my training went very well and I just tried my best,“ said Philimon Kipchumba, who hopes to achieve times of 2:04 in the future.

In the women’s race Agnes Keino and Mare Dibaba were together in the lead, passing the half marathon point in 71:46 and then 30k in 1:42:01. With around eight kilometers to go Keino, who entered the race with a PB of 2:25:08, went ahead. Former world champion Dibaba, who was the fastest on the start list with her PB of 2:19:52, suffered of muscle problems and was not able to respond to the surge of her Kenyan rival. However Mare Dibaba finished second with 2:24:12, running her fastest time since 2019. “It was my big goal to run a personal best and I am really happy that I achieved it. Even more so since I also won the race,“ said Agnes Keino, who improved to 2:23:26.

Twice LA Marathon champ John Korir aims for a Majors title

Two-time Los Angeles Marathon champion John Korir now wants a bigger title.

Korir will make his Marathon Majors debut at Chicago in the USA on Sunday confident of launching a serious assault on the crown.

He enjoyed an encouraging outing at the Los Angeles Marathon in March where he retained his title in a personal best time of  2:09:08.

In Chicago on Sunday, Korir will come up against compatriots Amsterdam Marathon champion Bernard Koech who has a personal best of 2:04:09 and is the second fastest man in the field, Paris Marathon champion Elisha Rotich (2:04:21), Eric Kiptanui (2:05:47) and the Boston Marathon champion Benson Kipruto (2:05:13).

The Kenyan athletes will be seeking to wrest back the title from Ethiopians after Seifu Tura won last year  with USA’s Galen Rupp coming in second while Kenya’s Eric Kiptanui finished third.

Korir told Nation Sport he was ready for the task and he will be eyeing a top-three finish.

“I started with build up at Kamoi in Elgeyo Marakwet which is known for its hilly terrain before shifting to Eldoret. I can say that I’m in good shape,” said Korir.

He added that since his elder brother Wesley Korir, a retired athlete, competed in the race before, he has given him tips about the course and he believes he will perform well.

“I’m lucky because my brother ran the Chicago Marathon when he was an active athlete and he has been guiding me on how to race on this course. He will personally be there to give me support during the race and I just want to run well and make him proud,” he said.

In the women category, three-time Milano Marathon Vivian Kiplagat, who trains at Kapsait Athletics Training Club in Elgeyo-Marakwet County will also be seeking the big prize as he comes face-to-face with defending champion Ruth Chepng’etich.

Incidentally, the two are under Rosa Associati management.

Also in the mix as another Kenyan, Celestine Chepchirchir.

Kiplagat said that after winning  Milano Marathon in April in a  personal best time of 2:20:18 she was in great shape physically and mentally.

“I’m focused on the race which I know will be fast and if the weather conditions are favorable, I want to run a personal best,” said Kiplagat.

Kiplagat won the 2018 Honolulu Marathon in Hawaii in 2:36:22, and the 2019 Abu Dhabi Marathon with a personal best time of 2:21:11. This was a massive minute inside her winning time in the Milano Marathon that year.

Valencia Half Marathon entry list bristling with talent

Organizers of the Valencia Half Marathon have once again revealed their hand in wanting blistering times, and possibly a world record at this year’s edition that will be held on October 23.

In the official elite entry list announced Friday, Commonwealth Games 10,000 bronze medalist Kibiwott Kandie is the stand-out entry in the men’s race.

Remember Kandie is the culprit who broke the world record over the distance two years ago in a scorching 57 minutes 32 minutes. That record was however lowered by his rival, Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo to 57:31, in Lisbon last year.

Other star runners of note lined up in the men’s race are Kenyans Sebastian Sawe (58:02), Daniel Mateiko (58:26), Kennedy Kimutai (58:28), Rodgers Kwemoi (58:30), Bernard Ng’eno (59:07) and Alfred Barkach (59:36).

“I’m glad I will be competing once again in Valencia Half Marathon where I ran a world record and this time I don’t want to say anything but just run a good race,” he said.

Pushed further he relented that he would not mind lowering his personal best time.

In the women's category, world 10,000m bronze medalist Margaret Chelimo will be leading her compatriots including Vicoty Chepng’eno who is the fastest in the field with personal best of 1:05:03 and Irene Kimais (1:06:34).

Also in the line-up are Purity Komen (1:07:10), Vivian Melly (1:08:17), Agnes Ngolo (1:09:15), and Kenyan-born Turk Yasemin Can.

While admitting a world record may not be on the cards, Marc Roig, recruiter of the Valencia Half Marathon international elite, averred: “I am convinced that the quality of the elite that will run this half-marathon will be news around the world again thanks to its high standards.”

Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey broke the mixed-gender world record of 1:02:52 last year.

Defending champions Chepngetich and Tura face strong opposition in Chicago

Ruth Chepngetich and Seifu Tura will defend their Bank of America Chicago Marathon titles on Sunday (9) but will take on stronger fields than they faced last year at the World Athletics Elite Platinum Label road race.

Chepngetich, the 2019 world champion, has won six of the eight marathons she has completed to date, and has finished on the podium in the other two. The Kenyan’s most recent victory came in Nagoya earlier this year when she smashed the course record with 2:17:18, just 10 seconds she of the PB she set in Dubai in 2019.

She has set PBs at a range of distances this year, on the road and track, so she could be in form to improve on her marathon best this weekend, provided she doesn’t go out too hard like she did in Chicago last year.

Ruti Aga looks to be one of Chepngetich’s strongest opponents. The Ethiopian has won just one marathon to date, but she has reached the podium in six other races, including New York in 2019 and three times in Berlin. Her PB of 2:18:34 was set in the German capital four years ago, while her last completed marathon was in Valencia in 2020.

Kenya’s Celestine Chepchirchir heads into this weekend’s race in good form, having taken a few minutes off her PB to finish fourth in Seoul earlier this year in 2:20:10.

Compatriot Vivian Kiplagat won in Milan earlier this year in a PB of 2:20:18. She will be keen to improve upon her fifth-place finish in Chicago last year.

Haven Hailu is still a relative newcomer to the marathon, having contested just four races at the distance. She won in Rotterdam earlier this year in 2:22:01, not far off her 2:20:19 PB set in Amsterdam last year. Fellow Ethiopian Waganesh Mekasha is also one to watch. A 2:22:45 performer at her best, she will be contesting her first marathon in the US.

US women occupied two places on the podium in Chicago last year, and this Sunday Emily Sisson hopes to follow in those footsteps. A relative newcomer to the marathon, she clocked 2:23:08 on her debut at the distance in London in 2019. Earlier this year she broke the US half marathon record with 1:07:11 and has also set PBs for 15km, 20km and five miles.

One year on from his Chicago Marathon triumph, Tura returns to the US in good form as the Ethiopian aims to become the first back-to-back winner of the men’s race for more than a decade.

Tura, whose PB of 2:04:29 was set in Milan last year, started 2022 with a half marathon PB of 58:36 in Ras Al Khaimah. He followed that with a runner-up finish in Paris (2:05:10) and then went on to place sixth at the World Championships in Oregon.

Compatriot Herpasa Negasa has the fastest PB of the field, having clocked 2:03:40 in Dubai in 2019. He came close to that when finishing second in Seoul earlier this year in 2:04:49, but he is yet to win a marathon so he will be highly motivated this weekend.

Bernard Koech is another experienced marathon runner who has not yet won a race over the classic distance. He hasn’t raced since last October when he finished second in Amsterdam in a PB of 2:04:09.

Fellow Kenyan Elisha Rotich, meanwhile, is a winner of six international marathons. His most recent race over the distance was his 2:04:21 victory in Paris last year.

Former 1500m specialist Dawit Wolde, who represented Ethiopia in that event at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games, has transitioned to the marathon in recent years. He was third in Rotterdam last year in 2:04:27 and has finished on the podium in his past four marathons, including a win in Prague in 2019.

Stephen Kissa is even newer to the marathon. The Ugandan track specialist made a promising debut in Hamburg earlier this year, setting a national record of 2:04:48, which is also the fastest season’s best of this weekend’s line-up.

Others to look out for include 2021 Boston winner Benson Kipruto, Ethiopian half marathon record-holder Jemal Yimer, Daegu marathon champion Shifera Tamru, fellow Ethiopian Abayneh Degu, and Kenya’s Eric Kiptanui.

Elite fields

Women

Ruth Chepngetich (KEN) 2:17:08

Ruti Aga (ETH) 2:18:34

Celestine Chepchirchir (KEN) 2:20:10

Vivian Kiplagat (KEN) 2:20:18

Haven Hailu Desse (ETH) 2:20:19

Waganesh Mekasha (ETH) 2:22:45

Emily Sisson (USA) 2:23:08

Delvine Meringor (ROU) 2:24:32

Laura Thweatt (USA) 2:25:38

Sara Vaughn (USA) 2:26:53

Susanna Sullivan (USA) 2:26:56

Diane Nukuri (USA) 2:27:50

Men

Herpasa Negasa (ETH) 2:03:40

Bernard Koech (KEN) 2:04:09

Elisha Rotich (KEN) 2:04:21

Dawit Wolde (ETH) 2:04:27

Seifu Tura (ETH) 2:04:29

Stephen Kissa (UGA) 2:04:48

Abayneh Degu (ETH) 2:04:53

Benson Kipruto (KEN) 2:05:13

Shifera Tamru (ETH) 2:05:18

Eric Kiptanui (KEN) 2:05:47

Kyohei Hosoya (JPN) 2:06:35

Hamza Sahli (MAR) 2:07:15

Amanuel Mesel (ERI) 2:08:17

Hiroto Fujimagari (JPN) 2:08:20

Guojian Dong (CHN) 2:08:26

Kiyoshi Koga (JPN) 2:08:30

Riki Nakanishi (JPN) 2:08:51

Jemal Yimer (ETH) 2:08:58.

Generali Munich Marathon on Sunday is featuring the strongest field ever in its 36 year history

With the strongest field in its history the GENERALI MUNICH MARATHON will take place on Sunday. The unofficial world junior record holder Tsegaye Mekonnen and fellow Ethiopian Mare Dibaba, who was the marathon World Champion in 2015, head the start lists. Their personal bests of 2:04:32 and 2:19:52 respectively make them the fastest runners ever entered in the traditional Bavarian race.

For the first time in over 20 years an international elite field was assembled for the 36th edition of the GENERALI MUNICH MARATHON. Organisers hope that both course records will fall on Sunday. 

A total of around 18,500 runners are expected total part. About 5,000 of them will run the classic distance which starts and finishes inside the Olympic Stadium. The GENERALI MUNICH MARATHON is an Elite Label Road Race of the international athletics federation, World Athletics. The race will start at 9.00 am on Sunday and a live stream is available at: www.generalimuenchenmarathon.de

50 years after winning the Olympia marathon gold medal in Munich Frank Shorter is back in the city as a guest of honor. “I am very happy to have the opportunity to be back in Munich - the city where I was born in 1947 and where I celebrated my biggest career win in 1972,“ said 74 year-old Frank Shorter.

“We are looking forward to the strongest elite line-up in our history. With the former World Champion Mare Dibaba and the runner who holds the unofficial world junior record, Tsegaye Mekonnen, we managed to get two big names to Munich for the return of the elite fields. Since weather predictions are favourable we hope that both course records will be broken on Sunday,“ said Race Director Gernot Weigl. 

Tsegaye Mekonnen caused a major upset when he took the Dubai Marathon in 2014 aged just 19 years old. His time of 2:04:32 still stands as the unofficial world junior record (World Athletics does not ratify junior records in the marathon). In 2017 Mekonnen also won the Hamburg Marathon. Now 27 years old the Ethiopian has not competed over the classic distance since 2018 and now intends to come back with a strong performance in Munich. “I had injury problems and then the pandemic played its part as well, so I did not run a marathon for three years. Now my training has gone well and I intend to run a 2:06 on Sunday,“ said Tsegaye Mekonnen.

Two other runners are on the start list with personal bests of sub 2:10 and below the 2:09:46 course record: Ethiopia’s  Mengistu Zelalem has a PB of 2:08:48 while Kenya’s Edwin Kimaiyo is in a similar range with 2:09:12. Current a half marathon split time of around 64:00 is targeted for the first group.

