🇰🇪Kenya's Kipchoge wins 🇩🇪Berlin marathon🏃👏🎉, but misses record😞
(Image Credit: AFP Photo/Michele TANTUSSI)
Kenya's Olympic champion🏅 Eliud Kipchoge underlined his status as the world's best current long-distance runner🏃 by winning the 🇩🇪Berlin men's marathon on Sunday👏🏆, but missed the world record😞
Kipchoge clocked an official time of 2⃣ hours, 3⃣ minutes 32 seconds😲 after holding off the challenge of Ethiopia's Guye Adola, who finished 14 seconds back on his debut at the distance (42.195km, 26.219 mi). Ethiopia's Mosinet Geremew finished 3⃣rd, clocking 2:06:12.
In the 👩women's race, Kenya's Gladys Cherono won in 02:20:23 with Ruti Aga of Ethiopia second at 0.18secs back and Valary Aiyabei of Kenya taking third at 0.30👏
Heavy rain⛈ the night before and constant drizzle during the race meant the world record of 2:02.57, set in Berlin by Dennis Kimetto of Kenya in 2014, did not fall as expected.
However, there were surprises as both former world record holder Wilson Kipsang and last year's winner Kenenisa Bekele dropped out after the halfway stage😲
Bekele, who had targeted the world record, dropped off the lead group just after the halfway mark with laboured running and eventually failed to finish. Kipsang suddenly stopped at the 30kms point and was clearly ill.
The 32-year-old Kipchoge, who won the London Marathon in a course record in April, has now won 8⃣ of his last 9⃣ marathons dating back to 2013😱😲🙏
With 6⃣ kilometres to go, Adola threatened to claim a shock win when he made a break, but Kipchoge stayed in his wake, closing the :10:-metre gap and regained the lead for the final 2⃣ kilometres.
Congrats Kipchoge❗
