Running News Daily

Kenya’s Caroline Kipkirui and Ethiopia’s Worknesh Degefa, will go head-to-head in the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon 2018

The two fastest women in the ADHM elite field, Kenya’s Caroline Kipkirui and Ethiopia’s 2016 ADHM winner Worknesh Degefa, will go head-to-head again after a memorable duel in the Prague Half Marathon back in April. Kipkirui – who set a personal best of 65:07 in Ras Al Khaimah in January – prevailed by just one second on that occasion to take second place in the Czech capital and it’s certain that Degefa will have that in mind ahead of her fourth ADHM appearance. Two other highly-rated Ethiopian women will also be on the start line in Delhi: Yeshaneh Ababel and Senbere Teferi. Ababel was second at the ADHM 2017 and has since been victorious at the Istanbul and Yangzhou half marathons while Teferi, who will be making her half marathon debut, has won world championship medals on the track and at cross country in the past and will arrive in Delhi fresh from setting a 3000m personal best when representing Africa at the recent IAAF Continental Cup. All the leading runners will also have in their sights first prize cheques of US$27,000 with a total prize money purse (combined men and women) of US$280,000. “We have two outstanding races in prospect for this year’s Airtel Delhi Half Marathon with Eric Kiptanui and Caroline Kipkirui leading the field,” commented Vivek Singh, joint managing director of race promoters Procam International. “Once again, we brought some of the best distance runners in the world to India with the aim of entertaining, thrilling and inspiring the Indian distance running community. ADHM’s standards and popularity is well-established across the globe, something we are very proud of, and with fields of this calibre 2018 edition should be no different.” he added. (09/26/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenyan team is set to run the oldest marathon in Europe, the Kosice Peace Marathon in Slovakia

Founded in 1924, the Kosice marathon is Europe's oldest, this year celebrating its 95th edition. The course records - Lawrence Kimaiyo's 2:07:01 men's mark set in 2012 and Ashete Bekere Dido's 2:27:47 women's standard set in 2013 - may not be under imminent threat, but the solid fields attracted to this eastern Slovak city promise strong head-to-head battles. Kerio will be keen to improve his best time and clinch the course record. Speaking in Eldoret, Kerio said he has gone through three months of training without any injury concerns or any other problems and believes he will be in peak form to defend his title. "It will always be hard as a champion to defend your crown," he said Wednesday. "But that is why we train hard and it will be down to my own tactics and strength to carry me through the distance and hopeful retain my title." Kerio, 24, holds a best time of 2:08:12, which he clocked in 2017 in winning the marathon. He will be accompanied by compatriot Nicholas Kipchirchir Korir, who will be making his first run in the full marathon distance. Korir holds a best time of 59:50 in the half marathon distance. Ethiopia will be represented by Birhanu Bekele (2:09:41). Since its inception just five men have managed to secure back-to-back wins in Kosice. The last man to achieve the feat was David Kariuki winning in 2001 and 2002 winner.  On the women side, Kenya's Alice Kibor, third at the Rome Marathon this year with best time of 2:28:19 will be the athlete to beat. She will be up against Ethiopian Mestawot Tadesse (2:31:38).  (09/26/2018) ⚡AMP

Vienna Marathon champion Nancy Kiprop will face a big challenge at the Frankfurt Marathon

Vienna Marathon champion Nancy Kiprop of Kenya, former Xiamen Marathon winner Mare Dibaba face a big challenge to run in less than two hours and 20 minutes at the Frankfurt Marathon women's race on Oct. 28. It means that Kiprop must improve her own best time past the current mark of 2:24:18, which she set in April to retain her title in Austria's capital. "To shake off four minutes is a big challenge. But after seeing what Eliud Kipchoge did in Berlin, I believe anything can go and I want to see how fast I can run in Frankfurt against some of the strongest challengers. Of course the first priority is to dictate the pace and win the race, then the time will fall in," said Kiprop on Monday in Eldoret. Kiprop and Dibaba lead a carefully selected elite list for the race with organizers offering 30,000 US dollars as bonus for whoever beats the course record alongside the 24,000-dollar prize for winning the race. The men's race is led by 2017 Berlin marathon silver medalist Guye Adola of Ethiopia. Adola will face two other notable runners-up in Frankfurt Marathon when he lines up against fellow Ethiopian Kelkile Gezahegn and Kenya's Martin Kosgey, the second-place finishers at the past two editions. Last year Olympic 5,000m champion Vivian Cheruiyot won her maiden marathon race in 2 hours 23 minutes and 35 seconds. The organizers have thrown down the gauntlet challenging the elite runners to push for faster time and Kiprop will take it upon herself secure this feat and improve her personal best time. The organizers have assembled an elite women's field with impressive strength in depth. The course record stands at 2:21:01 set by the Ethiopian Meselech Melkamu six years ago and, given good weather conditions, this should come under threat on Oct. 28. (09/25/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenyan Emmanuel Saina set a new South American all-comers record of 2:05:21 at the 34th edition of the Buenos Aires International Marathon

Emmanuel Saina of Kenya set a new South American all-comers record of 2:05:21 at the 34th edition of the Buenos Aires International Marathon, an IAAF Bronze Label road race, on Sunday. In the women’s race, Kenya’s Vivian Kiplagat Jerono took the victory in 2:29:03, also a course record. Saina, who didn’t start as a one of the favorites, dominated the race from the start, passing five kilometres in 14:48, alongside his compatriot Barnabas Kiptum. Both continued to race together up to the 30th kilometre, passing 10 kilometres in 29:54, 15 in 44:53, and 20 in 1:00:27. The halfway point was reached in 1:02:52 and 25km in 1:15:28. The nice morning in the Argentine capital (18-20 C) was a good ally for Saina, who by 30 kilometres (1:29:37) had opened a gap of six seconds over Kiptum. Saina continued on his way to a negative splits, with 1:43:49 at 35 kilometres and 1:58:47 at 40, before finishing the second half in 1:02:29. The 26-year-old, who was making his debut over the distance, arrived at the line with a modest 1:02:03 personal best in the half marathon from Berkane on 1 April. Kiptum paid the price of the very fast race and finished in 2:09:19, still a personal best, while Peruvian Christian Pacheco, third with 2:11:19, also a personal best, won the South American title. Paraguayan Derlis Ayala followed with a national record of 2:13:41, while Kenyan Godfrey Kosgei was fifth in 2:14:00. Peruvian Nelson Ito (2:16:29) completed the podium of the South American Championships, while Miguel Ángel Bárzola, seventh, was the best Argentine runner with 2:16:47. Pre-race favorite Marius Kipserem, from Kenya, dropped out in the second half. The women’s race went more ‘accordingly’ to what was expected, with Kiplagat confirming her role of favorite. After winning the Buenos Aires Half Marathon in a course record of 1:09:10 in August, the 31-year-old was dominant, passing 10-k in 37:00, and continuing with the following splits: 1:13:40 at 20-k, 1:16:21 at Half Marathon, 1:47:15 at 30km and 2:21:14 at 40km. With 1:12:42 over the second half, Kiplagat was able to produce a very clear victory. Kenyan Leah Jerotich was second with 2:32:58 (1:16:21 at halfway), while Ethiopian Amelework Bosho was third with 2:34:56. Ecuadorian Rosa Alva Chacha, fifth overall, obtained the South American title with 2:35:29. Peruvians Clara Canchanya (2:39:27; sixth overall) and Gladys Machuacay (2:40:58; seventh overall) completed the South American podium. Argentine Mariela Ortiz was the best local athlete, eighth in 2:42:11. (09/24/2018) ⚡AMP

South Africa's Stephen Mokoka won the 2018 Cape Town marathon, setting a new course record

Stephen Mokoka finished in a blistering 2:08.31 to take 10 seconds off the previous record of 2017 winner Asefa Negewu of Ethiopia. He is the first South African to win the race since 2010. Namibia's Helalia Johannes was the first female athlete to cross the line, winning in a time of 2.29.28. Both the men’s and women’s winners set new course records. (09/24/2018) ⚡AMP

