On Monday, the 2023 Boston Marathon results delivered a shocking upset, as Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge, widely regarded as the greatest long-distance runner of all time, suffered his third defeat in the event.
2023 Boston Marathon results: Eliud Kipchoge suffers shocking loss
As reported by NBC Sports, Kipchoge, who won 15 of his 17 previous marathons, was expected to continue his dominant streak at the prestigious race but faded in the crowd and, in the end, finished in sixth place, over three minutes behind the winner and fellow Kenyan, Evans Chebet.
The conditions at this year’s Boston Marathon were wet and challenging, making the race even more difficult for the runners. Kipchoge, who had lost his last marathon in similar conditions at the 2020 London Marathon, struggled to keep up with the lead pack when Tanzanian Gabriel Geay made his move at the 19th mile. Shortly thereafter, Kipchoge failed to grab a water bottle and was eventually dropped from the leading pack.
Despite this setback, Kipchoge remains determined to achieve his goal of becoming the first runner to win all six annual World Marathon Majors, having already won four of them in Berlin, Chicago, London, and Tokyo.
RelatedPosts
He plans to race in two more marathons before the Paris Olympics in 2024, where he hopes to become the first person to win three Olympic marathons.
Kipchoge’s defeat also dents his status as the favourite to win the Olympic marathon next year, but he remains a formidable opponent, with his experience and tenacity on the course.
Kipchoge has never raced in the New York City Marathon, which is one of the other major marathons, but his focus now will be on preparing for the next two marathons before the Paris Games.
Kenya dominates with Hellen Obiri marathon win
In the women’s race, Kenyan Hellen Obiri emerged victorious with a time of 2:21:38, pulling away from Ethiopian Amane Beriso in the last stretch.
Obiri, a two-time world champion and two-time Olympic medalist in the 5 000m on the track, made her marathon debut in New York City in November 2022 with a sixth-place finish.
She was a late addition to the Boston field but proved to be a formidable opponent and emerged as the winner.
The top American finisher in the women’s race was Emma Bates, who finished fifth with the second-fastest Boston time for an American woman ever.
Bates is now considered a favourite to make the three-woman Olympic team at next February’s trials in Orlando. Notably, Emily Sisson and Keira D’Amato, who traded the American marathon record last year, did not participate in the Boston Marathon.
In the wheelchair races, Swiss Marcel Hug won his sixth Boston title and set a new course record of 1:17:16, while American Susannah Scaroni won her first Boston title in 1:41:45, ending Swiss Manuela Schär’s three-year win streak.
The next major marathon is the London Marathon on Sunday, which will feature women’s world record holder Brigid Kosgei of Kenya, Tokyo Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya, and Olympic 5000m and 10,000m champion Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands in her marathon debut.
