Benson Kipruto plays Alex Mutiso in a men’s thriller, Helen Obiri breaks the women’s course record, Britain’s Patrick Dever and Jess Warner-Judd enjoy great debuts, but Eliud Kipchoge is 17th.
Benson Kipruto edged out Alex Mutiso to narrowly win the TCS New York Marathon on Sunday (November 2) in 2:08:09, while Helen Obiri smashed the long-standing women’s record in 2:19:51.
Meanwhile, British runners Patrick Dever and Jess Warner-Judd were successful in their marathon debuts, with Dever finishing fourth in the men’s race in 2:08:58 and Warner-Judd seventh in 2:24:45.
No pacemakers? There is no problem. New York is known for allowing runners to battle it out old school, with no bunnies setting the pace. The strategy paid off once again with a good race day and respectable times on an undulating course not known for fast performances.
However, not everyone had a good day. Two-time Olympic champion and multiple winner of the big city marathon Eliud Kipchoge finished 17th with a time of 2:14:36. Competing three days before his 41st birthday, the legendary Kenyan runner broke the two-hour barrier in the 2019 Vienna time trial.
He finished though. With long-time rival Kenenisa Bekele, 43, out somewhere after 17 miles, the Ethiopian’s long and distinguished career is surely now over.
Sifan Hassan was also not at her best as she finished sixth in the women’s race in 2:24:43, almost five minutes behind Obiri. Like Kipchoge, he had run. and won – The Sydney Marathon just two months ago. So maybe, in retrospect, racing in New York so soon wasn’t the best idea.
Obiri smashed Margaret Okayo’s record of 2:22:31, which was set back in 2003, long before super shoes and stomach-friendly gels and drinks were invented. The 35-year-old Kenyan claimed her second win in New York on Sunday, seeing off the challenge of former Sharon Lockedi and reigning champion Sheila Chepkirui.
After the leaders went through the halfway mark in 71:01, Lockedi pushed the pace in the closing stages but Obiri first leveled and then moved up with about a kilometer to go to clear by 16 seconds, with Chepkiru 17 seconds behind in third.
A few kilometers away, fans enjoyed the spectacle of the three latest New York women’s title winners going head to toe, but Obiri had too much power for her rivals. Obiri was a disappointing sixth on his marathon debut in New York three years ago before winning the Big Apple in 2023, albeit in a modest time of 2:27:23.
Fiona O’Keefe was the top American in 2:22:49 behind three Kenyans in fourth place. Annie Frisby of the United States is in fifth place, followed by Hasan.
Warner-Judd, seeded seventh, is ninth in the UK all-time rankings with 2:24:45. That was just 20 seconds slower than Eilish McColgan ran on the much faster London course in April and came after some shocking epileptic episodes on the track that temporarily halted her career.
It is also 12 years since Warner-Judd won the 800m at both the European Team Championships in Gateshead and the televised Grand Prix meeting in Birmingham, but having successfully progressed to the 5000m, 10,000m and then the half marathon, she has now made an excellent debut over 26.2 miles.
Warner-Judd is one spot behind US record holder Emily Sisson at 2:25:05.
Britain’s Dever will also be delighted to make his marathon debut. The 2021 NCAA 10,000m champion has a best of 27:08.81 over that distance and previously won the British 5000m title, but her run in New York holds great promise for future marathons on faster courses.
In a way this is not surprising as Preston Harrier has historically been very much on par with Emile Cares. The latter finished fourth in the Olympic marathon last year, so it stands to reason that Dever could have similar success, even though not everyone runs a marathon.
Going forward, Kipruto added to previous major city marathon wins in Boston, Chicago and Tokyo. However, eased into the final kilometer by compatriot Mutiso of Kenya, he almost blew it as Mutiso, winner of the 2024 London Marathon, came back and almost caught Kipruto at the line.
Both held out their arms in celebration, but Kipruto was given the verdict at the end of the marathon, which was almost as close as Alphonse Felix Simbu and Amanal Petros fight at the Tokyo World Championships a few weeks ago.
Alberto Korir, also of Kenya, was third, just one second ahead of Dever.
Joel Reichov was the leading American in 2:09:56, just 3 seconds ahead of Charles Hicks, the former Great Britain athlete who won the European under-23 cross-country and 5,000m titles before switching allegiance to the US ahead of his marathon debut in New York.
Matt Leach, also of Britain, was 19th in 2:15:48.
American Suzanne Scaroni 1:42:10 and Swiss Marcel Haag 90:16 won the wheelchair race. The latter won for the seventh time in New York, as Britain’s David Weir beat the runner-up.
Full results here.