Ezekiel Mutai of Kenya won the Rock´n´Roll Montreal clocking 2:11:05

Ezekiel Mutai of Kenya was the winner of the full marathon, in 2:11:05. Wycliffe Biwott was the runner-up, with a time of 2: 15:38. Jean-Marie Vianney-Uwajeneza was third, in 2:18:10. Salome Nyirarukundo of Rwanda won the women’s race, with a time of 2:28:02. Joan Kigen of Kenya was second, and Emebet Anteneh of Ethiopia was third. (Anteneh debuted the half-marathon in Edmonton last month, winning the event with a time of 1:11:23.) Quebeckers ruled in the half-marathon, with Alexis Lavoie-Gilbert and Anne-Marie Comeau winning, in 1:09:25 and 1:14:46 respectively. Nicholas Berrouard and Laura Pierce won the 10K, in 32:48 and 37:46, and Gary Guillaume and Jen Moroz were first in the 5K, in 16:31 and 19:13. Berrouard was top Canadian at last year’s Ottawa Marathon. (09/24/2018) ⚡AMP

Eric Kiptanui, Leonard Korir and Zane Robertson headline the Delhi Half Marathon

Eric Kiptanui will be the star attraction at the 14th edition of the Airtel Delhi Half Marathon (ADHM) to be held on October 21. Kiptanui, from Kenya, has already notched up two impressive half marathon victories this year — winning the high-quality Lisbon and Berlin races. He will be accompanied on his first trip to India by his training partner Daniel Kipchumba. Two-time Tata Consultancy Services World 10K winner Alex Korio — whose best of 58:51 was set in the 2017 Copenhagen Half Marathon — has been a regular participant in Procam International events in recent years and has run the ADHM twice in the past, last in 2015. Representing Ethiopia will be two men, Leul Gebresilase and Feyisa Lilesa, who are better known as marathon runners but who can still boast of outstanding half-marathon credentials. Adding to the considerable global interest in the race, USA’s Leonard Korir and New Zealand’s Zane Robertson are also in the men’s elite field. (09/22/2018) ⚡AMP

Fast times are expected in the men's field of Hipporun Mezza Maratona

The Hipporun will be a competitive event with 22 top runners, between men and women, going to be at the start at the Vinovo racetrack at 9:15 AM.  The course record for the half marathon belongs to Youssef Sbaai who clocked 1:02:55 last year. He is again running this year. In this year's field is Ethiopian, Deme Tadu Abate, who has a PR of 1:00:46.  Kenya's, Joel Maina Mwangi, a member of Dynamo Sport, has a PR of 1:01:16 clocked in 2014. His compatriot Roncer Konga Kipkorir of the Run2Gether team, the 24-year-old in May at the Bucharest half marathon clocked 1:01:19. Kenya's Hosea Kimeli Kisorio has a PR of 1:01:59 clocked in 2015 in Lucca.  John Hakizimana has a PR of 1:02:26.    (09/22/2018) ⚡AMP

John Korir whose older brother Wesley Korir won the Boston Marathon in 2012, joins elite roster at Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

John Korir, 22, has announced he will join the elite roster at Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 27. John is the younger brother of Wesley Korir, who won the Boston Marathon in 2012, and who represented Kenya at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. Wesley is also a former Member of Parliament in Kenya. younger Korir debuted the marathon at Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend this spring, where he was way out in front just a few kilometres from the finish line. Ultimately Korir was overtaken by Yemane Tsegay of Ethiopia, the course record-holder, and finished in second place with a time of 2:09:14. The two brothers have trained together in Louisville, Kentucky. Korir will be welcomed by the family of his sister-in-law, Tarah McKay-Korir, who live in southern Ontario. Tarah and Wesley are the founders of the Kenyan Kids Foundation, one of STWM’s charity partners. Korir joins two-time defending champion Philemon Rono, New Zealand’s Jake Robertson, and our very own Reid Coolsaet on the start line at Scotia on October 21. (09/21/2018) ⚡AMP

The Women’s elite field at the Toronto Waterfront Marathon just got stronger

Ethiopia’s representation at this year’s Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon just got stronger with the addition of Amane Beriso to the elite women’s field. With a personal best of 2:20:48, recorded when finishing second at the 2016 Dubai Marathon, the Ethiopian has the fastest personal best of any woman who has ever lined up at this IAAF Gold Label road race. And it is apparent she also possesses the mindset to challenge her compatriot and defending champion, Marta Megra. Victory is her primary objective, though she warns her rivals that the Toronto course record of 2:22:43, held jointly by Kenyan Sharon Cherop and Koren Jelala Yal of Ethiopia, could also be in jeopardy when the race goes off on 21 October 21. “Absolutely, nothing is impossible, I believe,” says Beriso, who celebrates her 27th birthday on 13 October. “I think with Marta Megra it’s going to be a little difficult, but it is possible and I am in it to win it.” “We have one month of training remaining, so I am willing to take on any challenge in front of me and I will try to improve the course record.” This is no idle boast. Besides her brilliant run in Dubai a year ago, Beriso ran 2:22:15 in Prague in May 2017 which earned her second place in that IAAF Gold Label event. It was another eye-catching performance and if it wasn’t for an ankle injury which plagued her over the past year, she may have piled up additional credentials. Now healthy and fully fit after seeking treatment in Germany, she looks ahead to the battle for glory and an $80,000 pay day. Despite having twice run well under the Toronto Waterfront course record, she is a novice at the distance. Dubai, in fact, was her debut. (09/20/2018) ⚡AMP

The Toronto Waterfront Marathon elite field is lead by last year's winner Philemon Rono

Philemon Rono, will be aiming for third Toronto title. He made further history a year ago when he also ran the fastest marathon ever on Canadian soil. His time of 2:06:52 was also a personal best. “I’m very happy to come to Toronto again,” said the 27-year-old. “What comes to my mind is that it was a nice race (last year) because I set my personal best and it was a good chance for me. I took the lead between 32 and 35K and I said to myself ‘today is my day’ and I felt good,” Rono reminisced.   Under the guidance of coach Patrick Sang, the 1992 Olympic steeplechase silver medallist, Rono has thoroughly blossomed. Sang’s training team includes a large group of elite marathon runners represented by Netherlands-based Global Sports Communication, including world record holder Eliud Kipchoge. They are also members of the NN Running Team, a unique professional group sponsored by NN, an insurance and asset management company.  "I am really happy, training hard and looking forward to competing in this big race in Toronto,” said Kiprotich, who also won the marathon title at the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow, joining Ethiopia’s Gezehegne Abera as the only man to ever win both major competitions.  (09/18/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopia's Shura Kitata runs fastest half in US and Linden are winners at Rock ’N’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon

Fall marathon season is in full swing, and the elites have started their tune-up races in preparation. So far, it’s been successful: Reigning Boston Marathon champion Desiree Linden took first at the Rock ’N’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon this weekend. The women’s field was stacked, and included Linden, Sarah Sellers, who finished second at Boston, and Kellyn Taylor. In the race, Linden was neck and neck with Taylor, until Linden pulled away late. Linden topped the podium with a time of 1:11:49, while Taylor took second with a 1:12:07. Taylor captured the attention of the running world in June when she won the Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota in 2:24:28, the seventh-fastest marathon time ever for an American woman. The men’s race was won by Ethiopia's Shura Kitata in a stunning 59:17.  This is the fastest half marathon run in the United States and the 6th best winning time in the world in the last 12 months.  Parker Stinson finished second, in 1:03:02, and Canada’s Cam Levins was third, in 1:03:10. Cam Levins also raced Philadelphia as a tune-up, in his case for the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon on October 21. Stinson will run Chicago on October 7. (09/17/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenya´s Elijah Kemboi was victorious in the Blackmores Sydney Marathon

Kemboi broke a run of three successive wins by Japanese athletes in taking the men’s race while Kibarus produced the third-fastest winning women’s time on the Sydney course, which starts with an up-and-over run over Sydney Harbour Bridge and produces several other tough challenges along the route to the finish at the Opera House. Favouritism is often a heavy burden in a marathon, but Kemboi and Kibarus bore the mantle lightly. Each had seen off their closest rivals by the 35-kilometre point and ran to victory unchallenged over the final stages. With three sub-2:08 marathons to his name among seven sub-2:10 performances, Kemboi looked the class of the men’s field. In the marathon, however, you have to execute your race plan before the race executes you. The just-turned 34-year-old dominated the race from the start in North Sydney to the finish at the Opera House. It had come down to a race of three very shortly after the start as the lead group was whittled down from 10, to six and then to Kemboi, Uganda’s Thomas Ayeko, and Birhanu Addisie of Ethiopia. Addisie never looked too interested in sharing the leading duties, but Kemboi motioned the younger Ayeko, the Commonwealth Games 5000m fourth-place finisher and with a 1:00:26 half marathon to his credit, to the front several times in the first 30 kilometres. (09/17/2018) ⚡AMP

