Already a winner last year, the Kenyan Evans Chebet again won the Boston Marathon this year, in 2h05’54. Her compatriot Hellen Obiri won the women’s edition, in 2h21’38, for what was the second marathon of her career.
Ten years after the double attack that left three dead and 264 injured near the finish line, this 127th edition of the Boston Marathon was necessarily special, and it was the same winner as last year who triumphed once. moreover. For the first time since 2008 and Robert Cheruiyot, an athlete has managed to achieve the double in Boston, and it is Evans Chebet! Winner in 2h06’51 last year, the 34-year-old Kenyan won on Monday in 2h05’54, thus winning the sixth marathon of his career, the first since that of New York last November. In the rain, Chebet edged 26-year-old Tanzanian Gabriel Geay by ten seconds and 30-year-old Kenyan Amos Kipruto by twelve seconds. While Eliud Kipchoge (38), the double Olympic champion and world record holder, was the favorite of this Boston marathon, whose times cannot serve as minimums for the Worlds or the Olympics because of its elevation too strong (142m, far from the 42m set by World Athletics), he broke down about ten kilometers from the finish, and finished sixth. At the 35th kilometer, only Chebet, Geay and Kipruto remained in the lead, and last year’s winner went for the double in the last few hundred meters, while his two friends fought a good battle for second place. Chebet offers the third best time in the history of the Boston Marathon, a little less than three minutes from the record holder, Geoffrey Mutai, winner in 2h03’02 in 2011. Best Frenchman, Hassan Chahdi (33 years old) finishes at a good eighth place.
Obiri also knows how to win on the road
On the women’s side, victory went to Hellen Obiri in 2h21’38, the fourth fastest time in history. The 33-year-old Kenyan, double Olympic vice-champion in the 5000m in 2016 and 2021, was only competing in the second marathon of her career (she finished sixth in New York last November), and was 19 seconds ahead of the Ethiopian of 31 Amane Beriso and 34-year-old Israeli-Kenyan Lonah Chemtai Salpeter by 32 seconds, after a very dense race where they were still ten in the race for victory at the 30th kilometer.