A big improvement of the course record seems possible for the women in Munich. Germany’s Susanne Hahn established the current mark of 2:32:11 ten years ago. Mara Dibaba heads the women’s field with a world-class personal best of 2:19:52. Besides the World Champion of 2015 and Olympic bronze medallist from 2016 there are two fellow-Ethiopians who have run under 2:25: Atsede Bayisa has a fine personal best of 2:22:03 and Aberu Zennebe has a PB of 2:24:30. “I have prepared for three months and my goal is to run a personal best“, said Aberu Zennebe. A winning time of sub 2:25might well be within reach on Sunday since it is planned that the first group reaches the half way mark in around 71:30. There are eight athletes on the start list who have run under 2:30. 

Elite runners with personal bests:

Men:

Tsegaye Mekonnen ETH 2:04:32Mengistu Zelalem ETH 2:08:48 Edwin Kimaiyo KEN 2:09:12 Meshack Koech KEN 2:10:17 Emmanuel Sikuku KEN 2:11:05 Ngonidzashe Ncube ZIM 2:11:46 Justus Kangogo KEN 2:13:34 Berhane Tesfay ERI 2:14:42 Vincent Kiprotich KEN Debüt Philimon Kipchumba KEN Debüt Rodgers Keror KEN Debüt Sebastian Hendel GER Debüt

Women:

Mare Dibaba ETH 2:19:52 Atsede Bayisa ETH 2:22:03 Aberu Zennebe ETH 2:24:30 Agnes Keino KEN 2:25:08 Viola Yator KEN 2:26:51 Mercy Kwambai KEN 2:27:32 Souad Kambouchia MAR 2:27:49 Helen Jepkurgat KEN 2:29:10 Caroline Nahimana BUR 2:30:09

Second photo:showing German debutant Sebastian Hendel with Tsegaye Mekonnen, Agnes Keino und Aberu Zennebe

Philemon Rono out of TCS Toronto Waterfront Marathon with calf injury

The three-time Toronto Waterfront Marathon champion Philemon Rono of Kenya announced on Thursday that he will not be making the trip to Toronto this year, due to a recent calf injury.

Rono has won three of the last four iterations of the race (2019, 2017 and 2016), setting the Canadian all-comers record at 2:05:00 with his 2019 win.

The 31-year-old trains in Kaptagat, Kenya, and is part of Eliud Kipchoge’s NN Running Team. Rono is known by his unique nickname, “Baby Police,” for his job as a police officer and his diminutive stature. 

It is not known how Rono sustained his calf injury, but he was eagerly looking to become “the King of Toronto” by winning his fourth title in five years.

Kenya’s Felix Kandie and Barselius Kipyego and Ethiopia’s Yihunilign Adane will be the frontrunners to win in Rono’s absence. Kipyego trains alongside 2022 London Marathon champion Amos Kipruto and 2021 Boston champion Benson Kipruto in Iten, Kenya. 

Canadian half-marathon record holder Rory Linkletter, Olympian Trevor Hofbauer and Lee Wesselius will also battle it out for the Canadian marathon title.

Joyciline Jepkosgei receives promotion in Kenyan army following her success at London Marathon

Here’s your feel-good story of the day: Kenyan marathoner Joyciline Jepkosgei has been recognized by her country for her second-place finish at the 2022 London Marathon, earning a promotion in the army.

On Tuesday, Kenya’s Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), General Robert Kibochi, promoted Corporal Jepkosgei to the role of Sergeant (Sgt.) at the Kenyan Army Defence Headquarters in Nairobi.

General Kibochi congratulated Jepkosgei for her excellent work in representing the country in major races and for improving her time, which has seen her break multiple world records.

“We are very grateful for your continuous hard work and for representing Kenya and KDF well,” said General Kibochi. 

On Sunday, Jepkosgei clocked 2:18:07, to finish second to Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who won in 2:17:26. Jepkosgei won the London Marathon in 2021, and the New York City Marathon in 2019.

Jepkosgei is one of many world-class Kenyan athletes who work for official government organizations. 800m world record holder and two-time Olympic champion David Rudisha worked as a police officer during his running career, and so does two-time NYC Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor, plus Canadian soil record holder and defending Toronto Waterfront Marathon champion Philemon Rono. 

If your workplace offered promotions for representing the company at a global marathon, would you train a little harder?

Kenyans Timothy Rono and Beatrice Cheptoo bag Melbourne Marathon titles

Timothy Rono and Beatrice Cheptoo bagged the men's and women's titles at the Nike Melbourne Marathon in Australia on Sunday.

Rono clocked 2:09:12, smashing Dominic Ondoro's course record by one minute and 30 seconds set in 2013.

Compatriot Cornelius Kibet came second in 2:10:24 as Australia's Reece Edwards rounded the podium places in 2:14:41.

An ecstatic Rono was delighted with the victory in warm conditions in Australia's second-largest city.

"It was a good race. The conditions were good, a bit cloudy but not too hot and not too cold. I had prepared for it from the start and I kept going until the end," added Rono.

Rono broke away with six kilometers to go after being pushed close by Kibet.

"I timed my race quite well. I know Kibet. I knew I have a stronger kick  and that allowed me to increase the pace in the final few kilometers," said Rono. 

Following the win, Rono has set his eyes on the bigger city marathons like Boston, New York, London come next year.

“I'm looking at participating in the big ones next year, God willing. I want to test myself against the best and I am relishing the challenge,” he added.

For the win Rono bagged a cool Sh3 million.

In the women's category, Cheptoo ran a superb race in a time of 2:27:58 on her debut on Australian soil .

Australia's Izzi Batt Doyle finished second in 2:28:10 with Maru Ejigu of Ethiopia third in 2:28:54

For the win Cheptoo bagged Sh2 million.

Australia's Jack Raynor won the men's half marathon in 1:02:16 while the women's category went to Jess Stenson in a time of 1:12:22.

Festival Director Marcus Gale, commented: “Congratulations to the winners and everyone who got involved in the 2022 Nike Melbourne Marathon Festival."

"Whether you were tackling the 42.195km for the first or 44th time, soaking up the city’s sights on the 3km track or cheering from the MCG grandstand, it was incredible to see the Australian running community out in full force and an honour to deliver another successful event for the city."

Kenenisa Bekele set new Marathon World Record for Masters but says he can run faster

 Kenenisa Bekele made headlines last week by declaring “of course I am the best” long distance runner ever. But the Ethiopian was fifth-best at Sunday’s London Marathon, finishing 74 seconds behind Kenya’s Amos Kipruto.

Bekele, 40, clocked 2:05:53, the fastest-ever marathon by a runner 40 years or older. He was with the lead pack until being dropped in the 21st mile.

But Bekele estimated he could have run 90 to 120 seconds faster had he not missed parts of six weeks of training with hip and joint injuries.

“I expect better even if the preparation is short,” he said. “I know my talent and I know my capacity, but really I couldn’t achieve what I expect.”

Bekele is the second-fastest marathoner in history behind Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge, who broke his own world record by clocking 2:01:09 at the Berlin Marathon last week.

“I am happy when I see Eliud Kipchoge run that time,” Bekele said. “It motivates all athletes who really expect to do the same thing.”

Bekele’s best time was within two seconds of Kipchoge’s previous world record (2:01:39). He described breaking Kipchoge’s new mark as the “main goal” for the rest of his career.

“Yes, I hope, one day it will happen, of course,” Bekele said. “With good preparation, I don’t know when, but we will see one more time.”

Nobody has won more London Marathons than Kipchoge, a four-time champion who set the course record (2:02:37) in 2019. But the two-time Olympic marathon champion did not run this year in London, as elite marathoners typically choose to enter one race each spring and fall.

Bekele does not know which race he will enter in the spring. But it will not be against Kipchoge.

“I need to show something first,” Bekele said. “I need to run a fast time. I have to check myself. This is not enough.”

Kipchoge will try to become the first runner to win three Olympic marathon titles at the Paris Games. Bekele, who will be 42 in 2024, has not committed to trying to qualify for the Ethiopian team.

“There’s a long time to go before Paris,” Bekele said. “At this moment I am not decided. I have to show something.”

So who is the greatest long distance runner ever?

Bekele can make a strong case on the track:

Bekele Four Olympic medals (three gold)Six World Championship medals (five gold)Former 5000m and 10,000m world-record holder

Kipchoge Two Olympic medalsTwo World Championship medals (one gold)

But Kipchoge can make a strong case on the pavement:

Bekele Seconf-fastest marathoner in historyTwo World Marathon Major victories

Kipchoge Four of the five best marathon times in historyTwo-time Olympic marathon champion12 World Marathon Major victories

Geoffrey Koech won the men's elite race at the Cardiff Half Marathon on Sunday

The Kenyan just failed to beat the hour mark, crossing the line in 1:00:01, with Gizealaw Ayana second and fellow Ethiopian Chimdessa Gudeta third.

Beatrice Cheserek secured a Kenyan double by winning the women's race in 1:06:48 ahead of compatriot Viola Chepngeno and Ethiopian Zewditu Aderaw.

Mel Nicholls won the women's wheelchair race in 1:00:19, with Richie Powell taking the men's title in 1:08:44.

"The course is good. It feels good to win here and I pushed really hard. This is my fastest performance in Cardiff," said Koech, the pre-race favourite.

Cheserek was delighted after adding the Cardiff title to the Gothenburg Half Marathon she won last September: "This was my first time in Cardiff. The support was fantastic and helped me to work hard."

Swansea Harrier Dewi Griffiths was the best placed elite British man in eighth (1:04:15), with Cwmbran's Natasha Cockram (1:13:12) claiming seventh among the women.

"After the first 400m, I realised this is why I love this race," said Griffiths. "You get so much support as a Welshman all the way around and the crowds really kept me going when it got tough."

The 19th edition of the event in south Wales coincided with the running of the 2022 London Marathon, with an estimated 25,000 runners taking part in the Welsh capital.

Cockram had planned to compete at the London Marathon but a bout of Covid altered her plans.

"There was no way I was going to be marathon ready so soon after Covid," she said. 

"Obviously today was a lot slower than back in March but I'm happy to come out here and win the domestic part of the race. There were some fast girls up at the front but happy with that at the end of a 100-mile week.

"I love returning here - it's home and the crowds are amazing. It was all a bit of a rush, I only decided on Friday to come but I am so glad I came."

The Cardiff Half Marathon course records are held by Kenya's Leonard Langat, who ran 0:59:30 in 2019, with compatriot Edith Chelimo setting a fastest women's mark of 1:05:52 in 2017.

Yehualaw and Kipruto cruise to convincing wins at London Marathon

In just the second marathon of her career, Yalemzerf Yehualaw overcame a heavy fall to win the women’s race at the TCS London Marathon, while Kenya’s Amos Kipruto made a decisive move with two miles to go to take the men’s title at the World Athletics Elite Platinum road race on Sunday (2).

Yehualaw won in 2:17:26 – the third-fastest time ever achieved on the streets of London – while Kipruto’s closing speed brought him home in 2:04:39.

The opening pace in the women’s race was swift, as it often is on the slightly downhill section of the course. The lead pack of eight women – including Yehualaw and defending champion Joyciline Jepkosgei – passed through the first 5km in 16:01 and they reached 10km in 32:18. That early pace suggested a finishing time of 2:16:15 – well inside the women-only world record of 2:17:01 – but the tempo soon started to drop.

The same eight women were still together through 15km (48:51) and at half way, which was reached in 1:08:46. Hiwot Gebrekidan was unable to stay with the pack for much longer and the lead group was reduced to seven women by 25km (1:21:29), the pacemakers having now dropped out.

Asefa Kebede started to push the pace as the lead group embarked on the second half, with Yehualaw biding her time near the back of the pack. Jepkosgei and Joan Chelimo Melly, meanwhile, looked comfortable in the middle of the pack.

With about 10km to go, Yehualaw tripped on a bump in the road and fell hard, just as she had done at the 2020 World Half Marathon Championships where she went on to take bronze. She quickly got back up on her feet and rejoined the lead pack a minute or two later.