Valary Jemeli Aiyabei from Kenya becomes the first ever Kenyan winner of the women’s race at Beijing Marathon

The women’s race was first introduced to the Beijing Marathon in 1989, but Kenyan runners had never previously managed to reach the top step of the women’s podium. Aiyabei, the fastest entrant and the only Kenyan in the elite women’s field, broke clear after 20 kilometres and kept pushing ahead until hitting the line in 2:21:38, ending a four-year winning run by Ethiopian runners. Her winning mark is the fourth fastest in the history of the race and the quickest mark since 2005, but is two minutes shy of the 2:19:39 course record set by Sun Yingjie in 2003. “This is my first time running the Beijing Marathon,” said the 27-year-old, who set her PB of 2:20:53 when finishing third at last year’s Berlin Marathon. “The race today was good and the weather was good. Everything was good. I want to say thanks to my pacemaker and my husband, he did the best job. I am very happy.” The race was staged under cool ad breezing conditions and the in-form Aiyabei tried to break away soon after the gun. After passing the water station at five kilometres, only Bahrain’s Eunice Chebichi Chumba, with a PB of 2:24:27 set last year in Rotterdam, managed to keep up with Aiyabei’s pace. The duo remained together for another 15 kilometres before Aiyabei finally broke free from Chumba. Paced by her husband Kenneth Kiplagat Tarus, Aiyabei kept widening the gap between her and Chumba. When Tarus stepped out of the course at 40 kilometres, Aiyabei had already built a lead of more than four minutes. (09/17/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenya’s Paul Kios Kangogo wants to win and break the course record at Beijing Marathon

Kangogo who has a best time of 2:09:20, said he has overcome his injury concerns and is ready to return to the winner's podium in the Chinese capital. However, it will not only be the win he is targeting but to improve on his best time and attack the course record of 2:07:16, which was set five years ago by Ethiopia's Tadese Tola. My training has gone well and everything is fine. I have pushed my body to the limit and am happy, I have come through without any problems. I can say am in-form. I know there will be a strong Ethiopian challenge including the past champions, but running a marathon is down to your own strength and strategy and past record count for less," Kangogo told Xinhua, Thursday in Nairobi. The Kenyan has blown hot and cold in the last two years, mainly due to injury and hopeful, after returning to fitness in April, he will be consistent to string together another podium finish. He however, will be up against the 2014 Beijing marathon champion Fatuma Sado, Tola Dibaba (2:06:17) and Abayneh Ayele (2:06:45) who will be running his third race in China this year. He finished second in 2:14:13 at the Chongqing marathon in March and went on to take third place in Dongying in 2:13:47. There is also Ethiopia's Seboka Negusse (2:09:44) winner at the Hannover marathon in April and Xiamen marathon champion Dejene Debela (2:07:10). (09/15/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenyan´s Joan Chelimo Kelly is looking forward to running her personal best at Copenhagen Half Marathon

The road race, which is a IAAF Gold Label race, has attracted the finest half marathon distance runners in the world as they look forward to running their personal bests. Joan Chelimo, who is the fourth-fastest half marathon runner and was second in last year's edition, will be eyeing the top prize after vigorous training for the last two months. Chelimo, who is fresh from winning the Kisii Half Marathon, told Nation Sport that she will be expecting a competitive race. “My training has been good and my participation in Kisii Half Marathon was just to taste waters and I was able to do some fine tuning before the race,” said Chelimo. The athlete admitted that her competitors are good and she will be giving her best in Sunday's race. “The line up has very good athletes including the World Half Marathon champion Netsanet Guneta, but I believe in my training and my goal is to be on the podium,” said the athlete, who is coached by Erick Kogo. Chelimo will be competing against compatriots Edith Chelimo (65:52), Ruth Chepngetich (66:19), former World Half Marathon bronze medallist Mary Wacera Ngugi (66:29), Ethiopia's Meskerem Assefa (67:42), Ababel Yeshaneh Brihane (66:22 among others. (09/15/2018) ⚡AMP

Eliud Kipchoge and Wilson Kipsang are set to battle and maybe set a world record in just a few hours in Berlin

The Berlin Marathon will start Sunday September 16 at 9:15am local time or 12:15am California time (3:15am in New York).  

The weather forecast looks good.  Only 10% chance of rain, mostly cloudy and the temperatures in the 60’s (17-21c). The stage is set for two of the best marathoners in the world to battle each other in the 45th edition of the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON on Sunday when Eliud Kipchoge and Wilson Kipsang meet for the third round of their rivalry in the fastest marathon in the world.

Kipchoge’s best of 2:03:05 is only eight seconds slower than the current world record and Kipsang has done his share of record breaking, since he ran his best of 2:03:13 to break the then world record and win Berlin in 2013.  

Eliud Kipchoge’s aim on Sunday is to break his personal best and attack the world record while Wilson Kipsang is equally primed to set a world record.  This year’s Marathon is the biggest ever, 133 countries will be represented among the 44,389 participants.

The BMW BERLIN-MARATHON is also part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors Series (AWMM) which also comprises Tokyo, Boston, London, Chicago and New York. The new series, the 12th edition, of the AWMM begins in Berlin on Sunday and will also conclude with the 46th edition of the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON next September.

Then men’s marathon in Berlin has become a yardstick for performances at the distance worldwide. Over the past 15 years in September its flat course has been the stage for half a dozen world records. Since 2003 no other marathon has produced a men’s world record.

For good measure, the world’s fastest time for the year by a man has been run at every BMW BERLIN-MARATHON since 2011. The current world best time for the year is the 2:04:00 by the Ethiopian Mosinet Geremew, set in Dubai in January.

The world record stands at 2:02:57 by Kenya’s Dennis Kimetto to win Berlin four years ago. Eliud Kipchoge said this at Friday’s press conference and talk of a world record attempt: “After winning in London in April I concentrated on preparations for Berlin and can assure you that I shall run well on Sunday.

"I want to improve my personal best,” said the man who has won all but one of his eleven marathons and is regarded by many as the best ever at the distance.  He did hold back a little and perhaps the reason for his reluctance to commit fully in public is caused by two previous world record attempts in Berlin where the 33-year-old had bad luck.

In 2015 his shoe insoles came lose and, despite being in pain, he still won in 2:04:00. A year ago bad weather foiled the world record attempt as Kipchoge set a “Rain World Record” to win in 2:03:32. No athlete had ever run a marathon so fast in such conditions. 

The only man to have beaten Eliud Kipchoge in the marathon is Wilson Kipsang and that was in 2013. Kipsang broke the world record in that Berlin race with 2:03:13.

The 36-year-old has plenty of experience and achieved consistently world class performances over many years, breaking 2:04 on four occasions – a total Kipchoge has not yet matched.

Wilson Kipsang plans to run more cautiously than Kipchoge on Sunday: “I want to run similarly to my world record in 2013. I ran the second half faster than the first then. 

"This Sunday I want to reach halfway in 61:30,” said Kipsang, who dropped out of Berlin last year at 30km.

(09/15/2018) ⚡AMP

Meselech Beyene of Ethiopia aiming to capture another title at the Beijing Marathon

The 24-year-old Beyene enjoyed a comfortable solo lead in the final 10 kilometers en route to her 2:27:44 victory last year, one minute shy of her personal best set six months earlier in Barcelona. It will be the third race of the year for Beyene following a third place finish in Houston with a season’s best of 2:27:21 in January and a second place showing at the Vienna City Marathon in 2:29:51 three months later. Beyene will once again face a deep field in Beijing, as she did here last year, which includes several sub-2:25 runners including the 26-year-old Sado. The Ethiopian achieved her career best of 2:24:16 at the 2015 Toronto Waterfront Marathon, one year after her 2:30:03 victory in Beijing, where she ended a 22-year winning streak by local runners in the women’s race. Although she failed to dip under the 2:30 the past two years, Sado proved her competitiveness in Xiamen this January as she shrugged off the heavy rain and overcame a stomach problem in the latter stages to win her second title there in 2:26:41. Beyene and Sado are more familiar with the course that stretches from the landmark Tian’anmen Square and ends outside the National Stadium, better known as the “Birds Nest”, but the top favorite should be Kenya’s Valary Jemeli Aiyabei. The 27-year-old is the fastest woman on paper with a career best of 2:20:53 from her third finish at the 2017 Berlin Marathon. Prior to that performance in the German capital, the rising Kenyan emerged triumphant in four straight marathons in Eldoret, Barcelona, Valencia and Prague, improving her PB on each occasion. Her winning marks in Valencia and Prague remains as the course records and she also proved her worth in 2018 with a 2:22:48 clocking in Nagoya where she finish second. The field also includes two sub-2:22 runners, Mulu Seboka and Amane Gobena, who are both from Ethiopia. Gobena recorded her PB of 2:21:51 in Tokyo two years ago while Seboka set her lifetime best of 2:21:56 in Dubai in 2015. The duo will both arrive in Beijing with high spirits following their newly claimed titles this year in Mumbai and Dalian respectively. (09/15/2018) ⚡AMP

