World Athletics Championships 2025: Peres Jepchirchir Leads Hunt for Kenya’s 2nd Gold Medal in Women’s Marathon

2020 Olympics marathon champion Peris Jepchirchir will once again carry Kenya’s hopes as she leads the women’s marathon team at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.

Kenya is looking to reclaim the title last won by Ruth Chepn’getich at the 2019 World Championships in Doha, and all eyes will be on Jepchirchir, who has established herself as one of the most consistent marathoners in the world.

The 31-year-old star, who famously braved sweltering conditions to win Olympic gold in Sapporo in 2021, says she is ready to deliver another historic performance.

The race, scheduled for Sunday morning at 1:30 a.m. Kenyan time, will be contested under similar hot and humid conditions, with World Athletics adjusting the start time to minimize heat stress on athletes.

Jepchirchir believes that Kenya’s strength will lie in its teamwork as they attempt to counter a formidable Ethiopian challenge in Tokyo.

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“We should stick together and fight as a team. It shall be different, being a championship race, but the basics remain the same. We are well prepared, and everybody in the team is in high spirits and is hoping for the best,” said Jepchirchir, who is the most senior member of Kenya’s women’s marathon squad.

Her teammates include 2025 Rotterdam Marathon champion Jackline Cherono and Magdalyne Masai, who finished fourth at the Tokyo Marathon earlier this year.

Former London Marathon champion Vivian Cheruiyot is traveling with the team as a reserve athlete. Together, they hope to restore Kenya’s dominance over the 42km distance on the global stage.

Standing in their way will be a strong Ethiopian lineup headlined by Tigist Assefa, the former world record-holder who clocked a sensational 2:11:53 in Berlin in 2023.

Assefa, a two-time Berlin Marathon winner, also claimed victory in London earlier this year with a world-leading 2:15:50 and is widely tipped as the favorite for gold.

Sutume Asefa Kebede, the two-time Tokyo Marathon champion, will also be a major threat. Her personal best of 2:15:55 is the Japanese all-comers’ record, and her consistency in the Japanese capital makes her a natural contender.

Fellow Ethiopian Tigist Ketema, a 2024 Berlin Marathon winner, adds further depth to the East African powerhouse’s challenge.

A victory would make Jepchirchir the first Kenyan to hold both an Olympic and a World Championships marathon title.

The field also includes top international competitors such as Kenyan-born Israeli Lorna Salpeter and Bahrain’s Eunice Chumba, both of whom will be looking to upset the East African dominance.

Jepchirchir, who has marathon wins in London, Boston, New York, and Valencia under her belt, is keen to prove she remains a major force despite finishing 14th at last year’s Olympics.

Her experience and mental toughness in championship conditions could be the key to guiding Kenya to glory.