Melly and Ashete Bekere were next to drop off the pace, followed by Kebede, leaving just four women in the lead pack: Jepkosgei, world silver medallist Judith Jeptum, Alemu Megertu and Yehualaw. They reached 35km in 1:54:30, their predicted finishing time now outside 2:18:00, but the real racing was just beginning.

After two hours of running, Yehualaw started to increase her pace. A sizzling 4:43 split for the 24th mile broke up what was left of the lead pack, and within a couple of minutes the Ethiopian had a clear lead over Jepkosgei with Megertu and Jeptum further behind.

Showing no ill effects of her earlier fall, and running with the confidence of a seasoned marathon runner, Yehualaw continued to forge ahead in the closing stages and went on to win by 41 seconds in 2:17:26, just three seconds shy of the PB she set on her debut in Hamburg earlier this year. It’s also the third-fastest time ever recorded in London, behind the world records set by Paula Radcliffe (2:15:25) and Mary Keitany (2:17:01, women-only).

"I am so happy to win here in London," said Yehualaw. "I have worked very hard to prepare for this race and to take the victory is amazing."Jepkosgei held on to finish second in 2:18:07 and Megertu completed the podium in 2:18:32, a PB by 19 seconds. For the first time ever, six women finished in 2:19:30 or quicker.

Kipruto conquers quality field for first world marathon major

The opening pace in the men’s race was more steady and consistent than the women’s race, but the race unfolded in a similar fashion with a group of seven men running together through the early checkpoints. They covered 5km in 14:45, 10km in 29:26 and 15km in 44:20, suggesting a finishing time inside 2:05.

Kenenisa Bekele featured prominently in the lead pack, while defending champion Sisay Lemma held back slightly near the rear of the group. World and Olympic bronze medallist Bashir Abdi and Kenya’s Amos Kipruto were also in contention.

They reached 25km in 1:13:41, still on course for a finishing time just outside 2:04 and with the same seven men still running together. At about 33km, Bekele started to fall off the pace of the lead pack, but he stayed in the race and kept the leaders in sight.

About 15 minutes later – and at roughly the same part of the course where Yehualaw made her move in the women’s race – Kipruto accelerated away from the rest of the pack, opening up a significant lead within a relatively short space of time. A 4:21 split for the 25th mile proved decisive and it soon became clear that victory would be his.

He went on to win by more than half a minute, crossing the line in 2:04:39 to achieve his first victory in a marathon major, following three podium finishes in Berlin and Tokyo in recent years. Ethiopia’s Leul Gebresilase came through to take second place in 2:05:12, seven seconds ahead of Abdi.

Kinde Atanaw was fourth in 2:05:27, followed by Bekele in fifth in 2:05:53, his fastest time for three years. He also becomes the first 40-year-old to run a marathon faster than 2:06.

third photo: Gene Dykes on podium after winning the 70-74 age group with Eluid Kipchoge, the Goat!

I’m still the best, insists Kenenisa Bekele before London Marathon

Kenenisa Bekele insists he still deserves to be considered the greatest distance runner in history despite Eliud Kipchoge’s brilliant world marathon record in Berlin last week.

The 40-year-old Bekele, who will run the London Marathon on Sunday, paid tribute to his great rival’s achievements over 26.2 miles but he also made it clear that if performances on the track, cross-country and world records were taken into account, he should be considered without equal.

During his storied career, Bekele has won an extraordinary three Olympic gold medals, 17 world titles over cross-country, track and road, and held the world 5,000m and 10,000m records for 15 and 16 years respectively – until the arrival of “super spikes” allowed Ugandan Joshua Cheptegei to finally break them in 2020. However even now the legendary Ethiopian remains the second quickest athlete ever over 5,000m, 10,000m and the marathon.

Asked about whether Kipchoge’s 2hr 1min 9sec run in Berlin made the Kenyan the greatest, Bekele replied: “From my side, I don’t want to put in myself [in the conversation]. But what I did in world championships, Olympics, cross countrys and the world records – for those competitions of course I am the best.

“With the marathon I couldn’t achieve what everybody hoped,” he added. “Somehow I failed with some marathon races. But, on the other hand, my marathon times also tell you something. I am second overall behind Eliud Kipchoge. And it was very close. It was only two seconds until last week.

“So this tells everyone: it doesn’t matter if I win a marathon 10 times or 20 times, how many athletes can run this time? Of course I’m not perfect. I’ve not really achieved all the spectators or my fans wanted from me. But, on the other hand, those results were not easy to achieve.”

Bekele has not produced many sparkling performances in recent years, but his marathon personal best of 2:01.41 came in Berlin in 2019 after a similar spell of mixed results.

And he appeared optimistic ahead of Sunday’s race, telling reporters: “My fitness is really good now and I am expecting to get a good result. Of course, I am here to win. You never know because this is not an easy race, but my wish and plan is to win the race.”

He also dismissed suggestions that it could be his last race, adding: “My mind tells me not yet. I follow the feeling in my mind. Someday maybe my mind will tell me this is enough, stop here, but now is not my time.”

Bekele offered his sympathies to Mo Farah, who was forced to pull out of the London Marathon this week due to a hip injury. “I faced many years of injuries and I know how it feels, especially at his age,” he said. “It’s not easy to come out from that, but if he is mentally and physically strong, especially mentally, I am sure he will do better in the future, for a couple of years.”

Three runners who could threaten the two-hour marathon barrier

On Sunday, Eliud Kipchoge made history again, winning the 2022 Berlin Marathon and breaking his previous world record from 2018 in 2:01:09. Although his time was spectacular, Kipchoge went through the halfway mark in 59:51, the fastest-ever half-marathon split in a marathon. His half split shows he has strong potential to achieve a sub-two-hour marathon. But who else might have the potential to do it?

At INEOS-1:59 in 2019, Kipchoge showed the world that breaking two was possible with the help of 20 or more pacers, fluids handed to him in motion, pace lights and ideal weather conditions.

The previous eight marathon world records have been run at the Berlin Marathon. The course attracts many of the world’s top marathoners due to its fast, flat and open course. If the two-hour barrier is broken, it’ll likely happen in Berlin.

In my opinion, there are three runners who can threaten this barrier based on their previous performances.

1) Jacob Kiplimo (Uganda)

The half-marathon world record holder has not immersed himself in the marathon scene yet, but is bound to run something special when he does. The 21-year-old Ugandan has already won a medal at every level–double Commonwealth gold in the 5,000m and 10,000m, Olympic bronze in the 10,000m and world championship gold in the half-marathon.

Although it’s unlikely Kiplimo will rush onto the startline of a marathon anytime soon, he’s shown his incredible talent from 5,000m to the half. He has the eighth-fastest time over 10,000m (26:33.93) and the fastest time ever over 21.1 km (57:31–two minutes and 44 seconds per kilometre pace, which is predictive of a 1:55:20 marathon, or thereabouts).

When he is ready to make the jump, he’ll likely run around 2:02 to 2:04 for his debut and then aim for the two-hour mark in his second.

2) Joshua Cheptegei (Uganda)

The men’s 5,000m and 10,000m world record holder is currently the fastest distance runner in the world. He’s been almost unbeatable over the 10,000m, and has the long stride and the speed to threaten the two-hour mark. Cheptegei has only run one half-marathon (59:21) but holds the world record of 41:05 over 15 km (which translates to a 57-minute half-marathon).

At 26, Cheptegei has some unfinished business in the 10,000m, taking silver to Selemon Barega of Ethiopia at the Tokyo Olympics. We won’t see him move up distances until after the 2024 Olympic Games.

3) Eliud Kipchoge (Kenya)

If anyone knows what it takes to break the sub-two barrier, it’s Kipchoge. He did it unofficially in Austria and was on pace to do it in Berlin on Sunday, up until the 24 km mark. Although he’s only getting older, with his performance in 2022, he has shown the world that he is still in the prime of his career.

Kipchoge has spoken about wanting to win all six Abbott World Marathon Majors (he is missing only Boston and New York) and becoming the first triple Olympic champion in the marathon. This 2:01:09 from Kipchoge won’t be his last shot at sub-two; he’ll likely go back to his camp in Kenya, tweak a few things, and return to Berlin in 2023 for another shot at sub-two before taking on the Paris Olympics in 2024.

2019 Doha World Athletics Championships marathon bronze medalist, Amos Kipruto, will be seeking his first major title

The 2019 Doha World Athletics Championships marathon bronze medalist, Amos Kipruto, will be seeking his first major title when he lines up for the London Marathon race on Sunday.

He has been on the podium at major marathons twice, but wants to bag top honors this time round.

Nation Sport tracked Kipruto at Nandi Hills in Nandi County where he was doing a long run of 36 kilometers.

Kipruto together with his training mates crisscrossed through tea plantations.

The London Marathon will be his second major marathon race this year after finishing second in Tokyo Marathon in March.

Freshly minted world record holder Eliud Kipchoge, who clocked 2:01:09 at Berlin Marathon on Sunday, beat Kipruto in Tokyo.

“From Tokyo, I relaxed a bit. I intensified my training for London Marathon in the middle of Ma, and so everything has been going well. I have a good group behind me and my coach is also helping so much,” Kipruto said.

“Marathon is becoming tricky because competition is high. You need to prepare carefully so that you don’t burnout,” he explained.

Having competed in Tokyo Marathon twice and Berlin Marathon once, Kipruto is a man in a mission.

“It is a great honour for me to be given an opportunity to compete in London, and I don’t take it for granted. The reward that I can give it to myself is to run well in London and set the bar high,” he said.

In the elite athletes’ start list, Kipruto is the fourth fastest with a time of 2:03:13 behind Ethiopians Kenenisa Bekele, Birhanu Legese and Mosinet Geremew.

Kipruto will be the only Kenyan in the elite race after his teammate Vincent Kipchumba withdrew due to injury.

London Marathon preview: will we see two course records broken?

For the third straight year, the TCS London Marathon is set to take place on the first Sunday of October (Oct. 2). Many of the world’s top marathoners have made their way to London for a shot at USD $55,000, plus added incentives for time bonuses and course records.

If anyone were to break Eliud Kipchoge’s world record of 2:01:09 in Berlin last weekend, they would earn a huge payday of USD $400,000+, between prize money and bonuses.

A number of the top athletes have scratched from the marathon this week due to injury, including the British Olympic champion of years past, Mo Farah, who is out with a hip injury; 2022 world championship silver medallist Mosinet Gemerew; and the women’s world record holder, Brigid Kosgei, who suffered a hamstring injury in the lead-up to the race.

Both the men’s and women’s fields are still loaded with former Olympic medalists and Abbott World Marathon Major champions. Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele headlines the men’s race, returning to London for the first time since 2018, after second-, third- and sixth-place finishes in his past three attempts. Bekele, 40, has not been in top form since he ran the second-fastest marathon of all time to win the 2019 Berlin Marathon (2:01:41).

His challenges will come from his Ethiopian compatriot and defending champion Sisay Lemma and two-time Tokyo Marathon winner Birhanu Legese, who holds a personal best of 2:02:48 and is the third-fastest man in history.

Another name not to ignore is Bashir Abdi of Belgium, who earlier this year became the first Belgian to win a medal at both the world championships and the Olympics in the marathon. Abdi won bronze in Tokyo and followed it up with another bronze in Eugene. 

Amos Kipruto of Kenya has been quiet this season after his PB and second-place finish to Kipchoge at the Tokyo Marathon in March. 

Women’s preview

With the two-time London Marathon champion and world record holder Kosgei out, her compatriot, Joyciline Jepkosgei, is the favourite. Jepkosgei brings experience and consistency to the field, having won this race last year in 2:17:43.

The dark horse is Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who previously held the half-marathon world record and ran the fastest debut marathon in women’s history, clocking 2:17:23 at Hamburg in April. She has gone undefeated in her last four road races and reached the podium in her last seven. 

Ashete Bekere of Ethiopia also has the experience, winning Berlin in 2019 and finishing third in London last year. Earlier this year, she was second to Kosgei at the Tokyo Marathon, where she ran her personal best of 2:17:58.