Uganda’s Thomas Ayeko will be chasing the race course record at Sydney Marathon

Uganda’s Thomas Ayeko best marathon is only 2:12:04, but he has a 1:00:26 half-marathon and a 27:40.96 10,000m (11th in the 2013 World Championships) to his name and was fourth in the 5000m at the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. The elite men at the upcoming Syndey marathon will be chasing the race record of 2:11:18 set by Ethiopia’s Gebo Gameda Burka in winning the 2014 race. The race records are modest by the highest international standards, but any road course in Australia’s biggest city is a compromise between aesthetics and degree of difficulty. If you want pancake-flat, better look somewhere else. There are faster runners, but recent history of the men’s race suggests Japanese duo Norikazu Kato and Takumi Honda should be in the lead pack. Since Burka’s record winning performance, there have been three successive Japanese winners. Hisanori Kitajima won in 2015, followed by Tomohiro Tanigawa a year later and then Shota Hattori last year. Sydney will be just the second marathon for Honda. He made his debut in Nobeoka earlier this year, finishing second in 2:12:18. Several others in the field have faster personal bests, but he looks competitive on 2018 performances. Likewise, Kato’s personal best of 2:12:48 came in this year’s Beppu-Oita race in Japan. Sydney will be his first significant race outside Japan. Kenya’s Elija Kemboi is entitled to race favouritism, however. Kemboi has run 2:11:15 or faster each year from 2011 to 2017 and was second in Linz this year in 2:11:30. He has run three sub-2:08 marathons, with a best of 2:07:34, among his seven sub-2:10 performances. If he is in that sort of form again now, he will be very hard to beat and might be the most likely to try an early breakaway. The other sub-2:10 men in the field are Ethiopia’s Birhanu Addisie, who ran 2:09:27 in finishing second in Rome in 2016, and Kenya’s Cosmas Kimutai, who ran 2:09:25 on debut back in 2010, but nothing of similar quality since. (09/14/2018) ⚡AMP

BMW Berlin Marathon, fast times and intense battles, maybe a world record

Eliud Kipchoge is just like the rest of us runners. All he wants from his next race is to beat his personal best. The only difference is that his next event is the BMW Berlin Marathon on September 16 and a Kipchoge PR could mean a new world record!, Eliud Kipchoge is the marquee signing for the 45th edition of BMW Berlin Marathon as the current Olympic champion and undisputed number one for consistency and quality in recent years. His PR, set in London 2016 (2:03:05), prefaced his Olympic marathon gold in Rio the same year. Meanwhile, Denis Kimetto's world record (2:02:57) remains tantalisingly just out of reach for the three-time London champion and double Berlin winner. Kipchoge surely has pace to burn as his brilliant 2:00:25 in 'laboratory' conditions at Monza motor racing circuit in May last year demonstrates. This was never going to be ratified as a record but serves to indicate there is much more to come from the 33-year-old Kenyan, who said: “My preparation is entirely concentrated on the BMW Berlin Marathon on September 16. I am confident I can beat my personal best on this fast course if conditions are good.” The women's field in Berlin is the best for many years and is headlined by the third fastest in history, Tirunesh Dibaba, from Ethiopia (2:17:56) who set her PB in London last year chasing Paula Radcliffe's legendary 2:15:25 from 2003. Dibaba will face the defending champion Gladys Cherono (Kenya) and former double Berlin winner Edna Kiplagat (Kenya), who is the oldest of the leading trio at 38 years old. (09/13/2018) ⚡AMP

Former marathon world record holder Patrick Makau of Kenya has announced his retirement from professional running

Patrick Makau, 33, has lost his fight to gain fitness after persistent patella-tendon injury, forced him off training and competition since 2017. With doctors warning against him running, Makau has opted to throw in the towel. "With the age catching up, with persistent patella-tendon injury due to which I was forced to cancel competition in 2017 for both Boston and Berlin marathons, I know this is the right time to say it is enough," Makau said Thursday in Nairobi. The two time Berlin marathon champion is credited for reclaiming the world marathon record from the grip of Ethiopian Haile Gebreselassie in 2011 when he clocked 2:03:38 eclipsing the Ethiopian's time of 2:03:59. Gebreselassie had beaten Paul Tergat's record of 2:04:54 set in 2004. Wilson Kipsang improved Makau's record after two years to 2:03:23, but that has also been shuttered to 2:02:57 by Kenyan Dennis Kimetto, which is the current record. "I have had a wonderful career as an athlete. My life is defined by athletics, what I have today is because of the sport I love. Athletics has literally changed me, allowing me to grow and to make positive impact on lives of my family and our community," said Makau, the 2007 World Half Marathon champion. "For this I am truly grateful." However, Makau will not be taking a long walk away from athletics completely. To remain busy, he intends to help guide a new generation of young distance runners realize their dreams and develop their careers, especially from the southern part of Kenya where he comes from. "I want to coach some athletes who have no guides. I want to continue giving back to the community," he said. (09/13/2018) ⚡AMP

2012 Olympic champion Uganda’s Stephen Kiprotich will target fast time in Toronto

Over its decades-long history, the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon has been graced by some of the world’s greatest marathoners, but never an Olympic champion. That will all change on October 21, when Uganda’s Stephen Kiprotich will race in this IAAF Gold Label event. The 2012 Olympic marathon champion will accompany two-time Toronto champion Philemon Rono from their mutual training base in Iten, Kenya in what should be an intense battle between the two accomplished marathon runners. The pair are both friends and training partners, but each will want to take home the CAD$30,000 first-place prize money. “I am really happy and training hard and looking forward to competing in this big race in Toronto,” says Kiprotich, who also won the marathon title at the 2013 IAAF World Championships in Moscow, joining Ethiopia’s Gezehegne Abera as the only men to ever win both major competitions. “I was speaking with Rono and I asked him what is the course like,” he says of the man who set a Canadian all-comers’ record of 2:06:52 in Toronto a year ago. “He said the course is good and nice. I was telling him if we go fast and run the first half in 63 minutes, we can push at the end to 2:05. He told me it is possible.” Kiprotich’s major championship success is outstanding and all the more remarkable since he chose to make Iten his training base. There he lives in the camp built by Dutch based management company Global Sport Communications with a group which includes not only Rono but the world’s No.1 marathon runner, Eliud Kipchoge. They are coached by 1992 Olympic steeplechase silver medallist Patrick Sang. (09/13/2018) ⚡AMP

Commonwealth champion Joshua Cheptegei will be the runner to beat at the Dam tot Damloop 10 Miler

Joshua Cheptegei from Ugandan won silver last year at the 10,000 meters at the World Championships in London and this year was the fastest in the 5000 and 10,000 meters at the Commonwealth Games in Australia.  He will be going for gold at the up coming Dam tot Damloop ten mile race. Belgian's Bashir Abdi (silver 10,000 meters EK Berlin) and Ethiopian's Ayele Abshero are also candidates for the victory for the race that runs from Amsterdam to Zaandam.  The Dutch toppers Khalid Choukoud and Michel Butter are also running. In total, 46,000 runners will participate at the Dam tot Damloop race. (09/11/2018) ⚡AMP

South Africa´s Mapaseka Makhanya has set her sights on winning the Cape Town Marathon

Mapaseka Makhanya would like to add a Cape Town Marathon winners’ gold medal to her impressive collection of running accolades. “Of course I would like to win it,” the Soweto-born athlete said of the race she has never competed in “It is the only one (marathon) in Africa with that status of IAAF Gold Label.   It is a big race in South Africa and I cannot miss it.” And so Makhanya will line up alongside the likes of Mother City favorite Nolene Conrad eager to reclaim the female’s title for the country. Back in 2016, Tish Jones reigned supreme in an impressive time of 2:36:13. Her time though was pretty slow in comparison to the winning times of Kenya’s Isabella Ochichi and Ethiopian Betelhem Moges Cherenet.  The east Africans ran 2:30:20 and 2:30:23. This year’s race promises to be a little faster particularly given the quality of the men’s elite field.   Makhanya is determined to see her name in stars, the fact she has only recently recovered from injury notwithstanding. “I think I will be ready to compete in that race. I’ve recovered from the calf injury that kept me out of action for two months.  I will be there to compete to win just like in any other race.” But with the east Africans coming through in their numbers once again, Makhanya and all her other compatriots will need to be at their best to keep the title on home soil. She, in particular, will have to run close to, if not better than, her PB of 2:31:02. (09/11/2018) ⚡AMP

