CHICAGO — Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya smashed the world record by nearly two minutes at the Chicago Marathon, winning in 2:09:56.
The 30-year-old Chepngetich broke the world record set by Tigist Assefa of Ethiopia in 2:11:53 at the 2023 Berlin Marathon. Sutume Asefa Kebede of Ethiopia finished second in 2:17:32.
“I feel so great. I´m very proud of myself,” Chepngetich said according to AP. “This is my dream. I fought a lot, thinking about the world record.”
Chepngetich became the first woman to break 2:10 in the marathon. She also won the Chicago Marathon in 2021 and 2022 and finished runner-up last year.
By passing the halfway point in 1:04:16, she had already built a convincing sole lead.
She went on to extend her lead with a rapid and steady pace in the remainder of the race before wrapping up the victory with a margin of more than seven and a half minutes.
Chepngetich’s compatriot, John Korir, won the men’s race in 2:02:44, ahead of Huseydin Mohamed Esa of Ethiopia, who finished in 2:04:39.
“The world record has come back to Kenya,” Chepngetich said according to AFP. “I dedicate this world record to Kelvin Kiptum.”
Korir and Chepngetich ran in honour of the late Kelvin Kiptum of Kenya, who broke the world record by 34 seconds, finishing in 2:00:35, at the 2023 Chicago Marathon.
Police said the 24-year-old Kiptum and his coach, Gervais Hakizimana, died in a car accident in February after hitting a tree near a training area in Kaptagat, Kenya.
Organisers held a moment of silence for Kiptum before the race and offered the nearly 50,000 runners a memorial sticker to add to their bibs. The 26.2-mile race started and ended in Grant Park.
In the absence of Olympic champion Sifan Hassan, the 2023 Chicago winner, Chepngetich set a blazing early pace and reached the halfway point in 1:04:16, the fifth-quickest time in history for a half marathon by a woman.
“The weather was perfect and I was well prepared. The world record was in my mind,” said Chepngetich, runner-up to Hassan 12 months ago.
At one point, Chepngetich was on track to shave more than three minutes off the world record.
She slowed slightly in the closing kilometres but still had plenty in the tank and beat her own personal best by four-plus minutes, which she had clocked when winning the race two years ago.
Kebede came second in 2:17:32, with Kenyan Irine Cheptai third in 2:17:52.
Joyciline Jepkosgei, a former winner in London and New York, struggled to keep up early on and trailed home a distant fifth (2:20:51).
John Korir of Kenya won his first major marathon title after running a personal best of 2:02:43 in the men’s race.
The 27-year-old Korir finished ahead of Ethiopia’s Mohamed Esa (2:04:39) and another Kenyan, Amos Kipruto (2:04:50).
Korir was part of a seven-man group at the head of the course 30 kilometres in before he hit the accelerator and shed his rivals following a relatively conservative start.
Four of the top five were Kenyans, with Vincent Ngetich and Daniel Ebenyo finishing off the podium.
“It was really nice to run and win in Chicago,” said Korir, adding that he too used the memory of Kiptum as a source of motivation.
“I was thinking about Kiptum and I said ‘last year if he could run under 2:01, why not me?’ So I had to believe in myself and try to do my best.”
Korir’s time was the second-fastest ever run in Chicago.
The 2025 Diamond League series will begin in Xiamen on April 26, organisers said, in a season in which it faces a challenge from a lucrative new US format.
Diamond League organisers have already raised the prize money on offer for next season, partly in response to the purses announced by the four-meeting Grand Slam Track series backed by Olympic legend Michael Johnson.
Johnson has promised to bring together “the best of the best” in head-to-head clashes and Grand Slam Track has already signed up a number of champions from the Paris Olympics including women’s 400m hurdles winner Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone.
The 15-meeting Diamond League has increased its prize money to $9.24 million in 2025, while Grand Slam Track says it will have a prize fund of $12.6 million.