Judith Jeptum Korir of Kenya, the 2022 world championship silver medallist and reigning Paris Marathon champion, was originally planning to pace the leaders on Sunday, but has been a late addition to the elite list. London will be Korir’s third marathon in six months, but she has reached the podium in her last two. 

Jemal Yimel and Ruti Aga, added to 2022 Chicago Marathon elite fields

The 2022 Bank of America Chicago Marathon got a boost in quality yesterday when race organizers announced some significant additions to the elite fields, led by Ethiopian national record holder Jemal Yimer on the men’s side and 2:18:34 marathon Ruti Aga on the women’s side. Aga is the more accomplished marathoner but she is the bigger question mark as she dropped out of New York last year and hasn’t raced at all in 2022 whereas Yimer, who has recorded marathon finishers only in Boston (3rd and 8th the last 2 years), has been on fire on the roads this summer.

Below we show you the new additions to the elite fields (We present them in order from most likely to win to least likely) and after that you will see the full elite fields.

The 2022 Bank of America Chicago Marathon got a boost in quality yesterday when race organizers announced some significant additions to the elite fields, led by Ethiopian national record holder Jemal Yimer on the men’s side and 2:18:34 marathon Ruti Aga on the women’s side. Aga is the more accomplished marathoner but she is the bigger question mark as she dropped out of New York last year and hasn’t raced at all in 2022 whereas Yimer, who has recorded marathon finishers only in Boston (3rd and 8th the last 2 years), has been on fire on the roads this summer.

Below we show you the new additions to the elite fields (We present them in order from most likely to win to least likely) and after that you will see the full elite fields.

Men

Jemal Yimer (ETH) –  2:08:58 pb (Boston, 2022).  26-years-old. Half marathon ace. 26:54 10,000 pb. Ethiopian national record holder in the half marathon, 58:33, which he ran in Valencia in 2018. Trivial: Did you know 12 Kenyans have run faster than that? His two marathon finishes have been in Boston where he was third in 2021 and 8th this year. In good form this summer. 3rd at Peachtree (27:50), 1st at Boilermaker (42:38), 1st in Larne half in 59:04 on August 28th.

Shifera Tamru (ETH) – 2:05:18 pb. Only 23. Won Seoul in 2019 (2:05:29) and Daegu (2:06:31) earlier this year. 5th in Chicago last year. Has ran under 2:06 in 4 of last 5 marathon.

Bernard Koech (KEN) – 2:04:09 pb (Amsterdamn 2021). 34-years-old. Has 5 times run run under 2:07 incluing twice in the 2:04s including in his debut in Dubain in 2013 without super shoes. Has never won a marathon but was s2nd in 2021 Amsterdam and 2014 Rotterdam. No races at all in 2022.

Guojian Dong (CHN) – 35-years-old. Three-time Olympian (2012, 2016 and 2020 marathon); five-time national champion on the track in the 10,000 and 5000m; marathon personal best 2:08:28 (Berlin, 2019). Chinese record is 2:08:15.

Women

Ruti Aga (ETH) – 2:18:34 pb (2018 Berlin). 28-years old. Hasn’t broken 2:20 in her last 6 marathons since running 2:18 in Berlin but did win Tokyo in 2019 in 2:20:40. DNF in NY last year. No results in 2022. Also 2018 Tokyo Marathon and Berlin Marathon runner-up.

Delvine Meringor (ROU) – 2:24:32 pb. 30-years-old. Former Kenyan. 2022 Los Angeles Marathon champion, and 2022 Romanian national champion in the 5000m and 10,000m.

Sarah Inglis (GBR) – 2:29:41 pb (Chandler, 2020). 31-years-old. 2022 Commonwealth Games competitor in the 5000m and 10,000m.

Elisha Rotich (KEN), Abayneh Degu (ETH), Amanuel Mesel (ERI), Masaya Taguchi (JPN), Jianhua Peng (CHN), Shaohui Yang (CHN), Steven Martinez (USA) have also been added to the 2022 elite open division race. Fidel Aguilar (MEX), Jose Pulido (USA) and Hannah Dederick (USA) have been added to the 2022 elite wheelchair competition.

Mo Farah out of London marathon due to injury

Mo Farah has been forced to withdraw from Sunday's London marathon due to a hip injury with this latest setback raising doubts over the 39-year-old's future in competitive racing.

The four-time Olympic gold medalist was due to run the race for the first time since 2019 after making a return to the track in a failed attempt to compete at last year's Olympics in Tokyo.

Farah did return to form on the road by winning the "Big Half" -- a London half marathon -- earlier this month.

"I've been training really hard over the past few months and I'd got myself back into good shape and was feeling pretty optimistic about being able to put in a good performance," said Farah in a statement issued by London marathon organizers on Wednesday.

"However, over the past 10 days I've been feeling pain and tightness in my right hip. I've had extensive physio and treatment and done everything I can to be on the start line but it hasn't improved enough to compete on Sunday."

He added: "It's really disappointing to have to withdraw after a good last few months and after my win at The Big Half but also because I love racing in front of my home crowd in London who always give all of us athletes such amazing support."

Farah has never won the London marathon in three previous attempts, with his best finish coming in 2018 when he was third.

Ethiopian reigning champion Sisay Lemma and his compatriot Kenenisa Bekele, the second-fastest marathon runner of all time, are among the favorites for the men's race.

Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge is not running after smashing his own world record by 30 seconds at the Berlin marathon last Sunday.

Trio of fast women to compete in Frankfurt Marathon

Sally Kaptich heads the line-up for the elite women's field for the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon on October 30. The Kenyan tops the list of fast athletes with her best of 2:21:06 which she achieved in Berlin three years ago. The race organizers expect around 12,000 participants for the 39th edition of the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon with around 20,000 competitors in total, including events held in conjunction with the main event. This historic race is one of the Elite Label Road Race events, a distinction awarded by World Athletics, the international governing body of the sport. Entries can still be obtained at www.frankfurt-marathon.com

Following the recent announcement of the first wave of competitors for the men’s elite field, the organizers have now announced a number of women contenders for the title. Three among this elite group have personal bests under 2:22. With this news the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon, resuming after an enforced interruption of two years because of the Covid pandemic, has gone close to regaining the quality level of its previous women’s elite fields.

“With three runners who have already run under 2:22, we have a very strong women’s field on the start line,” said the Race Director Jo Schindler. “We’ve noted the interest shown by top runners in the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon. Despite the enforced break because of the pandemic, the race continues to enjoy a strong reputation and runners know that we can offer a course and atmosphere which make setting personal bests a real possibility. Many elite athletes as well as mass runners have broken records or set personal bests in Frankfurt.”

Sally Kaptich comes to Frankfurt as an athlete who achieved third place in Berlin in 2019 where the 36-year-old ran what remains her personal best of 2:21:06. The Kenyan, who also has a seventh place in the 10,000m at the 2013 World Championships to her credit and a bronze medal on the road at the World Half Marathon Championships the following year, ran strongly following her Berlin performance to finish fourth in Tokyo with 2:21:42, six months after Berlin.

Her fellow Kenyan Helah Kiprop has still more laurels to her credit, as well as a best of 2:21:27. She finished second at the World Championship Marathon in Beijing in 2015 and won marathons in Seoul in 2014 and Tokyo in 2016, the latter being where she ran her personal best. This year Kiprop was back in action and winning the Copenhagen Marathon in 2:24:10. Now 37, she knows the Frankfurt course well, having run what was then her fastest marathon of 2:27:14 in 2014 when she finished fifth.

The third runner on the Frankfurt start list with a best of under 2:22  will be Yeshi Kalayu Chekole. The Ethiopian improved her best to 2:21:17 for third place at the Seville Marathon in February. Also worth noting is her compatriot Meseret Abebayahau. She ran her fastest marathon by over five minutes to finish second in 2:25:18 in Madrid in spring. The improvement was all the more impressive since she had never broken 2:30 previously.

More Information and online entry are available at: www.frankfurt-marathon.com 

Natasha Wodak smashed Canadian marathon record in Berlin

The 40-year-old from North Vancouver, B.C., who grew to love training for the marathon, shattered the Canadian record in that distance in Berlin on Sunday.

Wodak finished 12th at the Berlin Marathon in two hours 23 minutes 12 seconds, lowering Malindi Elmore's record of 2:24.50 set in 2020. 

Wodak, who was 13th in the marathon at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, was a 10,000-metre specialist on the track for the better part of a decade, and said she didn't enjoy her first marathon experience in 2013.

"I was kind of like 'I don't know how much I want to do this,'" Wodak said. 

"But as I've gotten older, and become a more disciplined runner, and I'm in a better place in my life, I really enjoy the training. And I've had a lot of fun with every marathon build, and challenging myself. Because it's new, right? The move to the marathon was a lot of fun, doing new training and challenging myself, and I really enjoyed it. And I think that's a huge part of why I've been successful, is because I really liked the training."

Ethiopia's Tigist Assefa won Sunday's race in 2:15.37. Two-time Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya broke his own men's marathon world record to win the men's race in 2:01.09.

Wodak, who is coached by Trent Stellingwerff, said her recent training indicated she could run 2:24. 

On Sunday, she ramped up the pace over the 42.195-kilometre course. Her second half was more than a minute faster than her first.

"I knew at 35K, because we had significantly dropped the pace through the last 5K, that we were well under Canadian record pace," Wodak said, moments before sitting down to a celebratory drink with her family. 

"I had a pacer, and he just was like, ‘Let's go, let's go.’ And I just kept on him. I was tired over the last 5K, I was working really, really hard. But I knew that was just because we were running fast. 

"I didn't think that I could do 24.12 . . . when I saw that time at the finish line, I was like, 'oh, wow, what?'"

Wodak's record comes amid a surge in Canadian women's distance running. 

The Canadian record has dropped five minutes in the past nine years, although Wodak noted the huge improvements in shoe technology have seen distance running times plummet across the board in recent years.

Still, Elmore was ninth in the Tokyo Olympics, and the battle between the Canadian women to make that team was fierce.

"It's really exciting to be a part of women's distance running right now," said Wodak. "We just sort of are feeding off of each other. If Malindi hadn't run 2:24.50, I don't know if I would have set my goal to run 2:24 flat. 

"So now Malindi is going to go run Toronto (Waterfront Marathon on Oct. 16), and she's gonna be like, 'OK, I want to run sub-2:23.' We just keep lowering the bar and it’s great when we all build each other up. She wished me good luck (Saturday) and said, 'I hope you have an amazing race.' That's a really cool run community to be a part of when we all support each other."

Elmore tweeted on Sunday, "Congrats Natasha! Huge impressive run today!"

Wodak planned to vacation in Germany with her family. She doesn't plan to race for awhile, and is considering competing in the Canadian cross-country championship Nov. 26 in Ottawa.

2022 Chicago Marathon Elite Field Updates

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon is thrilled to welcome elite athletes from around the world to its start line on Sunday, October 9. In addition to the previously announced field, the following athletes will be competing in 2022:

Bernard Koech (KEN) – Runner-up of the 2021 Amsterdam Marathon in a personal best of 2:04:09. Koech finished fifth in Chicago in 2014.

Shifera Tamru (ETH) – 2022 Daegu Marathon champion and 2019 Seoul Marathon champion with a personal best of 2:05:18 (Dubai, 2019). Tamru finished fifth in Chicago last fall.

Guojian Dong (CHN) – Three-time Olympian (2012, 2016 and 2020 marathon); five-time national champion on the track in the 10,000 and 5000m; marathon personal best 2:08:28 (Berlin, 2019).

Jemal Yimer (ETH) – Ethiopian national record holder in the half marathon, 58:33, and the 12th fastest half marathon runner in history; third place finish in the 2021 Boston Marathon (his marathon debut); marathon personal best, 2:08:58 (Boston, 2022).

Ruti Aga (ETH) – 2019 Tokyo Marathon champion and 2018 Tokyo Marathon and Berlin Marathon runner-up; marathon personal best, 2:18:34 (Berlin, 2018).

Delvine Meringor (ROU) – 2022 Los Angeles Marathon champion, and 2022 Romanian national champion in the 5000m and 10,000m; marathon personal best, 2:24:32 (Siena, 2021); the Chicago Marathon will be her third marathon.