World half marathon record holder Joyciline Jepkosgei says she will be ready for a full marathon debut

World half marathon record holder Joyciline Jepkosgei says she will be ready for a full marathon debut, probably in December. Jepkosgei, who has had injury trouble since her world half-marathon record of 64:51 in Valencia last October, believes she still has more to do to return to her top performance and believes venturing into full marathon is her next target. "My coach is preparing me for a marathon. He told me that I will go for training and then he will see how my body is. It might be end of this year or next year," said the 25-year-old on Tuesday. "China marathons are good, though I have no particular race I have lined up now. But I know it will be good to test myself there." Shanghai Marathon in November might be too soon for the Kenyan star. However, there is a possibility of her running at the Xiamen Marathon in January if her management gets an invite from the organizers. Jepkosgei was third in 68:10 at last week's Great North Run in Newcastle, England, her third race this year. Injury concerns have limited the Kenyan participation in international competition, but she believes she is getting better. In May, Jepkosgei was second at the Manchester 10km run behind Ethiopia's Tirunesh Dibaba. Meanwhile, London Marathon silver medalist Brigit Kosgei is intensifying her training ahead of her race in Chicago in October. However, the Kenyan has injury concerns after she pulled a hamstring problem in Newcastle in the last stages of the 21km Great North Run. (09/11/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopia’s Abebe Negewo broke the course record at the Minsk Half Marathon

Ethiopia’s Abebe Negewo broke the course record at the Minsk Half Marathon, while Kenya’s Sheila Jerotich became the first non-Belarusian winner of the women’s race, Negewo ended Hillary Maiyo’s winning streak in the Belarusian capital, but the Kenyan put up a good fight and finished close behind Negewo as both men were given the same finishing time of 1:02:39. Negewo was first across the line, though, and became the first Ethiopian winner of the race. Negewo, Maiyo and the four other top contenders – Kenya’s Joel Maina Mwangi, Benard Korir, Ethiopia’s Feyera Gemeda and authorised neutral athlete Rinas Akhmadeyev – soon detached themselves from the rest of the field and covered the first five kilometres in 14:43. The pace dropped slightly, but the six men remained together through 10 kilometres, reached in 29:50, and were almost a minute ahead of their nearest chaser. Akhmadeyev and Gemeda were unable to maintain that pace for much longer and lost contact with the leaders. Korir soon followed, leaving Negewo and Maiyo at the front with Mwangi a few paces behind as they reached 15 kilometres in 44:48. Mwangi continued to drift away from Negewo and Maiyo as the leading duo ran side by side for the final quarter of the race. Negewo proved to have the better finish, though, as he kicked ahead of his Kenyan opponent to win in 1:02:39, taking 21 seconds off the course record Maiyo set during his first victory in 2016. Maiyo finished a close second while third-placed Mwangi crossed the line in 1:02:53, also inside the previous course record. (09/10/2018) ⚡AMP

Abera Kuma of Ethiopia wants to break the world record at BMW berlin marathon

Abera Kuma (27) of Ethiopia, the Rotterdam marathon silver medalist has a personal best of 2:05:50.  Former World marathon record holder Patrick Makau has warned that it will require more than skill, strength and pacesetters to break the world record. "Breaking a world record in my experience requires more hard work, experience, mental and physical strength as well as a favorable course and weather conditions," he warned. But that has not dampened Kipsang's resolution to go for the top mark and win the 50,000 U.S. dollar prize. "My target is to be on the podium as the winner. I will not be looking at who's in the race, but I will be able to use my training skills to be on the podium". (09/07/2018) ⚡AMP

Mare Dibaba leads strong women´s field at Mainova Frankfurt Marathon

A strong Ethiopian women's quartet could cause a sensation at the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon on October 28th. All four Ethiopians, who have given their commitment to start this year's Frankfurt Marathon, have high-quality best times of less than 2:22 hours. The course record of 2:21:01, which Meselech Melkamu set up an Ethiopian six years ago, should at least be in danger in good weather conditions. The Women's Field will be led by 2015 Marathon World Champion Mare Dibaba, who will be the first starter in Frankfurt with a best time of less than 2:20 hours. Mare Dibaba did the trick twice to run exactly 2:19:52 hours. First, she was third in Dubai in 2012, three years later she set her best time in the victory in Xiamen (China). 2015 was followed by the World Cup triumph in Beijing (China). A year later, the Ethiopian won bronze at the Olympic Games in Rio (Brazil). Incidentally, it's not the first marathon start in Frankfurt for the 28-year-old. In 2010, she already finished fifth here in 2:25:27. "This may be the best women's field in the history of events in the breadth of the top. In this respect, we look forward to an exciting as well as high-class race. With four such fast athletes it can go in the direction of 2:20 hours or even faster, "said race director Jo Schindler. Among the strongest competitors of Mare Dibaba are three compatriots, who set high-caliber personal bests in 2018. 24-year-old Haftamnesh Tesfay made the fourth-fastest marathon debut ever in Dubai in January, finishing fifth in 2:20:13. Two places behind her was another debutant who will now run her second marathon in Frankfurt: The only 21-year-old Dera Dida reached in January in the desert emirate 2:21:45 hours. (09/06/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopia's Guyer Adola ran 2:03:46 for his first marathon is running his second marathon Oct 28 in Frankfurt

Guye Adola of Ethiopia, last year’s surprise newcomer on the marathon scene, will run his next marathon in Frankfurt on October 28. He set an unofficial world record as a first time marathoner with 2:03:46 to finish second at the 2017 Berlin Marathon, coming within a hair’s breadth of beating the Kenyan superstar Eliud Kipchoge. The Mainova Frankfurt Marathon will feature a contest between a trio of runner-ups, setting Guye Adola against his fellow Ethiopian Kelkile Gezahegn and the Kenyan Martin Kosgey. The latter two each finished second in Frankfurt in the previous two years. The German record holder Arne Gabius will make his fourth appearance in Frankfurt while Japan’s Hiroyuki Yamamoto will also be on the start line. The organizers expect up to 15,000 entrants for the 37th edition of the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon which is an IAAF Gold Label race, the highest category in international road running. Guye Adola is the marathon runner who almost broke the lengthy dominance of the Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge a year ago. Just before 40 kilometers in Berlin the 27-year-old was in the lead but Kipchoge, unbeaten in the marathon since 2013, was able to reel him in. (09/05/2018) ⚡AMP

Martina Strähl from Switzerland is considered the favorite at The Jungfrau Marathon

Martina Strähl, who won the World Championships double gold in 2015 as world champion in long-distance mountain running, ran in 2016 at the Jungfrau Marathon with a new course record to victory. However, last year Strähl had to hand over this record to the Vaud woman Maude Mathys. Strähl is now aiming for the record again after she finished seventh in the marathon at the European Championships in Berlin just a few weeks ago. Strähl is demanded by the German Michelle Maier, the runner-up of the last two years, and the Italian Ivana Iozzia, who won the Zermatt Marathon this year. The men's track record is still held by Jonathan Wyatt. The New Zealander ran the track in 2003 in 2: 49.02. On September 6, the three-time Jungfrau Marathon winner will speak about «his perfect race» starting at 8:00 pm at the Hotel Carlton-Europe in Interlaken. Wyatt will be back in 2018. However, the favorites are Jose David Cardona from Colombia, Robbie Simpson from Great Britain, Birhanu Mekonnen from Ethiopia and Shaban Mustafa from Bulgaria. Mustafa, Simpson and Cardona have already won the Jungfrau Marathon. Patrick Wieser from Aadorf or Stephan Wenk from Uster should be the best Swiss. (09/04/2018) ⚡AMP

