Eliud Kipchoge to Skip Traditional Fall Marathon to Take Another Shot at Breaking 2-Hour Marathon

By Adam Kopet of DyeStat

Eliud Kipchoge will repeat his 2017 effort to run a marathon under two hours this fall in an event called the INEOS 1:59 Challenge.

The last great barrier in modern athletics, and the greatest marathon runner of all time.

Eliud Kipchoge will attempt to break the two-hour barrier in the INEOS 1:59 Challenge later this year.

No human is limited.#INEOS159https://t.co/VwMG785yfK pic.twitter.com/ERZTQuKdMb

— INEOS 1:59 Challenge (@INEOS159) May 5, 2019

Prior to breaking the world record at the 2018 Berlin Marathon, Kipchoge ran 2:00:25 as part of the Breaking2 Project in 2017. The attempt was not eligible for a world record.

The INEOS 1:59 Challenge is currently looking for a venue, but organizers expect the event to take place in late September or early October. It is not yet known whether the event will be world record eligible.

USATF Half Marathon Championships

Leonard Korir and Stephanie Bruce won the USATF Half Marathon Championships Sunday, hosted by the Pittsburgh Marathon.

RESULTS | VIDEOS

Stanley Kebenei was the early leader in the race, separating himself from the pack before reaching two miles. Korir, a training partner of Kebenei, and defending champion Andrew Colley, gave chase and closed down Kebenei’s 15-meter lead.

The trio passed halfway together, but shortly after Korir and Kebenei made a move that dropped Colley. The pair ran together, with Kebenei taking a half-stride lead throughout much of the second half of the race.

Korir made his move with a mile to go, building a five-second lead on the way to victory in 1:01:52. Kebenei earned a big personal best with his 1:01:57 for second place. Colley was third in 1:03:11.

A large lead pack stayed together through the first quarter of the women’s race. Bruce led the way early, along with Katy Jermann.

After completing the first 5K in 16:42, Emma Bates and Sara Hall joined the charge as the lead group whittled down to six. Two miles later, the trio of Bruce, Hall and Bates began to pull away.

By mile nine, Bates began to fall off as Hall and Bruce continued to push on. The pair went back and forth into the final mile until Bruce made her final move with half a mile to go. Bruce won in 1:10:43, a personal best. Hall  maintained second place in 1:11:04. Bates was third in 1:11:13.

Prague Marathon

Lonah Chemtai Salpeter of Israel and Almahjoub Dazza of Morocco won the Volkswagen Prague Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label race.

RESULTS

Salpeter showed herself to be the class of the women’s field, pushing the pace throughout and even passing the designated pacemakers in the mixed-gender field. She went on to shatter the course record, running 2:19:46. In addition to being an Israeli national record, it was a personal best by more than four minutes.

Bahrain’s Shitaye Eshete was second in 2:22:39 and Ethiopia’s Genet Yalew was third in 2:24:34.

Kellyn Taylor, one of the favorites going into the race, suffered from the hot early pace. After passing 10K in 33:20, she dropped back from the lead pack. Passing halfway in 1:11:17, Taylor was far ahead of personal best schedule.

Taylor slowed after the midpoint. However, by sticking with it, she was able to still move up through the field as women up front fell off. Taylor finished nearly two minutes off her personal best in 2:26:27, but she moved up to fourth. That made her the third HOKA ONE ONE Northern Arizona Elite runner to earn the 2020 Olympic marathon standard.

Also competing for the U.S. was Diane Nukuri. She finished 10th in 2:33:38. That did not earn her the 2020 standard, but she did achieve the 2019 IAAF World Outdoor Championships standard. Nukuri has not yet been approved by the IAAF to compete for the U.S. However, she has been accepted by USATF to run the U.S. Olympic Trials marathon.

The men's race began as a large pack of more than 10 runners through halfway when the near course record pace began to take its toll. The lead pack was down to four men in the closing stages of the race.

Dazza was the man to pull away to win comfortablely/ He walked across the finish line, celebrating, in 2:05:58. The Ethiopian duo of Dawit Wolde and Bantie Aychew finished second and third in 2:06:18 and 2:06:23, respectively. Kenya's Amos Kipruto, one of the pre-race favorites, finished fourth in 2:06:56.

Vancouver Marathon

It was a double Japanese victory at the BMO Vancouver Marathon with Yuki Kawauchi and Yuko Mizuguchi taking home the victories.

RESULTS

For Kawauchi, it was an improvement for both time and place from his Boston Marathon finish last month. He ran 2:15:01 for the win and bettered his 17th place finish in Boston with a win. Mizuguchi won the women’s race in 2:41:28.

Domestic Races

There were several domestic races of note this week, including the Bloomsday 12K and the NYRR Newport 5K.

Gabriel Geay of Tanzania and Rosemary Wanjiru of Kenya won the Bloomsday 12K in Spokane, Wash. Geay won the men’s race in 34:50 and Wanjiru won the women’s race in 39:06. Colin Beanie and Maggie Montoya were the top U.S. finishers, both seventh.

At the first ever NYRR Newport 5K, Daniel Winn took home the win in 14:28. Ethiopia’s Gadise Fita won the women’s race in 17:03.