Sarah Inglis (GBR) – 2022 Commonwealth Games competitor in the 5000m and 10,000m; marathon personal best, 2:29:41 (Chandler, 2020).

Elisha Rotich (KEN), Abayneh Degu (ETH), Amanuel Mesel (ERI), Masaya Taguchi (JPN), Jianhua Peng (CHN), Shaohui Yang (CHN), Steven Martinez (USA) have also been added to the 2022 elite open division race. Fidel Aguilar (MEX), Jose Pulido (USA) and Hannah Dederick (USA) have been added to the 2022 elite wheelchair competition.

Previously announced athletes Jeison Suarez (COL), Jerrell Mock (USA), Colin Mickow (USA) and Hiroki Nishida (JPN) have withdrawn from the 2022 event.

Tune into the 2022 Bank of America Chicago Marathon

Watch Live

NBC 5 Chicago and Telemundo Chicago will provide complete live local TV coverage of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in English and Spanish from 7 a.m. – 11 a.m. CST on Sunday, October 9. Expert analysts Ed Eyestone, Carrie Tollefson and Amanda McGrory will join Marion Brookes and Leila Rahimi on NBC 5 Chicago, with Juan Luis Barrios, Luis Posso and Saul Mendoza joining Anabel Monge and Héctor Lozano on Telemundo Chicago.

Covering the leaders and reporting along the course will be U.S. American Marathon Record Holder Keira D’Amato for the women’s elite open division and Olympian Diego Estrada for the men’s elite open division. A talented array of NBC and Telemundo reporters will join the broadcast at the start, finish and along the course.

The 44th running of the race will also be streamed live nationally on Peacock from 7 a.m. – 11 a.m. CST, as well as on nbcchicago.com and telemundochicago.com from 7 a.m. – 3 p.m. CST.

International viewers can watch the race via a variety of global broadcast partners, including Eurosport, SuperSport, ESPN Latin America, Sky New Zealand, Astro Malaysia and SMG China. Viewers are encouraged to check their local listings for timing.

Listen Live

670 The Score Sports Radio will provide complete live radio coverage of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon on race day from 6 a.m. – 10 a.m. CST. Fans of the sport can listen to Chicago’s Josh Liss joined by analysts Greg Meyer, Jenny Spangler, Treniere Moser and Chris Wehrman for a play-by-play of all the action. Listen from anywhere on Sunday, October 9 at 670thescore.com/listen.

About the Bank of America Chicago Marathon

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon welcomes thousands of participants from more than 100 countries and all 50 states, including a world-class elite field, top regional and Masters runners, race veterans, debut marathoners and charity participants. The race’s iconic course takes participants through 29 vibrant neighborhoods on an architectural and cultural tour of Chicago. The 2022 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, a member of the Abbott World Marathon Majors, will start and finish in Grant Park beginning at 7:30 a.m. on Sunday, October 9. In advance of the race, a three-day Abbott Health & Fitness Expo will be held at McCormick Place Convention Center Thursday, October 6 through Saturday, October 8. For more information about the event and how to get involved, go to chicagomarathon.com.

Eliud Kipchoge sets new world marathon record in Berlin clocking 2:01:09

Eliud Kipchoge sliced half a minute from his own world record to win the BMW Berlin Marathon, clocking a sensational 2:01:09 at the World Athletics Elite Platinum Label road race on Sunday (25).

There was also a stunning breakthrough for Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa in the women’s race as she smashed the course record by more than two minutes with 2:15:37, becoming the third-fastest woman in history.

Just when it seemed Kipchoge had achieved everything he possibly could over the classic distance, the legendary pushed the world record further out of reach for the rest of the distance-running world.

Unlike his last world record run, the double Olympic champion went out hard on this occasion, passing through 5km in 14:14 and 10km in 28:22 – not just comfortably inside world record pace, but also well inside a projected two-hour finish.

Kipchoge maintained that pace through half way, which was reached in 59:50, but his pace started to drop slightly from then on, and by 25km (1:11:08) his projected finish had slipped to just outside two hours – still more than a minute inside world record pace, though.

Ethiopia’s Andamlak Belihu was just about staying level with Kipchoge up until this point, but the Kenyan superstar then gradually pulled clear and was out on his own.

He passed through 30km in 1:25:40, then reached 35km in 1:40:10. By the time he passed through 40km in 1:54:53, his lead had grown to move than four minutes with Mark Korir having moved into second place.

His victory – and world record – nor a formality, Kipchoge went on to cross the line in 2:01:09, taking 30 seconds off the world record he set in the German capital four years ago. Korir held on to second place in 2:05:58 and Ethiopia’s Tadu Abate came through to finish third in 2:06:28.

"I am overjoyed to have broken the world record in Berlin," said Kipchoge. "I wanted to run the first half so fast. No limitations.

"After 38km I knew I would be capable of breaking the world record. The circumstances were great, and so was the organisation of the event. I’m really happy with today and impressed by the fans and their support."

By contrast, several runners were in contention for most of the women’s race. A group of six women passed through half way in 1:08 - well inside course record pace – but by 30km, reached in 1:36:41, just three women remained at the front: Assefa, along with Ethiopian compatriots Tigist Abayechew and Meseret Gola.

Despite running significantly quicker than she ever had done before, Assefa – a former 800m specialist – maintained her relentless pace and opened up a gap of about 20 seconds by 35km.

She continued to pull away from the rest of the field and crossed the line in an Ethiopian record of 2:15:37 – a time that has only ever been beaten by world record-holders Brigid Kosgei (2:14:04) and Paula Radcliffe (2:15:25).

Kenya’s marathon debutante Rosemary Wanjiru came through to take second place in 2:18:00, finishing just three seconds ahead of Abayechew.

Leading results

Women

1. Tigist Assefa (ETH) 2:15:37 2. Rosemary Wanjiru (KEN) 2:18:00 3. Tigist Abayechew (ETH) 2:18:03 4. Workenesh Edesa (ETH) 2:18:51 5. Meseret Gola (ETH) 2:20:58 6. Keira D'Amato (USA) 2:21:48 7.  Rika Kaseda (JPN) 2:21:55 8.  Ayuko Suzuki (JPN) 2:22:02 9. Sayaka Sato (JPN) 2:22:13 10. Vibian Chepkirui (KEN) 2:22:21

Men

1. Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) 2:01:09 2.  Mark Korir (KEN) 2:05:58 3.  Tady Abate (ETH) 2:06:28 4.  Andamlak Belihu (ETH) 2:06:40 5.  Abel Kipchumba (KEN) 2:06:49 6. Limenih Getachew (ETH) 2:07:07 7. Kenya Sonota (JPN) 2:07:14 8. Tatsuya Maruyama (JPN) 2:07:50 9. Kento Kikutani (JPN) 2:07:56 10. Zablon Chumba (KEN) 2:08:01

Are records going to be broken at the Berlin Marathon this weekend?

The fall marathon season kicks off this Sunday, Sept. 25, in Germany for the 48th annual Berlin Marathon, which is the first of four Abbott World Marathon Majors over the next six weeks. The biggest name is distance running Eliud Kipchoge returns to the course he set the world record on four years ago, but the question everyone is asking is whether he can run 2:01:39 again?

He also looks to become the second man to win four Berlin Marathon titles, joining the great Haile Gebrselassie, who won four consecutive between 2006 and 2009.

Kipchoge isn’t the only athlete chasing a record in Berlin. U.S. marathon record holder Keira D’Amato has made a quick turnaround from her eighth place finish at World Championships and has her eyes on the American record of 2:19:12, which she ran in Houston earlier this year.

Vancouver’s Natasha Wodak is the lone Canadian in the elite field, and she is looking to take advantage of the fast Berlin course. In 2020, Wodak ran the second fastest marathon time by a Canadian woman, 2:26:19, at The Marathon Project in Arizona. She followed up that performance with an impressive 13th place finish in the marathon at the 2020 Olympics Games.

Wodak hopes to shake 90 seconds off her marathon PB Sunday to challenge Malindi Elmore’s Canadian record of 2:24:50 from 2019.

The weather

The race starts at 9:15 a.m. local time on Sunday (which is 3:15 a.m. E.T. in Canada). The temperature looks to be perfect for marathoning — between 10 C and 14 C, with next to no wind. 

Men who hope to finish near Kipchoge

It is well-known that Kipchoge is the favorite, but who are the guys most likely to finish second or stick with him until 30K?

Ethiopia’s Guye Adola, who was second to Kipchoge in 2017, won Berlin last fall in 2:05:45. The win marked his first major victory after struggling with injury earlier in his career. Like Kipchoge, Adola is fast and knows what it takes to win on this course. In 2017, he ran the fastest marathon debut in history on this course but since has not run near 2:03. 

Adola is the only other sub-2:05 runner, which Kipchoge is bound to finish under. If anyone else wins this race, it would take a miracle, or mean both Kipchoge and Adola have blown up.

Ghirmay Ghebreslassie of Eritrea won the 2015 World Championships in Beijing and the New York Marathon in 2016 after missing the podium at the Rio Olympics. Although Ghebreslassie has the experience, in a sub-2:05 race, he may not have the speed to keep up with Adola and Kipchoge. 

Marley’s Pick: Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) – 2:02:29

Can Keira D’Amato become the first American winner?

D’Amato has the fastest time out of the 24 runners in the women’s elite field with a time of 2:19:12, but she has only had nine weeks to prepare for Berlin after her 2:23:34 at the World Championships in Eugene. She was only selected for the U.S. team after Molly Seidel dropped out a few weeks before the championships.

To run 2:23 at worlds off not much training is impressive and should be a confidence booster for D’Amato on a faster Berlin course. 

Many of the top Kenyan and Ethiopian runners will be competing later this fall, but there are other sub-2:22 runners in Berlin. Kenya’s Nancy Jelagat Meto (2:19:31 – Valencia) and Vibian Chepkirui, the winner of the Vienna City Marathon in 2:20:59 in April, have the experience and speed to deny D’Amato the title.

Rosemary Wanjiru of Kenya, a 65:34 half marathoner, is making her marathon debut here in Berlin. Although this is her first marathon, she will likely be in contention most of the race.

Marley’s Pick: Rosemary Wanjiru (KEN) – 2:18:39.

Eliud Kipchoge ready for fast times in Berlin

Eliud Kipchoge is ready for a very fast race in the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON on Sunday which may well lead him to break the world record here for the second time.

The double Olympic champion, who set the current world record of 2:01:39 in Berlin four years ago and also broke the two-hour barrier when he ran 1:59:40.2 in a race in Vienna in 2019 which did not conform to regulations, will start as the clear favourite. 

Organisers of the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON have registered 45,527 runners from 157 nations for the 48th edition of the event. Germany’s most spectacular road race is part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors (AWMM) and is also a Platinum Label Road Race of the international athletics federation, World Athletics. 

The 37-year-old Kenyan held back from making any hard and fast promises when he spoke two days before the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON. “I’d like to thank the organisers for letting me race again in Berlin after four years and expect a very good race. I’ve trained well as usual – every training day is a challenge.”In response to the question at the press conference, what would be “a very good race” for him, Eliud Kipchoge answered: “A very good race is a good race.”

That got the audience on his side before he added: “I want to inspire people and if a course record comes out of this at the end, I will appreciate it,” added this outstanding athlete. It should be noted that the course record is, of course, the world record, but Eliud Kipchoge was careful not to utter these words.

The world record holder, whose career so far has brought him victory in all but two of his 18 marathons, could well achieve his fourth win in Berlin after taking the title in 2015, 2017 and 2018. That would bring him equal with the Ethiopian legend Haile Gebrselassie as the two men with most wins in Berlin. If the world athlete of the year for 2018 and 2019 is in world record form, Eliud Kipchoge should prove unbeatable on Sunday.

On the other hand, the elite field has plenty of strength in depth. Heading the list of challengers is last year’s champion Guye Adola from Ethiopia, winning the title in unseasonably warm conditions in 2:05:45 and beating the Ethiopian superstar Kenenisa Bekele into the bargain.