Reigning champion Abraham Cheroben will be leading the copenhagen Half Marathon

The Copenhagen Half Marathon is a Gold Label race ranked by the athletics world governing body IAAF. Leading the Kenyan charges will be reigning champion Abraham Cheroben, a Kenyan who represents Bahrain. "It has always been hard to win at this level of competition. There is always somebody new coming in trying to raffle the feathers and I must be on the lookout if I want to retain my title," said Cheroben, who trains in Iten in northwest Kenya. No fewer than 17 athletes with career bests under the one hour-mark will be on the starting line-up in the men's race. The line-up includes reigning champion Abraham Cheroben (58:40) from Bahrain and Kenyans Jorum Okombo (58:48) and Alex Korio (58:51) who were second and third behind Cheroben last year. "We train well with Cheroben, but that will not mean that I will not take the challenge to him. He is a stronger athlete, but I have done well in training and believe, I can outshine him in Copenhagen," Korio said on Friday in Eldoret. Kenya's Erick Kiptanui, the joint world leader with 58:42, is also in the line-up along with former London Marathon winner Daniel Wanjiru (59:20), Olympic marathon bronze medalist Galen Rupp (59:47) and Ethiopians Lelisa Desisa (59:30) and Shura Kitata (60:10). Wanjiru is using the race in Copenhagen to gauge his preparedness ahead of his running at the New York Marathon on Nov. 4. (08/31/2018) ⚡AMP

Copenhagen Half is going to be the most exciting half marathon in decades

The elite field for the Danish capital race includes a phenomenal 16 sub-60 minute men and eight sub-68 minute women including the European 5000m champion.  Sifan Hassan (photo) will race for the first time over 13.1 miles at the Copenhagen Half Marathon on Sunday, September 16. The Dutch star is among a stellar field for the annual Danish capital half marathon event, that includes 16 men who have run under the hour and eight women who have dipped inside 68 minutes. Having focused predominately on 1500m racing in the past, Hassan joined the US-based Nike Oregon Project in 2016 and has been working towards the longer distances ever since, with European 5000m gold this month in Berlin her crowning moment thus far. The previous month, Hasan also broke the European record and Dutch national record with a 14:22.34 performance at the Diamond League in Rabat. The Ethiopian born athlete will be joined by American training partners Galen Rupp and Jordan Hasay on the streets of Copenhagen, as the US pair warm up for the Chicago Marathon in October. “In the world of running, it is said that CPH Half is going to be the most exciting half marathon in decades,” said Jakob Larsen, director of the Danish Athletics Federation and member of the IAAF Road Race Commission. (08/30/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenya's Martin Kosgei goal is to win the Frankfurt Marathon

Kenya's Martin Kosgei will return to Frankfurt Marathon course on Oct. 28 aiming for gold.   He finished fourth last year winning $6500US.  Kosgei, 29, says he was not well prepared last year as he tackled windy conditions clocking 2:09:39 in a race that was dominated by Ethiopian runners.   "I want to win the race this time round. I have experience now and I know the course very well. I thank the organizers for giving me the opportunity to return and try and win the race for the third time," he said Wednesday in Nairobi. Kosgei has three marathon wins to his credit since his debut in 2012. He started off winning in Salzburg (Austria), Marseille and Lyon (France). He was second in Hannover and Frankfurt in 2016. This year's race will be the third time Kosgei will be attempting to win in Frankfurt. "I believe I have the strength to do well. Hopefully it will be third time lucky," said Kosgei. Ethiopia's Guye Adola, who clocked 2:03:46 on his marathon debut in the Berlin Marathon last September losing to Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge, has also confirmed his availability to race in Frankfurt. Adola will face opposition from teammate Kelkile Gezahegn and Kosgei, who finished second and fourth respectively in last year's race. "We are looking forward to a thrilling men's race with world-class runners. We are pleased when athletes of this caliber choose Frankfurt for their marathon. It is always our aim to present world-class athletes and at the same time to offer perfect conditions for every single runner," said Jo Schindler, the Frankfurt marathon Race director. (08/30/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenya’s Titus Ekiru breaks course record at Mexico City Marathon

Kenya’s Titus Ekiru ran a smart race at the Telcel Mexico City International Marathon to set a course record of 2:10:38 at the IAAF Silver Label event on Sunday, while Etaferahu Temesgen led an Ethiopian sweep in the women’s contest. The men’s race set a modest pace from the start, covering the first five kilometres in 16:32. About a dozen men reached the halfway mark in 1:06:09, a group that included Ethiopia’s defending champion Fikadu Kebede. At 30 kilometers, reached in 1:33:11, the leaders have been reduced to Ekiru, Edwin Koech and Matthew Kisorio, 43 seconds ahead of the chase group. At that point, Ekiru made a decisive move and progressively extended his lead as the race approached the toughest hills on Insurgentes Avenue on its way to the Olympic stadium. He upped the pace and covered the second half in 1:04:30 to win in 2:10:38, breaking the previous record of 2:11:12 and securing the second marathon victory of his career. “I enjoyed the course and the altitude of Mexico City (2,240m) is similar as in Kenya so it did not affect me much,” said Ekiru, who has a PB of 2:07:43. “I am very happy to set a record and I realized at 20 kilometers that I felt very well, and I knew I could really break a new record.” In his fourth marathon since making his debut at the distance in 2016, Ekiru pocketed MXN 550,000 (about US$27,000) for his effort. He became the third Kenyan in six years to win the race. Koech (2:12:35) and Kisorio (2:13:14) completed a Kenyan sweep on the podium. (08/27/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopian Fikadu Kebede returns to the Mexican capital to defend his title at the Mexico City International Marathon

Fikadu Kebede returns to the Mexican capital to defend his title Sunday at the 36th Telcel Mexico City International Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label road race, which will also honour the 50th anniversary of the 1968 Olympic Games. Last year, Kebede beat Bahrain’s Isaac Korir in the last kilometre to become the second Ethiopian man in five years to win the largest 42.195km race in Latin America. The winner of the 2017 Rabat Marathon with a lifetime best of 2:09:37, will enter his third marathon of the season after running 2:19:06 in Hong Kong in January and 2:14:37 for seventh in Lanzhou, China, in June. Apart from the city’s 2240m high altitude, the Ethiopian will also face five men with personal bests faster than his, including Kenya’s Matthew Kisorio (2:06:33), Felix Kipchirchir Kiprotich (2:06:54), Edwin Kipngetich Koech (2:07:13) and Titus Ekiru (2:07:43). The last three ran their fastest marathon times in 2017. The Ethiopian contingent looks more solid in the women’s race, but Kebede will also rely on his countryman Daniel Aschenik Derese, winner in Mexico’s capital in 2015. (08/24/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopian Senbere Teferi looking to reach the podium at the Tilburg 10k race

23-year-old Ethiopian Senbere Teferi made her debut 10K on the road in Tilburg last year clocking 30:38, the second best time ever in Tilburg.  She was also once on the podium at the World Cup cross and the World Cup track athletics 5000 meters. In January she made her debut at the marathon with 2:24 in Dubai. Recently she was second at the 10K in Bangelore, India. Her goal for Tilburg is winning and clocking a time under 31.00. In the race in Bangelore, Teferi was defeated by her Kenyan peers Agnes Tirop. Tirop was world cross country champion in 2015, then in China. In 2017 she was second at the Tilburg Ladies Run in 31.00. The third candidate for the podium was also in Tilburg earlier. 24-year-old Kenyan Alice Aprot was recently second at the Kenyan championships at 10,000 meters and last year in Kampala second at the WC cross. In 2016 she was a winner in Tilburg.   As usual, young talented African and European athletes come to Tilburg to clock a good time on the 10K course.  In Tiburg they also do the 10 miler. (08/23/2018) ⚡AMP

2018 Rock 'n' Roll Philadelphia Half the star-studded men’s field is led by Feyisa Lilesa

The star-studded men’s field is led by Feyisa Lilesa, the Rio 2016 Summer Olympic Marathon silver medalist. The Ethiopian distance runner has recorded a personal best of 2:04:52 ranking him in the top-ten fastest marathoners ever. Lilesa also boasts a personal best in the half marathon breaking the one-hour barrier at 59:22 and last year he won the New York City Half Marathon. “I’m looking forward to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon,” said Lilesa. “The race has a great history. World records have been set there, and it has had some fantastic champions. I am aiming to add my name to that list.” Lilesa will face some tough competition with four-time Olympian Abdi Abdirahman, and 2015 World Marathon Champion Ghirmay Ghebreslassie, toeing the start line beside him. Somalian-born Abdirahman represented the United States at the Olympics in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 and placed 3rd in the New York City Marathon in 2016. He has personal bests of 2:08:56 in the marathon and 1:01:07 in the half marathon. Ghebreslassie hails from Eritrea and made a name for himself winning the 2015 World Marathon Championship. In 2016, he became the youngest male to ever win the New York City Marathon at 20-years old. His personal bests are 2:07:46 for the marathon and 1:00:09 in the half marathon. “It’s great to welcome so many fantastic athletes to the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon,” said Josh Furlow, Managing Director of North America for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon Series®. “As the fall marathon season begins, athletes will be using this race as a measure of how months of training have been going. Having Olympic medalists and World Champions line up against World Marathon Major winners shows the regard with which this race is held. We’re looking forward to another fantastic edition next month.” (08/23/2018) ⚡AMP

