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Two-time Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge had a rough outing in Tokyo as he suffered his worst ever defeat since he made his Marathon debut in Hamburg 11 years ago.
Eliud Kipchoge did not have the best pre-Olympic race as he struggled to finish 10th at the Tokyo Marathon on Sunday in what was his worst ever placing over the 42km race.
The 39-year-old Kipchoge faded badly at around the 20km mark and crossed the line in 2:06:50 while fellow Kenyan Benson Kipruto won in a course-record 2:02:16 ahead of countrymen Timothy Kiplagat (2:02:55) and Vincent Ngetich (2:04:18).
The race took place less than a month after world record-holder Kelvin Kiptum died following a road accident and with the 24-year-old gone, it seems others are ready to grab the opportunity as the heir to veteran Kipchoge.
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05:25 - 03.03.2024
ATHLETICS Benson Kipruto smashes course record as marathon king Eliud Kipchoge disappoints at Tokyo Marathon
The Tokyo Marathon was a bitter outing for Eliud Kipchoge who went into the race as a favourite but he, unfortunately, missed out on a podium finish.
The Tokyo Marathon was Kipchoge's first race since Kiptum's death and he was on pace to reclaim the world record at around the 15km mark.
However, he dropped back dramatically to leave Kiplagat, Kipruto and Ngetich fighting it out in the leading pack.
Kipchoge continued to struggle as the race wore on and had dropped out of the top 10 by the 35km mark.
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10:03 - 03.03.2024
ATHLETICS Chepkoech secures Kenya's first medal at World Indoor Championships with national record
Steeplechase world record holder Beatrice Chepkoech clinched Kenya’s first medal at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland on Saturday night.
Kipruto took over the lead from Kiplagat around 30km and powered towards the finish for a new personal best.
The 10th placing is Kipchoge’s worst position since he made his marathon debut in Hamburg in 2013.
It comes less than a year after he finished sixth at the 2023 Boston Marathon last April when he clocked 2:09:23 although he recovered well to win the Berlin Marathon five months later in a time 2:02:42.
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15:19 - 01.03.2024
ATHLETICS Kipchoge describes Kiptum death as 'unfortunate' ahead of Tokyo Marathon
Marathon icon Eliud Kipchoge has described the death of World record holder Kelvin Kiptum as "unfortunate" ahead of the 2024 Tokyo edition on Sunday.
Kipchoge’s other poor showing in a major race came at the 2020 London Marathon when he placed eighth in a time of 2:09:23. It was just the third time in which he failed to finish in the top two in 19 major races he has competed in.
The defeat in Tokyo will leave some Kenyans worried over his chances of claiming a third straight Olympic gold in Paris although the country appears to be well stocked as shown by the men’s clean sweep in Tokyo.
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