It was in Berlin in 2017 that Guye Adola ran what remains his personal best of 2:03:46 and on his debut at the distance. Only Eliud Kipchoge finished ahead of him though from time to time Adola took the lead. “I have prepared well and look forward to the race,” said the 31-year-old, who described Kipchoge as “a hero.”

The BMW BERLIN-MARATHON has greater strength in depth among the men’s elite field than ever before. As many as 18 runners have personal bests under 2:08. Among them is Ghirmay Ghebreslassie who caused a surprise when winning the world title in 2015 and also won in New York the following year. The Eritrean athlete has a best of 2:05:34 which he set in finishing third in Seville in February.

“It’s a big challenge to run in such a field and against Eliud Kipchoge. I’ll do my best and my aim is a place on the podium,” said Ghirmay Ghebreslassie.

An unusually large number of Japanese runners will be among the elite starters, the reason being that they are trying to qualify for the 2024 Olympics. There will be 13 of them with personal bests of under 2:10 in the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON. The fastest of them is Ryu Takaku with a best of 2:06:45.

The leading German in the field is Johannes Motschmann, who was a member of the German team at the European Championships which won the silver medal in Munich. Despite a short recovery time of six weeks since that competition, the 28-year-old wants to improve his personal best of 2:12:18 in the direction of 2:10. 

The race in Berlin is the biggest of my career so far. Since I’m a hometown boy here, I’d even rate it above the European Championship marathon,” said Motschmann, who runs for the Marathon Team Berlin.

The Austrian record holder, Peter Herzog, will also be aiming to take advantage of conditions at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON and run faster than ever before. His current best is 2:10:06 and his ambition is to become the first Austrian.

While a double world athlete of the Year in Eliud Kipchoge will take centre stage, a former star of world sport will be running some way behind him: the Brazilian football legend Kaká, a member of the team which won the World Cup in 2002, and also a Champions League winner and Footballer of the Year.

“I definitely wanted to run a major marathon and asked friends who recommended Berlin to me. That’s why I’m here. On Sunday I want to run 3:40. The marathon is something very special in that we, as mass runners, run together with the elite. I’m very excited,” admitted Kaká at the press conference.

Elite runners with personal bests

Eliud Kipchoge KEN 2:01:39

Guye Adola ETH 2:03:46

Ghirmay Ghebreslassie ERI 2:05:34

Dejene Debela ETH 2:05:46

Mark Korir KEN 2:05:49

Ashenafi Moges ETH 2:06:12

Tadu Abate ETH 2:06:13

Bethwel Yegon KEN 2:06:14

Awet HabteERI2:06:25

Ryu TakakuJPN2:06:45

Limenih Getachew ETH2:06:47

Hiroto InoueJPN2:06:47

Zablon Chumba KEN 2:07:18

Kenya Sonota JPN 2:07:23

Kento Kikutani JPN 2:07:26

Kazuki Muramoto JPN 2:07:36

Tadashi Isshiki JPN2:07:39

Atsumi Ashiwa JPN 2:07:54

Daisuke DoiJPN2:08:13

Rintaro TakedaJPN2:08:48

Yuki Matsumura JPN 2:09:01

Peter Herzog AUT 2:10:06

Johannes Motschmann GER 2:12:18

Third photo: Kipchoge's first run in Berlin 

Haile Gebrselassie to be the International Event Ambassador at the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2022

Haile Gebrselassie, one of the greatest distance runners in history, will be the International Event Ambassador at the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2022 on Sunday October 16.

The Ethiopian legend won the 10,000m gold medal at both the 1996 and 2000 Olympic Games as well as four successive World Athletics Championships 10,000m titles from 1993-99.

In addition, Gebrselassie won a further four world indoor gold medals and the 2001 World Athletics Half Marathon Championships title, and set no less than 15 world records outdoors and on the roads, and a further five world indoor records, revising the record books over a stunning range of distances from 1500m to the marathon.

“There are few things more inspiring and joyful than seeing a city run together. When we run together, we stay together, we win together,” said Gebrselassie, whose activities in Delhi will include motivating and inspiring the thousands of runners who will take to the streets of the Indian capital next month, as well as promoting the event in the final days before the gun goes.

"Running and the community are the two things that are most important to me, and an event like the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon brings them together in a special way.

“The enthusiasm of the host city inspires something special in everyone involved in making this beautiful event possible. I’m going to be cheering all the runners as we celebrate the different hues of Delhi,” he added.

Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, the reigning world half marathon champion and world record holder over the distance, will headline the elite field for the 17th edition of the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2022.

The Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2022 is a World Athletics Elite Label Race and one of the world's most prestigious half marathons.

Two-time Vienna champion Vibian Chepkurui now targets Berlin glory

Two-time Vienna Marathon champion Vibian Chepkurui has set her sights firmly on successfully graduating to the World Marathon Majors and claiming the Berlin title this Sunday.

Chepkurui, who trains in Iten, Elgeyo Marakwet County, has been preparing for the Berlin Marathon for the last three months and is confident of a good outing on the streets of Germany’s political capital.

Kenya will be seeking to recapture the title that Ethiopia bagged in the last two editions with Gotytom Gebreslase having won last year while Ashete Bekere bagged victory in 2019.

The last Kenyan athlete to win the race was Gladys Cherono who ran a course record two hours, 18 minutes and 11 seconds in 2018. Cherono has since retired from elite running.

“My target in Berlin is to run my personal best from 2:20:59 to 2:18 and I believe if the weather conditions will allow, I will be able to hit the target,” Chepkurui, who is managed by Ikaika Sports Management, told Nation Sport at her home.

She said that after running well in this year’s Vienna Marathon in April where she clocked a course record, she is confident of an “impressive race” in her first major marathon. 

Moses Kibet wins Sydney marathon in record time on Australian soil

Kenyan Moses Kibet has claimed a historic victory in the Sydney marathon as the top three finishers all bettered the previous fastest time on Australian soil.

Kibet clocked a winning time of two hours, seven minutes and three seconds on Sunday, crossing the line just two seconds ahead of countryman Cosmas Matolo.

Ethiopian Chalu Deso Gelmisa – the victor in the Paris marathon earlier this year – was third in 2:07:08.

The three Africans smashed the Australian all-comers record of 2:07:50 set by Japan’s Yuta Shitara on the Gold Coast in 2019.

Ethiopia’s Tigist Girma Getachew won the women’s marathon in 2:25:10 ahead of compatriot Letebrhan Haylay Gebreslasea and Eritrea’s Nazret Weldu Gebrehiwet.

Jun Hiromichi won the men’s wheelchair marathon in 1:52.47, with Australian Richard Colman second in 1:53:28.

Australian Sinead Diver – who was a creditable 10th in the marathon at last year’s Tokyo Olympics – claimed victory in the women’s half-marathon at the Sydney Running Festival in a course record of 1:13:07.

Diver was also fifth in last month’s Birmingham Commonwealth Games marathon which was won by countrywoman Jess Stenson.

The Sydney marathon is in the first year of a three-year candidacy to join the prestigious World Marathon Majors.

Ethiopian duo Mengesha and Teshome secure Ethiopian double in Copenhagen

Milkesa Mengesha and Tadu Teshome took top honors at the Copenhagen Half Marathon on Sunday (18). And with 15 men finishing inside an hour at the World Athletics Elite Label road race, the event witnessed record depth.

Mengesha, the 2019 world U20 cross-country champion, beat a quality field to notch up his second half marathon victory of the year, winning in a PB of 58:58. Teshome, meanwhile, smashed her PB to lead an Ethiopian 1-2-3, winning in 1:06:13.

After a steady opening 5km of 14:02, the pace dropped slightly in the following few kilometers of the men’s race as the large lead pack reached 10km in 28:10. The leading contenders – which included Mengesha and his compatriots Amedework Walelegn and Chala Regasa, Kenya’s Felix Kipkoech, Vincent Kipkemoi and Edmund Kipngetich, and South Sudan’s Dominic Lobalu – then started to increase the pace.

By the time of the 15km checkpoint, reached in 42:06, the lead pack was down to 12. They remained bunched together for a few more kilometers before Mengesha started to ease away, carving out a small lead before going on to win in 58:58. Compatriot Walelegn followed him home in 59:05, two seconds ahead of Kipkoech.

Lobalu, winner of the 3000m at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Stockholm earlier this year, was fifth in a national record of 59:12. Further back, Switzerland’s 40-year-old Tadesse Abraham became the oldest man in history to finish inside 60 minutes for a half marathon, clocking 59:53.

In contrast to the men’s race, which increased in pace as it went on, the women’s race started off remarkably quick but soon became a war of attrition as athletes tried to hold on as best they could.

When the first 5km was covered in a swift 15:19, most of the lead pack decided to ease off the pace, but Teshome and Tsigie Gebreselama maintained that tempo for another 5km, reaching 10km in 30:40 – inside both of their PBs for 10km.

Gebreselama then broke away from Teshome and opened up a gap of 30 seconds by 15km, reached in 46:39, but it didn’t last. Teshome came back over the next few kilometers and caught her compatriot with about two kilometers to go.

Once she was in the lead, Teshome continued to pull away and she went on to win in 1:06:13, 22 seconds ahead of Gebreselama, who was making her half marathon debut. Ethiopia’s Tiruye Mesfin almost caught Gebreselama, eventually finishing third in 1:06:42.

Leading results

Women

1 Tadu Teshome (ETH) 1:06:13

2 Tsigie Gebreselama (ETH) 1:06:35

3 Tiruye Mesfin (ETH) 1:06:42

4 Magdalena Shauri (TAN) 1:06:52

5 Eunice Chumba (BRN) 1:07:34

6 Sintayehu Tilahun (ETH) 1:07:41

7 Janet Ruguru (KEN) 1:07:51

8 Anchalem Haymanot (ETH) 1:08:09

9 Vicoty Chepngeno (KEN) 1:08:22

10 Betelihem Afenigus (ETH) 1:08:35

Men

1 Milkesa Mengesha (ETH) 58:58

2 Amedework Walelegn (ETH) 59:05

3 Felix Kipkoech (KEN) 59:07

4 Vincent Kipkemoi (KEN) 59:09

5 Dominic Lobalu (SSD) 59:12

6 Chala Regasa (ETH) 59:13

7 Edmund Kipngetich (KEN) 59:25

8 Matthew Kimeli (KEN) 59:39

9 Titus Kimutai (KEN) 59:44

10 Ronald Kirui (KEN) 59:51

World record holder Jacob Kiplimo to run Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon

Ugandan star hopes for “fastest half marathon ever seen on Indian soil”.

Jacob Kiplimo, only 21, is the reigning world half marathon champion and last year ran the phenomenal world record time of 57:31.

The young Ugandan star has already had an outstanding 2022, winning both the RAK Half Marathon in Ras Al Khaimah (UAE) in February in a world-leading 57:56 and then the Great North Run half marathon last Sunday. During the summer, Kiplimo focused on the track and won a World Athletics Championships 10,000m bronze medal and then a memorable 5000m/10,000m double at the Commonwealth Games last month.

Ethiopia’s Amdework Walelegn improved the Delhi course record to 58:53 in 2020 but Kiplimo believes he can run the fastest half marathon ever seen on Indian soil during his first visit to the country next month. “I have been told that the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon course is a quick one and the record suggests that you can run fast times there. I am in good shape, and I will focus on preparing specifically for the race over the next few weeks,” said Kiplimo.

The 17th edition of this race has a new title sponsor, with the race promoters Procam International joining forces with India’s leading natural resources conglomerate, Vedanta Limited. With transformation for a sustainable future at the heart of Vedanta’s business operations, its commitment to giving back to society has been a part of the company’s core ethos. Both Vedanta and the Delhi Half Marathon are striving to be catalysts for change in society so it is a partnership that will be mutually beneficial to their joint aims.

“On behalf of the Vedanta family, I feel honored to welcome the current world half marathon and world record holder Jacob Kiplimo to the Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon 2022. When Jacob became world champion at such a young age, his story become an inspiration for many. I am sure that his participation here will motivate thousands more to take to part and run for causes that deeply touch us all,” said Priya Agarwal Hebbar, Non-Executive Director, Vedanta Limited.