Reigning Cape Town Marathon champion, Asefa Negewu, will return to defend his title this year

An impressive line-up of “golden” athletes, the commitment of ASA to host the national championships in Cape Town and a revival of the Captain’s Challenge were features of the 50-day launch of the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon at a city hotel on Wednesday. While Mokoka remains the fastest in the field, boasting a marathon best of 2:07:40, he will be up against a number of talented young African runners bent on following in the footsteps of twice champion, Ethiopian Asefa Negewu, who placed 7th in the London Marathon after winning Cape Town in 2016. Notwithstanding its many other selling points, elite athletes running fast marathon times in Cape Town was the primary reason for the Cape Town Marathon receiving IAAF gold label status within just three years and the participation of IAAF gold-status athletes each year are an essential part of the retention of this status. (08/04/2018) ⚡AMP

Gladys Cherono of Kenya will put her title on the line at the Berlin Marathon on Sept. 16

Defending champion Gladys Cherono of Kenya will put her title on the line as she confronts multiple world and Olympic gold medalist Tirunesh Dibaba of Ethiopia and Edna Kiplagat at the Berlin Marathon on Sept. 16. Organizers have assembled some of the fastest women in women marathon with hope that they will make a serious attempt to lower the world record, which has stood since 2003. "The elite women's field for the Berlin Marathon is the strongest for many years. We proudly present Tirunesh Dibaba, Gladys Cherono and Edna Kiplagat. This will be a thrilling race," the organizers said in a statement. Cherono will be keen to make it three wins in four attempts after clinching the gold medal in the German capital in 2015 and 2017 while Kiplagat has won twice the world title and celebrated numerous wins at the Boston Marathon. Just like Dibaba, Kiplagat will be making her debut in Berlin. "Berlin is calling. Pleased to announce my next destination. Looking forward to running fast time," said Kiplagat. However, focus will be on 32-year-old Dibaba, who has three Olympic gold medals and nine world titles on the track and cross country. The Ethiopian has a marathon personal best time of 2:17:56. That time, which she set when finishing second at last year's London Marathon, makes her the third fastest woman in history. Dibaba is keen to beat this time in Berlin and, given ideal weather conditions, might even get close to the world record of 2:15:25, set by Paula Radcliffe in 2003. Cherono regained the Berlin Marathon title last year in 2:20:23, having won in 2015 with a best time of 2:19:25. (08/02/2018) ⚡AMP

Defending champion Ethiopian Marta Megra will be on the start line of the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon

Marta Megra of Ethiopia announced her return to the marathon on Wednesday morning. Megra walked away with $25,000 CAD after winning last year’s race. Megra reportedly said, “This year I am in good condition, good shape so hopefully I will go slower the first half,” she says. “My goal is to run my personal best in Toronto and to improve the course record.” The current course record is 2:22:43 and the women who breaks the record walks away with an extra $40,000 CAD. Megra’s personal best is 2:24:08, which she will have to lower to catch the course record. This summer could potentially see the men’s and women’s Canadian soil records fall, as Canadian marathon events have become some of the best in the world. (08/01/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopian Tirunesh Dibaba has been confirmed for the 45th annual BMW Berlin Marathon

The third fastest female marathoner of all-time will face previous winners Gladys Cherono and Edna Kiplagat in the German capital. Tirunesh Dibaba has been confirmed in elite women’s field for the 45th edition of the 2018 BMW Berlin Marathon, which takes place on September 16. The 32-year-old, who has won three gold medals at consecutive Olympic Games (2008 and 2012) and five World Championships from 2003 to 2013, will be joined by Kenyan athletes Gladys Cherono and Edna Kiplagat, who have both won twice in the German capital before, and fellow Ethiopian Aselefech Mergia. All four athletes have personal bests under 2:20 making it the strongest women’s field for many years. Defending champion Eliud Kipchoge is among the leading entries in the men’s field, which was announced in June. Dibaba, one of the best female distance runners of all time and the third fastest in the history, will start as the favorite, and also has a point to prove after dropping out of the London Marathon in April. (07/31/2018) ⚡AMP

Felicien Muhitira Retains his Marvejols-Mende Half Marathon Title

Rwanda international long distance and cross country runner Felicien Muhitira has won the French race Marvejols-Mende half marathon for a second consecutive time. Muhitira successfully defended the title at the 46th edition of the annual event on Sunday, which he had won last year on his maiden attempt. The 22.4-kilometre race was contested by over 5000 athletes from around the world, with Mountain Classic Athletics runner Muhitira being the only Rwandan in the competition. The 24-year old rose to the occasion, beating stiff competition from Kenyan, Ugandan and Ethiopian elite athletes to retain his gold medal. The former Nyamasheke Athletics Club runner clocked 1 hour, 11 minutes and 22 seconds; 89 seconds ahead of Kenya's John Liotang who finished second. (07/31/2018) ⚡AMP

Belay Tilahun wins the Bix 7, the first time an Ethiopian has won this race

Belay Tilahun of Ethiopia wins the Quad-City Times Bix 7. Tilahun finished second in 2016. Margaret Muriuki of Kenya captured the 2018 women's Quad-City Times Bix 7 on Saturday.  Belay Tilahun pulled away in the final mile to claim the victory, In a winning time of 32:37, Tilahun became the first runner from Ethiopia to win the Bix 7. “I’m very happy,” Tilahun told KWQC after beating NCAA 10K champion Ben Flanagan and 2016 U.S. Olympian Leonard Korir down the final stretch. Kipruto finished fifth and Mekonen crossed the line a few seconds later in sixth-place. Tilahun became the first Ethiopian man ever to win the Bix 7 after several near-misses in the past. Reigning NCAA 10,000-meter champion Ben Flanagan recorded the highest finish ever by a Canadian in the race, crossing the line in second place. Andrew Colley of Blowing Rock, North Carolina, took fourth, the highest an American has placed in an international field at Bix since Meb Keflezighi was third in 2013. It’s the highest a native-born American has finished since Ken Martin won the race in 1991. Colley was one of four Americans in the top 10. It’s the first time that has happened since that same 1991 race. But all of them were mere footnotes to Tilahun, who showed interviewers with hand gestures how he navigated the incessant hills of the course and was able to convey the fact that it helped him to have run Bix once before. Ethiopians have been very close to winning the Bix 7 in the past. Tilahun was second behind three-time winner Silas Kipruto in 2016 and Solomon Deksisa took second the year before that. In one of the strangest episodes in Bix history, Ethiopia’s Maregu Zewdie was leading coming down 4th Street in the 2008 Bix but stopped after crossing under the skywalk at the Davenport RiverCenter, thinking that was the finish line. Kenya’s Edward Muge zoomed past him to win. He had a small lead on Flanagan and the rest of the pack coming down Kirkwood in the fifth mile of the race when he decided to just take control. In what seemed little more than a blink of the eye, he opened about a 7-second margin over Flanagan. Stream TypeLIVE Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% 0:00 Fullscreen   00:00 Mute“I don’t know if surprised is the word but I was impressed,’’ said Flanagan, who just completed his college career at the University of Michigan last month. “I knew coming in here there was a lot of really experienced runners who knew the course well. That was very evident by that move. (07/30/2018) ⚡AMP

Ethiopian´s Netsanet Gudeta takes impressive victory in Bogota

Ethiopians Netsanet Gudeta and Betesfa Getahun produced convincing victories at 19th edition of the Bogota Half Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label road race. Gudeta dominated the race through the high altitude streets of the Colombian capital, winning by more than four minutes in 1:11:34, but falling short of the 1:10:39 course record set by Susan Chepkemei back in 2004. It was nonetheless a strong performance by Gudeta given Bogota's setting at 2600m above sea level, and the day's sunny, hot and windy conditions. This was the 27-year-old's third half marathon victory in as many races over the distance this year, following up her 1:06:11 women's-only race world record at the World Half Marathon Championships in Valencia in March, and a dominating 1:07:30 run in Olomouc, Czech Republic, five weeks ago. A turning point in the race came just before the five-kilometre mark. Brigid Kosgei of Kenya, the winner last year, took a tumble and fell to the ground. Gudeta forged on on her own from there to finish unchallenged. Kosgei was second in 1:14:40, with Degitu Azimeraw of Ethiopia third in 1:14:51. (07/30/2018) ⚡AMP

