Ruth Chepng'etich eyes comeback in Chicago

Kenya’s Ruth Chepng’etich puts her title on the line while Boston Marathon champion Benson Kipruto will lead compatriots to try recapture the men’s title when the Chicago Marathon goes down Sunday in USA.

It will be the first race for Chepng’etich since failing to finish her race during the World Athletics Championships on July 18 in Oregon, United States.

That saw Chepng'etich relinquish the title she won at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha.

The mishap in Oregon happened four months after the 28-year-old won the Nagoya Marathon in a course record time of two hours, 17 minutes and 18 seconds, shying off personal best by 10 seconds.

Chepng’etich, who won last year’s race in 2:23:31 will be aiming to become the fifth Kenyan to ever defend the Chicago Marathon title after Joyce Chepchumba (1998, 1999), Catherine Ndereba (2000, 2001), Florence Kiplagat (2015, 2016) and Brigid Kosgei (2018, 2019).

Kosgei won the 2019 race in a world record time of 2:14:04.

Chepng’etich, who ran her lifetime best when winning in Dubai in 2:17:08 in 2019, becoming the fourth fastest runner in history, faces a rich field that will zero down to a battle between Kenya and Ethiopia.

Chepng’etich, who has won six of her eight marathon races, looks all ready to take the battle to compatriots three-time Milano Marathon Vivian Kiplagat and Celestine Chepchirchir.

A horde of Ethiopians led by Ruti Aga, Haven Hailu Desse and Wagne Makasha also lay in wait for the Kenyans.

It will be interesting to see how Kiplagat will handle Chepng’etich after the two treated the world to a thriller at last year’s race.

Kiplagat took the battle to Chepng'etich but the athlete who won in Adu Dhabi Marathon in 2:21:11, failed to keep up the pace before crossing the finish line in fifth place in 2:29:14. 

But after winning Milano Marathon on April 3 this year in a  personal best 2:20:18, Kiplagat looks in shape to turn the tables on the field.

“I am focused on the race which I know will be fast and if the weather conditions are favourable, I want to run a personal best,” said Kiplagat.

Aga has only one World Marathon Major under her sleeves after her victory in Tokyo in 2020 in 2:20:40. She reached the podium in six other races, including her third place in New York in 2019 in 2:25:51 and three times in Berlin (third in 2016 in 2:24:41, second in 2017 in 2:20:41, in 2018 in 2:18:34).

Desse had third place finishes in Mumbai in 2020 and Amsterdam 2021 where she set personal best 2:20:19.

The onus will be on Kipruto and his compatriots to try and recapture the title Ethiopia’s Seifu Tura snatched away from Kenya last year.

Others are two-time Los Angeles Marathon champion John Korir, Amsterdam Marathon champion Bernard Koech, Paris Marathon champion Elisha Rotich and Eric Kiptanui, who finished third at last year’s Chicago Marathon.

Tura waited for 38 km to break away from the rest of the group and crossed the finish line in 2:06:12.

Tura, who finished sixth at the World Championships in Eugene in 2:07:17, will be eying to win in Chicago back-to-back for the first time since Samuel Wanjiru’s exploits in 2008 and 2009.

Other Ethiopians in the race are Herpasa Negasa, Dawit Wolde and Asrar Abderehman but of keen interest will be the home athlete Gulen Rupp, who finished second last year after winning in 2017 halting Kenya's four-year reign.

Korir, who is making his debut at Marathon Majors hopes to replicate his elder brother Wesley Korir’s exploits in the big league where he finished second in 2011 Chicago Marathon before winning Boston Marathon in 2012.

Korir will be riding on his outing in Los Angeles Marathon in March where he retained his title in a personal best time of  2:09:08.

"I can say that I’m in good shape,” said Korir.

Those to also watch out for are Negasa, the fastest man in the field with his personal best of 2:03:40 attained in Dubai in 2019 and Wolde, a third place finisher in Rotterdam in 2021 in 2:04:27.