The race has a prize fund of USD 268,000, and the international elite field will have its sights on the first prize of USD 27,000 for both men and women. “We are thrilled to be able to welcome Jacob Kiplimo to India for the very first time and to headline this year’s Vedanta Delhi Half Marathon. It is a reflection of the event’s stature that it annually draws some of the biggest names in distance running,” said Vivek Singh, Joint Managing Director, Procam International.

“As one of the leading half marathons in the world, I’m excited that we are back on the international calendar, bigger and better. It’s our privilege to welcome Vedanta as the title sponsor, as we look to build on our shared objective of strengthening the legacy of this event as a stimulus for empowerment and change,” he added.

High Class Elite Field marks Frankfurt’s Return

The Mainova Frankfurt Marathon will take place on October 30 for the first time since 2019. Among the men’s elite are three contenders with personal bests of under 2:06 which points to a high-quality race in prospect. The Ethiopian Betesfa Getahun is the fastest runner in the field at present with a best of 2:05:28. Also on the start line will be the German runner Filimon Abraham from theTelis Finanz Regensburg club. The organisers of the race, which will end in its traditional, spectacular fashion in Frankfurt’s Festhalle, expect to have around 12,000 marathon runners for the 39th edition of the event. The race is an Elite Label Road Race, a distinction awarded by World Athletics, the world governing body of athletics. Entries are still available at www.frankfurt-marathon.com

“We are delighted that the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon is back after a two-year interruption because of the Corona Pandemic – with strong elite fields, a big number of mass runners and all the emotions which we have experienced in the past,” says the Race Director Jo Schindler. “We’ll experience the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon just as it’s always been: a big start and thrilling run-in to the finish in the Festhalle in front of thousands of spectators. Our aim is to create a unique running experience for mass and elite competitors alike and to see many beaming faces at the end of race day.”

The organisers have now announced part of the men’s elite field while recruiting for the women’s race continues and the elite women’s field will be announced at a later date. An up-and-coming Ethiopian is the fastest man on the start list: Betesfa Getahun is 23 and made his marathon debut in 2019 with an impressive, high-quality performance, running 2:05:28 for fourth place in Amsterdam. The Mainova Frankfurt will be his fourth race at the distance for the runner whose pedigree includes a strong showing in sixth place at the 2018 World Half Marathon Championships in Valencia.

The other runner, who has already gone under 2:06, is also from Ethiopia and is just 21: Gebru Redahgne is a newcomer to running at international level, running outside of his homeland for the first time only last year when he finished second in the Cape Town Marathon in 2:10:17. He made a massive improvement this year in Barcelona where he ran 2:05:58 for another second place finish and only five seconds behind the winner. Gebru Redahgne wants to take full advantage of Frankfurt’s fast course to improve his personal best still further.

A runner from Kenya is making his return to the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon where he has more than once impressed with the quality of his performances. Martin Kosgey twice finished second in the Festhalle, in 2016 and 2018, as well as taking fourth place on two more occasions, 2017 and 2019. Frankfurt was where the 33-year-old set what remains his personal best of 2:06:41. The Mainova Frankfurt Marathon on October 30 will be his first race in a year when he produced a solid performance to finish runner-up in Eindhoven in 2:06:56.

Since almost every German runner at top level were involved in either the World or European Championships this summer, almost none of them will be competing in Frankfurt. An exception is Filimon Abraham of the Telis Finanz Regensburg club who has the potential to join the leading ranks of Germany’s marathoners. After failing to finish on his marathon debut in Hamburg in April, the 29-year-old, who finished 19th in the 10,000m at the European Championships in Munich in August, is renewing his marathon quest on Frankfurt’s fast course.

1,500m world record holder Genzebe Dibaba to run Amsterdam Marathon

Dibaba, 31, will follow older sisters and fellow Olympic medallists Tirunesh Dibaba and Ejegayehu Dibaba into the marathon.

On Tuesday, the TCS Amsterdam Marathon confirmed on Instagram that the women’s 1,500m world record holder, Genzebe Dibaba, will make her marathon debut on Oct. 16 in Amsterdam.

Dibaba, 31, follows older sisters and fellow Olympic medallists Tirunesh Dibaba and Ejegayehu Dibaba into the 42.2-kilometre distance. Her 1,500m personal best of 3:50.07 from the 2015 Monaco Diamond League still stands as the world record, though Faith Kipyegon of Kenya ran the second-fastest 1,500m time in history (3:50.37) on Aug. 10.

Kipyegon beat Dibaba for the 1,500m title at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.

Dibaba has competed fewer than five times since she missed the 2019 World Championships and 2020 Olympics due to a foot injury. She has only raced the half-marathon distance once, at the Valencia Half Marathon in 2020, which at the time was the fastest-ever debut half marathon by a woman (65:18).

Joining Dibaba on the start line is her Ethiopian compatriot and 2016 Olympic 10,000m champion Almaz Ayana, who is also making her marathon debut. Ayana finished third at the Great North Run in Newcastle, U.K., last weekend in 67:10 and has run 29:17.45 over 10,000m.

The fastest debut marathon by a woman was 2:18:56 by Paula Radcliffe at the London Marathon in 2002.

Hellen Obiri believes her winning the Great North Half Marathon is a huge inspiration as she prepares for her full marathon debut in New York

Olympic 5,000m silver medallist Hellen Obiri said cheers from the crowd on the streets of Newcastle and a good course propelled her to clinch the title once again.

As compared to last year’s edition, when the Covid-19 pandemic was still raging — forcing the limitations on crowds — Obiri said this year's edition was well attended and the course favourable.

“Last year, the race was a bit tough due to the pandemic. However, this year’s edition has been amazing owing to the cheerful crowd. The course was also good unlike last year,” Obiri said.

Obiri won the Great North Run in 1:07:05, bettering her 1:07:42 from last year, ahead of Olympic marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir ( 1:07:07 ). Ethiopia’s Almaz Ayana placed third in 1:07:10.

Obiri, the world 10,000m silver medallist added: “It’s a good feeling. I am happy for what I have done.” 

She added that the race was not a walk in the park with the presence of Jepchirchir and Ayana, a former Olympic and world 10,000m champion.

“I knew they were there and I knew the race was going to be a tight battle. However, I told myself I am the best and I will do my best. I had a plan to kick in the last 200m and it worked out well,” she said.

“I am so excited about my marathon debut but I'm also aware of the tough competition that awaits me. Right now, I am going to prepare well and I am hoping I’ll be healthy. I just want to run well and cross the finish line,” Obiri concluded.

Athletics Olympic champion on the start line of the TCS Amsterdam Marathon

There is a remarkable name on the starting list of the TCS Amsterdam Marathon: Almaz Ayana. The 30-year-old Ethiopian athlete, who won gold in the 10,000 meters at the 2016 Olympics, will make her marathon debut on Sunday, October 16. Another first is the current world record holder in the 1500 meters: Genzebe Dibaba. Sports organization Le Champion also reports that CyBrian Kotut, Lemi Berhanu and Titus Kipruto are the fastest men on the start line in Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium. They have all won major marathons.

Almaz Ayana is one of the greatest talents of all time in long distance running. In 2016, she was phenomenal: she won Olympic gold in Rio de Janeiro in a new world record in the 10,000 meters (29.17.45) at the time, and bronze in the 5,000 meters. In that year, she was also awarded IAAF Athlete of the Year. The 30-year-old Ethiopian athlete previously won the world championship twice and the Diamond League final ranking twice. After a few years of absence due to the arrival of her son, Ayana is ready to add to her impressive record of achievements.

Genzebe Dibaba is the youngest sister of three-time Olympic champion Tirunesh Dibaba and Olympic silver medallist Ejegayehu Dibaba. The 31-year-old Ethiopian runner holds the world record for the 1500 metres (3:50.07, Monaco 2015). She also is an Olympic silver medal holder (2016, Rio de Janeiro). In 2015, when she became world champion in the 1500 meters, her brilliant performance was rewarded with the title of IAAF Athlete of the Year. She will be challenging for the first time over this classic distance.

These fast women are accompanied by Tsehay Gemechu, among others. Their 23-year-old compatriot has a personal best of 65.01 in the half marathon and finished fourth in the 5,000 meters at the 2019 World Athletics Championships.

Course record of 2.03.39 in danger?

When the starting gun for the TCS Amsterdam Marathon sounds on Sunday 16 October, the eyes of the men will be on CyBrian Kotut, Lemi Berhanu and Titus Kipruto. On the ultra-fast course, they will be aiming for the course record of 2.03.39 (Tamirat Tola 2021).

CyBrian Kotut has already won a number of marathons: Hamburg, Florence and Paris. This spring, the 30-year-old Kenyan ran a personal best of 2.04.47 to win in Hamburg. Last November he was unbeatable in the 42,195 meters in Florence and in 2016 he triumphed in Paris.

Lemi Berhanu also knows all about winning. He has won the Dubai (2015), Boston (2016) and Xiamen (2017) marathons, among others. With a personal best of 2.04.33, the 27-year-old Ethiopian is in for the win.

Titus Kipruto is a revelation from Kenya. This spring, the 24-year-old marathon runner made a huge impression by winning the Milan marathon. In his second marathon, he finished in 2:05:05. Can he break his personal record again in Amsterdam? >{?Registration for NK marathon still possible

During the TCS Amsterdam Marathon, the Dutch marathon championships also take place, for which competitive athletes can register until September 26. The three main events, the full marathon, half marathon and 8K,

World marathon silver medalist Judith Korir to compete at the Copenhagen half marathon

Judith Korir will compete in the women’s elite race during the September 18 Copenhagen Half Marathon.

Korir will enjoy the company of Kenyan compatriots including former NCAA 10K champion Sharon Lokedi, Irene Jepchumba, Agnes Keino, Fancy Chemutai, Chumba Chebichii, Vicoty Chepngeno and Beatrice Chepkemoi.

Korir has a personal best time of 1:05:28 which she ran at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in February. She is also the winner of the Paris Schneider Electric Marathon. She is the third fastest in the field.

Chemutai is, however, the fastest in the field with a personal best time of 1:04:52, which she ran at the 2018 Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon while Chepngeno is the second fastest in the field with a personal best of 1:05:03 posted at the Aramco Half Marathon in January.

Lokedi has a personal best time of 1:08:14 which she ran at this year’s United Airlines NYC Half Marathon to place fourth.

The rest of the Kenyans have personal bests as follows Keino (1:15:04), Chebichii (1:06:11), Jepchumba (1:06:03), and Chepkemoi ( 1:07:29). 

The Kenyan representatives will face stiff competition from the Ethiopians who will be seeking to shake off their rivals. 

The 2019 All-Africa Games silver medallist Feysa Hawi with a personal best of  1:05:41 will also be in the line-up. During last year’s edition, she placed second in her PB and she is the fourth fastest runner in the field.

Bosena Mulatie (1:05:46) will also be seeking top honours. Other Ethiopians in the race will be Betelihem Afenigus (01:07:47), debutant Tsigie Gebreselama, Gete Alemayehu (01:06:37), Tiruye Mesfin (01:08:25), Tadu Teshome (01:07:55), debutant Sintayehu Tilahun and Alemaddis Eyayu (01:08:04).

In the men’s field, Matthew Kimeli is the second fastest in the field with a PB of 58:43 posted at the 2021 Valencia Half Marathon. He is also the winner of the 2022 Adizero Road to Records Half Marathon (59:30) and placed third at the 2022 Prague Half Marathon (59:46).

Other Kenyans in the field will be Felix Kipkoech (58:57), Vincent Kipkemoi (1:00:00), Josphat Kemei (59:32), Ronald Kirui (59:38), Edmund Kipngetich (59:41), Alfred Kipchirchir (59:43), Ed Cheserek (1:00:37), Boniface Kibiwott (1:00:52), Titus Kimutai (1:00:56), Mathew Kibiwott (1:02:19) and Jonathan Maiyo (59:02).

Ethiopia’s Amedework Walalegn is the fastest in the field with a personal best time of 58:40.

