Boston Marathon dominated by Kenyans John Korir and Sharon Lokedi

Boston — Kenyan John Korir overcame a tumble near the starting line to win the Boston Marathon on Monday, finishing in 2 hours 4 minutes 45 seconds, while compatriot Sharon Lokedi denied Hellen Obiri a third straight title.

Lokedi shattered the women’s course record, taking just over two-and-a-half minutes off the 11-year mark held by Ethiopian Buzunesh Deba.

The 2024 Chicago winner Korir recovered quickly from his early fall and pulled away at the 32km mark, building a minute cushion between himself and the rest of the field with 3.2km to go before jogging through the finish.

Tanzanian Alphonce Simbu eked out a second-place finish in 2:05:04, battling Kenyan Cybrian Kotut down the final straight.

With the win, Korir builds on his family’s legacy after his older brother, Wesley, won in 2012. They are the only two siblings to have won the Boston Marathon.

The 2022 New York winner Lokedi and fellow Kenyan Obiri were locked in a tense battle with less than 3km to go before Obiri, who won bronze in Paris, began to lose energy.

Lokedi surged through the final 1,000m, crossing the line in 2:17:22 with Obiri 19 seconds slower and Ethiopian Yalemzerf Yehualaw (2:18:06) in third.

Obiri was in a bid to become the first woman to win three Boston Marathons in a row in 26 years.

Reuters