Athletics double Olympic champion Kipchoge wins Tokyo marathon

Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya crosses the finish line to win the men’s category race at the 2021 Tokyo Marathon in Tokyo, Japan March 6, 2022. Kazuhiro Nogi/Pool via REUTERS

March 6, 2022

(Reuters) – Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge, the two-time Olympic marathon champion and world record holder, won the Tokyo Marathon in Japan on Sunday with a time of two hours, two minutes and 40 seconds.

Kipchoge, who defended his marathon title at the Tokyo Games in Sapporo last year, missed his world record by just over a minute in his first Tokyo marathon.

Kipchoge’s compatriot Amos Kipruto was second in 2:03.13 while Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia was third in 2:04.14.

Kenyan world record holder Brigid Kosgei won the women’s race with a time of 2:16.02 ahead of Ethiopian duo Ashete Bekere (2:17.58) and Gotytom Gebreslase (2:18.18).

“I’m so proud to win on the streets of Tokyo where people walk in their hearts and in their minds,” Kipchoge said on Twitter. “It’s great to now have won 4 of the 6 Abbott World Marathon Major races.”

The 37-year-old holds the world record with a time of 2:01:39 set in Berlin in 2018 and was the only man to break the two-hour barrier in an unofficial race in 2019.

(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher Cushing)