The Kenyan fielded strongly on Tyneside with Britain’s Elish McColgan and Mark Scott rounding out the top five.
Mary Ngugi-Cooper claimed victory in the AJ Bell Great North Run on Sunday (September 8) in a thrilling women’s race that saw six athletes battle it out in a dramatic sprint finish.
Despite rainy conditions, she crossed the line in 67:40 to become the 11th consecutive Kenyan winner of the women’s event.
Ngugi-Cooper was joined from start to finish by fellow Kenyans Sheila Chepkiru and Vivian Cheruiyot, Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi and Megertu Alemu and Britain’s Elish McColgan.
Teferi finished second in 67:41 just behind Ngugi-Cooper, with Alemu third in 67:42.
McColgan, whose mother Liz won the race when it was held at the 1992 world championships, finished fifth in 67:45. Just a week ago, the 33-year-old secured victory in the London Big Half, finishing 69-14.
Elish McColgan (David Hewitson)
Ngugi-Cooper, a two-time half-marathon world championship podium finisher, is based in Leeds and trains under Steve Cram.
Referring to his victory, he said: “It’s amazing because I’ve always wanted to do this race.
“The timing was never perfect with my four marathons, but this time it was perfect. I’ve always watched it on TV, so for me to come here and for people to watch me on TV is a great thing.
“We made it to the last mile and all six of us are still there. I knew I finished strong.
“I knew my coach had prepared me well. Steve coaches me sometimes as a runner, I do a lot of sprints so that gives me a bit of confidence. I’ve done it in training, so I knew I could do it in the race, so I wasn’t afraid to go for it in the last 400m.”
While the women’s race featured a tight pack finish, the men’s race was a stark contrast as Kenya’s Abel Kipchumba dominated the field.
Abel Kipchumba (David Hewitson)
He broke away early and ran solo, crossing the line in a remarkable time of 59:52.
Great Britain’s Mark Scott also ran solo for most of the race, finishing second in 6:11 – 11 seconds faster than his winning time when he took the crown in 2021.
Scott had a busy weekend, winning the British Athletics 5km Road Championships on Friday in drier conditions.
Although Scott didn’t start with the lead pack, he was able to pull them back ahead of Norway’s Sondre Neuen, who finished third in 61:25.
Mark Scott (David Hewitson)
“It wasn’t as fast as I would have liked today,” Scott said. “I was on my own the whole race and it was a stupid first mile.
“The first 5km was pretty fast for the front and I knew if I went with it, I’d be bitten later in the race.
“I just did my thing, unfortunately, on my own and fighting the rain, but at every corner someone was cheering my name and they helped me to second place.
“It was a team effort between me and my bride, who was a newborn, to get to the starting line and participate in the training. There’s more to it today than meets the eye.”
In the men’s wheelchair race, Great Britain’s Johnboy Smith secured victory in 48:59, with fellow Brit Sean Frame finishing just behind in 49:39.
In the women’s wheelchair race, Great Britain’s Jade Hall won by more than eight minutes. She was running her first half marathon since giving birth in March and clocked 58:26.
In general. 1 A Kipchumba (KEN) 60:42; 2 M Scott (R&Z) 61:11; 3 S Moen (NOR) 61:25; 4 F Tesfu (NED) 62:15; 5 E Chebet (KEN) 62:31; 6 F Lara (USA) 62:48; 7 K Sonota (JPN) 63:00; 8 S Jamaal (Lon H) 63:33; 9 N Hauger (USA) 63:48; 10 C Johnson (Gate) 63:49; 11 C Malaudzi (SAF) 64:31; 12 A Hays (Hallam) 64:32; 13 J Mellor (Liv) 64:55; 14 K Tades 64:07; 15 M Abernethy (A;deen) 65:13; 16 R Leonard (Morp) 65:16; 17 The Menacho (ESP) 65:20; 18 S Roberts (Ret) 65:24; 19 J Avery (Morp) 65:27; 20 C Coulson (Houghton) 65:50; 21 E Smales (Roth) 65:59; 22 S Kimura (JPN) 66:07; 23 Jay Morewood (AFD) 66:10; 24 D Bishop (Der) 66:12; 25 K Walker (NE Proj) 66:22; 26 B Quinton (Warr) 66:27; 27 B Cole (Ton) 66:32; 28 K Taylor (B&W) 66:33; 29 A Bowden (B’end, M40) 66:35; 30 Garrod (Belgium) 66:50; 31 A Poynton (AFD) 66:52; 32 E Bovingdon (Leeds) 67:26; 33 M Ngugi-Cooper (KEN, W) 67:40; 34 D Hames (Der) 67:41; 35 S Teferi (ETH, W) 67:41; 36 A Megertu (ETH, W) 67:42; 37 S Chepkirui (KEN, W) 67:44; 38 E McColgan (Dund H, W) 67:45; 39 R Scott (R&Z) 67:49; 40 T Martin (Korst) 67:41
Women. 1 Ngugi-Cooper 67:40; Teferi 67:41; 3 Megertu 67:42; 4 Chepkiru 67:44; 5 McColgan 67:45; 6 V Cheruiyot (KEN) 67:54; 7 D Sot (SAF) 71:30; 8 M Nishimura (JPN) 71:57; 9 L Heyes (Hallam) 72:12; 10 U Takahashi (JPN) 72:13; 11 L Kakav (Bir) 72:16; 12 Y Btashaki (JPN) 73:20
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