Jacob Kiplimo wins the Great North Run after fantastic tributes were paid to the Queen

World record holder Jacob Kiplimo became the first Ugandan man to win the Great North Run after tributes were paid to Queen Elizabeth II before Sunday' race.

Kiplimo powered to victory in his first appearance at the event in north-east England.

The 21-year-old had a 32-second lead as he hit the 12-mile mark on the 13.1-mile course from Newcastle to South Shields.

Kiplimo, the reigning world half-marathon champion, crossed the line in 59.33, 66 seconds ahead of Olympic 10,000m champion Selemon Barega, with Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele third in 1.01.01.

"I enjoyed the race, it was nice. I came here to win it," Kiplimo said.

In the women's race, Kenya's Hellen Obiri retained the title after holding off strong challenges from Peres Jepchirchir.

The trio broke away from the field early in the race and contested a tense finale.

Obiri made the decisive kick in sight of the finish line as she clocked 1:07.05, 37 seconds faster than last year, with her compatriot Jepchirchir, the Olympic marathon champion, two seconds behind and Ethiopia's Almaz Ayana a further three seconds adrift.

"It's a great opportunity to do a faster one than last time, so I'm so happy," Obiri said.

Faith Chepng'etich asserted her supremacy as the world's best in 1,500m

World and Olympic 1500m champion Faith Kipyegon admits she never expected to go around the last bend alone on her way to victory on Day Two of the Zurich Diamond League on Thursday.

Kipyegon clocked 4:00.44 to win the women’s 1500m and rack up her third Diamond League title on the final day of this year’s League.

Ireland’s Ciara Mageean (4:01.68) and Ethiopian Freweyni Hailu (4:01.73) came second and third respectively.

“I was hoping that when I pushed, they would come with me and it would be a tough race. I enjoyed it anyway, but it was really funny because I honestly believed they were coming with me so it almost felt that I was running on my own towards the end,” the double Olympic champion said.

She added: “I tried to follow the pacer and do my own thing. It is really special to race here, this is Zurich, and you can really hear it out there.”

During this year’s edition of the prestigious track and field one-day meet, Kipyegon emerged victorious in the Prefontaine, Monaco and Zurich legs of the competition.

Last time out, in Monaco, she fell 0.3 seconds of setting a new world record, timing 3:50.37 on her way to victory.

Despite running slower this time, Kipyegon was still happy to finish off her season with a win and looked back to what has been business as usual for the two-time world champion.

“This was a really strong field, but then I kept thinking this was the last race of the season, and I took the opportunity to end it in a nice way. It has been a long season, and, indeed, my legs are tired, but I think I still managed to run a good time all things considered – like I said, it was a strong field,” she said.

Having cemented her status as the queen of the three-and-a-quarter lap race, Kipyegon will be keen on enhancing this reputation when she returns to Budapest next year to defend the world title she snatched from Dutchwoman Sifan Hassan in Oregon in July.

Dutch track star Sifan Hassan mulling marathon switch

Dutch track star Sifan Hassan, who won double Olympic gold in the 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the Tokyo Games, said Tuesday she was thinking about stepping up to the marathon.

“I’m really planning to run marathon,” said the Ethiopia-born Hassan. “I don’t know when, but I’m thinking about it, I’m thinking about it every night and every day, whenever I run.”

When asked whether she might have a tilt at the marathon at the 2024 Paris Olympics, she replied with a laugh: “Why not?”

Hassan, 29, also won bronze in the 1,500 in Tokyo in a remarkable bid for three titles.

That effort, however, took its toll and Hassan has enjoyed a hiatus from the sport, time she said that had been constructively spent learning about her true self.

“In Tokyo I did amazing, but it affected me a lot. This year for me is like a break of a year,” Hassan said ahead of Wednesday’s 5,000-meter race, part of the Diamond League finals in Zurich.

“I have to have a very big goal and very big challenge to go forward,” she added, describing herself as “curious” to see if she can push her limits for challenges as much mental as physical.

“I’ve lost a couple of races, which gave me a boost,” she said of this season. “I’m in great shape, I’m peaking now.”

Much was expected of Hassan at July’s world championships in Oregon, but she could only finish sixth in the 5,000 and fourth in the 10,000.

Hellen Obiri to defend Great North Run title, Peres Jepchirchir in the mix

Defending champion Hellen Obiri and Olympic marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir will be in the women’s lineup for the Great North Run slated for September 11 in the streets of Newcastle.

Obiri won last year’s edition in 1:07:42. She is a two-time world 5000m champion and a two-time Olympic 5000m silver medalist. Obiri has a personal best time of 1:04:22 which she ran at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in February.

Jepchirchir, who will be making her debut, has a personal best time of 1:05.06 which she ran at the 2017 Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon. She placed first during the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in 2016 and 2020 in respective times of 1:07:31 and 1:05:16. Jepchirchir is also a former world half marathon record holder. 

The Kenyan duo will be competing against the Ethiopian duo of Hiwot Gebrekidan and former Olympic 10,000m champion Almaz Ayana. Gebrekidan and Ayana have personal best times of 1:06:47 and 1:07:12 respectively.

Gebrekidan is the winner of the 2016 Copenhagen Half Marathon. She is also a former World Under-20 3000m silver medalist. Ayana won in the 2017 edition of the New Delhi Half Marathon. She is also a former world 10,000m record holder when she broke China’s Wang Junxia record during the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Charlotte Purdue and Jess Piasecki, both from Great Britain will also be in the race. Purdue placed third during last year’s edition of the Great North Run. She has a personal best time of 1:08:23 which she ran at the 2020 Kagawa Marugame International Half Marathon in Japan. 

Piasecki has a personal best time of 1:07:20 which she ran at this year’s Santa Pola Half Marathon in Spain. She is also the winner of the 2019 Usti Half Marathon in Czech Republic. She will also be making her Great North Run half marathon debut.

Police identify the man who poured rum into Mexico City Marathon water cups

In a wild video posted to social media, a man who does not appear on camera recorded himself as he poured white rum into sports drinks at a water station set up for participants at the Mexico City Marathon last Sunday. On Wednesday, the director of the Mexico City Institute of Sport, Javier Hidalgo Ponce, announced that police have identified the drink-spiker, who will likely face prosecution for attempted poisoning.

According to reports, the man was intoxicated, and spiked the drinks around 6 a.m. after leaving a nightclub. It is apparent in the video that he aimed to get the marathon runners drunk.

The water station was located near the halfway point on the course, when runners would have covered more than 21 km, and the consumption of undiluted alcohol combined with exertion could be dangerous. No runners drank the spiked drinks, since race volunteers who worked at the water station realized in time what had happened, and dumped out the alcohol.

Ponce blamed the incident on the Mexico City mayor’s office for allowing nightclubs to close so late. 

More than 19,000 runners participated in Sunday’s marathon. Kenya’s Edwin Kiptoo won the men’s event, completing the course in 2:10, and Ethiopia’s Amane Beriso won the women’s race in a course record time of 2:25

Grant Fisher sets new America 5000m record

In the latest installment in one of the greatest seasons ever by an American distance runner, Grant Fisher ran 12:46.96 at the Memorial Van Damme Diamond League meet in Brussels on Friday to smash Bernard Lagat’s 11-year-old American 5,000-meter record of 12:53.60. Fisher was also in contention for his first Diamond League victory with 150 meters to go but had to settle for second as Kenya’s Jacob Krop, the Worlds silver medallist, pulled away to win in a world leading 12:45.71 (#6 all-time).

Fisher had near-perfect conditions to break the record. The temperature (low-70s) and wind (6 mph) were fine and wavelight technology was in play, but the most important ingredient was a trio of opponents committed to pushing the pace once the pacemakers dropped: Ethiopia’s Yomif Kejelcha and Kenyans Krop and Daniel Ebenyo.

Kejelcha hit 3k in the lead at 7:41.74 (12:49 pace), by which point the four leaders had begun to separate. The gap between those four and the rest of the pack would only continue to grow as Krop took the lead with 1700 meters to go and kept his foot on the gas. Fisher, seeing Krop’s eagerness, was content to sit at the back of the group of four and get towed along to a fast time.

Just before three laps to go, Fisher went past a fading Kejelcha (who would end up dropping out) and moved into third. With a little bit more than 500 to go, a gap started to open up between Krop and Ebenyo and Fisher showed he had more in him as he went past Ebenyo and latched on to Krop. It was now a two-man affair.

Krop was keeping the pace scorching hot as the 4th to last lap was 61.43, the 3rd to last was 61.52 and the penultimate lap was 61.37. At the bell (11:47.9), it was clear Lagat’s American record was history. How fast could they go and who was going to emerge as the winner?

Fisher was ready to put up a fight but he was looking like a car with its engine maxxed out while Krop still looked incredibly smooth. Ultimately Krop broke Fisher with 100m to go to cap a 57.75 final lap (unofficially we had it 29.68, 28.06).

Fisher sprinted it in to finish just behind and break Bowerman Track Club Moh Ahmed’s 12:47.20 North American record in addition to obliterating Lagat’s AR. After running 12:53.73 for 5,000 indoors in February, 26:33.84 for 10,000 in March, and 7:28.48 for 3,000 in August, Fisher’s 12:46.96 tonight gives him four American records in a 2022 season that will go down as a year for the ages in the annals of American distance running.

Camille Herron’s breakfast of champions, Fuel up and go chase a world record (or maybe a PB)

I’ll try any running (or eating!) advice Camille Herron has to offer. The multiple world-record holder continuously levels up, finding new ways to improve her running and racing. Herron is in South Africa running the downhill course of the legendary Comrades Marathon this weekend, an 89K ultra that she won (on the uphill course) in 2017.

She shared with us the pre-run breakfast she swears by. If you haven’t heard of teff, you aren’t alone; while Westerners are still learning about the tiny, protein-rich grain, it’s been a staple in Ethiopian cooking for thousands of years. Teff has a mild, nutty flavor. Herron substitutes it for oatmeal, and says it’s been a “game-changer.”

Camille Herron’s breakfast of champions

Ingredients

4 Tbsp of teff

1 Tbsp ground flax seed

1 Tbsp chia seeds

Handful of cut walnuts

Handful of blueberries

1 tsp camu powder

1 tsp bee pollen

1 Tbsp non-fortified nutritional yeast

1 to 2 Tbsp honey

Pinch of salt

Directions

Add hot water, stir, and let sit for 10 to 15 minutes. Add or substitute any nuts or fruit that you enjoy. Herron says teff has been a pre-run fuel revelation for her: “it doesn’t retain as much water as oats, so it doesn’t feel heavy on the gut pre-run.” She adds, “it feels like it stabilizes blood sugar for a long time.”

1 Tbsp wheat germ

Two more Kenyan marathoners suspended for failing doping tests

Two more Kenyan distance runners have been suspended by the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) for failing drugs tests, including Hangzhou Marathon winner Michael Kunyuga.

Kunyuga tested positive for norandrosterone and Maiyo Johnstone Kibet returned a sample found to contain erythropoietin (EPO).

Both are provisionally suspended as a consequence.

Norandrosterone is a product of nandrolone, an anabolic androgenic steroid known to accelerate muscle growth and recovery, while EPO boosts an athlete's endurance as it gives blood a greater capacity for carrying oxygen.

Kunyuga has a personal best in the marathon of 2 hours 6min 43sec, which ranks him among the 250 fastest athletes of all time.

The Kenyan's best results include winning the 2018 Hangzhou Marathon in 2:10:37 and placing fifth in the 2020 Seville Marathon, when Kunyuga set that personal best.

Kunyunga also won the Hengshui Lake Marathon and Padova Marathon in 2017.

Kibet's personal best in the marathon is 2:10:02, set in 2011 in Frankfurt.

In 2016, Kibet triumphed at the Wuhan Marathon.

The provisional suspensions are the latest in a long line of doing sanctions levied against Kenyan athletes.

Fifty banned Kenyans are listed on the AIU's database of ineligible persons, a national tally smaller only than Russia's.

A further seven, including Kibet and Kunyuga, are provisionally suspended.

Kenya is one of seven Category A nations deemed by the AIU to have the highest doping risk, along with Bahrain, Belarus, Ethiopia, Morocco, Nigeria and Ukraine.