Kenya's Lawrence Cherono says he will do everything in his power to retain his Amsterdam Marathon crown

Kenya's Lawrence Cherono says he will do everything in his power to retain his Amsterdam Marathon crown and deny Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele the title. The two are expected to compete at this year's race, which will be held on Oct 21 and Cherono believes he has played the underdog card before and surprised his critics when he won in the Dutch capital last year. "Last year, I was very happy with the result. I immediately knew that I will come under focus this year and though I had not known who to face, I will be happy to battle it out with Bekele and win again," Cherono said on Tuesday in Eldoret. Of the nine marathons Cherono has contested, he has won four and finished on the podium in eight. Alongside winning in Amsterdam last year he also finished second in Rotterdam with a time of 2:06:21. The Amsterdam Marathon has always attracted a strong group of elite runners and the 2018 race will be no different. Bekele, a multiple world and Olympic champion announced last week that he will skip the big city marathons to compete in Amsterdam, which is an IAAF Gold Label road race. The Ethiopian distance runner owns the second-fastest marathon performance in history on a record-eligible course, having clocked a national record of 2:03:03 to win the 2016 Berlin Marathon. His time is just six seconds shy of Dennis Kimetto's world record (2:02:57). Bekele, who will be contesting his first marathon on Dutch soil, will be up against Cherono and a horde of other top Kenyan and Ethiopian road racers. "Kenenisa Bekele is one of the world's best long-distance runners," said race director Cees Pronk. "We are incredibly proud that Bekele will be lining up at the start on Oct 21. Bekele decided to run in Amsterdam because he has experienced the expert organization of the event and knows first-hand that the athletes always come first." (07/27/2018) ⚡AMP

Two years ago Silas Kipruto was leading the Bix 7 when suddenly he whirled around and took a swipe at Mekonen, now they are friends

When it happened along Kirkwood Boulevard two years ago, it became national news in the running world. Silas Kipruto was loping along, leading the Quad-City Times Bix 7 as he has so often through the years, when he suddenly whirled around and took a right-handed swipe at young Teshome Mekonen, who was running directly behind him. It’s just not the sort of thing you see in road racing. No one could recall seeing anything like it. Not in the Bix 7. Not in any race. Mekonen filed a post-race protest that was denied because the incident did not have an impact on the outcome. Kipruto did not even make contact with his swing. Here’s the happy news: Kipruto and Mekonen have become friends, buddies pals. "Brothers," Kipruto said as he stood outside one of the townhouses on the St. Ambrose University campus Thursday afternoon. "We were friends before," he added. "But I came to him after the race, and now we are friends like brothers, really good friends." Chances are, they shared a plate or two of ugali in the kitchen area at St. Ambrose on Thursday night. They may run the Bix course together today in preparation for Saturday’s 44th annual race. Kipruto, who is 11 years older at 33 and much more familiar with the Davenport race, may even give his pal a few pointers on how to navigate the hills of Bix. "We hang around together," Mekonen said. "We have a good time." It’s somewhat unusual because Kipruto is from Kenya and Mekonen is from Ethiopia. Runners from the two neighboring east African countries have a history of being less than friendly as they battle for supremacy in races across the U.S. (07/27/2018) ⚡AMP

NCAA champ Ben Flanagan may be the underdog at the Bix 7 but don't count him out

Ben Flanagan will be a decided underdog when he steps to the starting line in Saturday’s 44th annual Quad-City Times Bix 7. After all, the 23-year-old Canadian hasn’t run a road race of any distance since he was in the ninth grade. He certainly hasn’t run a race full of steep hills in the sometimes suffocating heat of late July against a field filled with battle-hardened Kenyans and Ethiopians, many of whom are very familiar with a course he’s never even seen before. But you get the feeling Flanagan kind of likes being the underdog. And he often responds positively when placed in that role. You needn’t look any further than the 10,000-meter race at the NCAA Division I track and field meet about seven weeks ago. Flanagan, a fifth-year senior at the University of Michigan, was seeded 19th in the race. He hadn’t even qualified for the NCAA meet the previous year because of a litany of injuries. He ran in the wake of Alabama star Vincent Kiprop the entire way but on the 25th and final lap, he found the strength to surge past Kiprop and spring one of the biggest upsets in recent NCAA history. He admitted he probably even surprised himself that day. (07/26/2018) ⚡AMP

A strong women's elite field is set for the Bix 7 this weekend

Three of the elite runners in the women’s field are from Illinois. The best known of them is Chelsea Blaase, who is from the small town of St. Joseph near Champaign and had a great career at the University of Tennessee. She was fifth in the NCAA 10,000 meters in 2016 and seventh in 2017 as well as placing fifth in the Bix 7 last year. Kelly McShea, from Lisle, ran collegiately at Illinois State and Kristen Heckert, who lives in Bolingbrook and teaches algebra at Plainfield South High School, competed at Illinois-Chicago. The women’s runner who has had the most past success in the Bix is Kenya’s Caroline Rotich, who won the race in 2011 and has placed in the top three on three occasions since then. She is not the only woman in the field who has run well on the streets of Davenport, however. Margaret Muriuki won the race the only previous time she ran it (in 2012), Ethiopia’s Buzunesh Deba was second in 2013 and Monicah Ngige has a pair of top-10 Bix finishes on her resume.Sydney Devore had a highly successful high school cross country career in Lakeland, Florida, but gave up running after suffering an injury as a freshman at the University of Florida. She resumed her career in 2015 and at the age of 26, is now an up and coming competitor on the U.S. scene. She attempted a marathon for the first time earlier this year and won, turning in the fastest time in four years at the Pittsburgh Marathon. (07/25/2018) ⚡AMP

Multiple world and Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele is set to run the TCS Amsterdam Marathon

The Ethiopian distance runner owns the second-fastest marathon performance in history on a record-eligible course, having clocked a national record of 2:03:03 to win the 2016 Berlin Marathon. His time is just six seconds shy of Dennis Kimetto’s world record. Bekele, who will be contesting his first marathon on Dutch soil, will be up against Lawrence Cherono, who won last year’s Amsterdam Marathon in a course record of 2:05:09. Cherono also finished one place behind Bekele at this year’s London Marathon. “Kenenisa Bekele is one of the world's best long-distance runners,” said race director Cees Pronk. “We are incredibly proud that Bekele will be lining up at the start on Sunday 21 October. Bekele decided to run in Amsterdam because he has experienced the expert organisation of the event and knows first-hand that the athletes always come first.” (07/23/2018) ⚡AMP

Wharf to Wharf elite field is strong and fast times are expected

The Wharf to Wharf race in California has a lot of history to it, some of which Flagstaff is tied to. In 2014, Ben Bruce became the last American male to finish in the top three of the six-mile race that starts at Santa Cruz Wharf and ends at Capitola Wharf. He recorded a third-place finish that year in 28:07.29. That same summer, Aliphine Tuliamuk, who now runs for NAZ Elite and has since become a United States citizen, finished third while running for Kenya, a country that has dominated the course over the years. Fast forward a year. A longtime Flagstaff running icon who moved from town in 2017, Nick Arciniaga crossed the finish line in 10th in 28:27.44. Then in 2017, former Northern Arizona Lumberjacks standout distance runner Diego Estrada took sixth at 27:47.81. Now, as the race enters its 46th year, NAZ Elite hopes to add to the history books as it sends Stephanie Bruce to compete on the women's side, and Scott Smith and Craig Lutz on the men's side. All three will face a stellar and challenging field. And the timing couldn't be much better for the team. "This made sense on the calendar," said NAZ Elite head coach Ben Rosario. Bruce, who placed fourth at Wharf to Wharf in 2013, is coming off her first-ever national title at the Peachtree Road Race USATF 10K Championships on the Fourth of July, and her body is feeling up to the task of taking on another race before breaking for the fall marathon season. She'll face an imposing field that consists of NYC Half-Marathon winner Buze Diriba of Ethiopia, 2015 Boston Marathon champion Caroline Rotich and Wharf to Wharf 2017 runner-up Monicah Ngige of Kenya, who finished behind only Diriba a year ago. (07/20/2018) ⚡AMP