Former world women’s marathon champion, Ruth Chepng’etich, said she felt dejected after surrendering her title to Dutch woman Sifan Hassan on Sunday.
Chepng’etich graced the 2023 edition inspired by a lofty aspiration to bag a third consecutive title after her double in 2021 and 2022.
However, her dreams were smashed into smithereens by Sifan, who blazed to victory in a new course record time of 2:13:44 — the second-fastest time in history.
“After winning the race twice in a row, I wanted to take my performance a notch higher by possibly winning a world record but my plans simply didn’t materialise,” Chepngetich said.
She said she will be seeking to surpass the former world record of 2:14:04 set by compatriot Brigid Kosgei at the 2019 Chicago Marathon before focusing on breaking the current record.
“This is something I can do later and smashing the world record is still in my plans,” she added.
However, despite the heartbreak in Chicago on Sunday, Chepngetich still went home loaded with a prize purse of Sh7,435,000 for placing second.
She also pocketed an additional Sh5,946,000 for running a sub at 2:20:00 after clocking at 2:15:37 ahead of Ethiopia’s Megertu Alemu who wrapped up the top three.
Hassan walked away with a whopping Sh14,870,000 for winning the race and an additional Sh7,435,000 for breaking the course record.
Third-place finisher Alemu received Sh 3,717,500 and an additional Sh5,946,000.
Chepngetich grew up in Kericho County in Rift Valley and started honing her skills when she was 16.
Upon completing high school in 2015, Chepngetich immersed in athletics full-time. She debuted in the 10km run in Nairobi and finished third.
She went ahead and graced her first international race in Morocco the same year, wrapping up third in the half-marathon.
Consecutive victories in 2017 at the Adana, Paris, Milan, and Istanbul races boosted her confidence, inspiring her to turn professional.
Her personal best of 2:14:18 run in the Chicago Marathon last year ranks third all-time in the globe. She has the third-fastest half-marathon time in history.
Chepng’etich won the Nagoya Women’s Marathon in Japan on March 13, 2022, with the second-fastest women-only marathon time ever.
