Evans Chebet and Hellen Obiri have plans to make history as they gear up for a tough outing at the Boston Marathon.
Defending champions Evans Chebet and Hellen Obiri headline strong fields for the Boston Marathon, a World Athletics Platinum Label road race on Monday, April 15.
Obiri will hope to make further history after making her full marathon debut at the 2022 New York City Marathon where she finished an impressive sixth in 2:25:49 and returned last year to take top honours.
Last year, she opened her season with a win at the Boston Marathon, and a year later, she returns with the hope of winning her second successive title, a feat that will etch her name in the books of greats.
This year, she opened her season at the Houston Half Marathon where she finished second in a time of 1:06:07. Having won her past two marathons, the two-time world 5000m champion will be keen to make it three in a row on Monday.
Obiri’s opposition will come from her compatriot Sharon Lokedi, who won the 2022 New York City Marathon. Lokedi also looks to make the cut to the Paris 2024 Olympics marathon team.
Other Kenyans in the mix include Edna Kiplagat, 2022 world marathon silver medallist Judith Korir, 2015 world silver medallist Helah Kiprop, and 2014 world half marathon silver medallist Mary Ngugi-Cooper.
Others in the mix will be the Ethiopian duo of Tadu Teshome and Hiwot Gebrekidan, who are the fastest women in the field. Teshome’s last race was at the Shanghai Marathon in November, where she finished sixth in 2:25:05. Gebrekidan was eighth in Boston last year, then went on to finish third in Valencia in a PB of 2:17:59.
Other Ethiopian women in the line-up include 2015 world 5000m silver medallist Senbere Teferi and former world half marathon record-holder Ababel Yeshaneh, a previous podium finisher in Boston, New York, and Chicago.
The men’s race will see Chebet, the 2022 New York City Marathon champion, head to Boston looking to become the first man to win three straight titles since Robert Cheruiyot in 2008.
Chebet won in Boston in 2022 in 2:06:51, then successfully defended his title last year in 2:05:54 but Ethiopian legend Sisay Lemma hopes to stop him. He takes to the start line as the fastest man in the field. The Ethiopian won in Valencia in December in 2:01:48, making him the fourth-fastest man in history.
Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay, who was runner-up in Boston last year, also returns, having an identical PB to Chebet. Other men in the field with sub-2:05 PBs are Kenya’s 2016 Paris Marathon winner Cyprian Kotut (2:04:34), Ethiopia’s Haftu Teklu (2:04:43) and Shura Kitata (2:04:49), the runner-up in London and New York in 2018.
Albert Korir also returns after competing twice in the streets of Boston, finishing sixth in 2022 and fourth last year.
