Hellen Obiri (Kenya) has vowed to return to Massachusetts to make it a hat-trick of victories at next year’s Boston Marathon as an Olympics champion. Her confidence comes after winning the 128th Boston Marathon on Sunday.
She is in Kenya’s preliminary squad for the Olympics, but the squad is due to be cut after the London Marathon this Sunday.
Hellen Obiri, who trains in the USA, crossed the finish line in Boston in 2:22:37 hours to lead the Kenyan podium in the women’s race with Sharon Lokedi (2:22:45 hours) and 44-year-old indefatigable Edna Kiplagat (2:23:21).
Hellen Obiri is a Kenyan middle- and long-distance runner. She is the only woman to have won world titles in indoor track, outdoor track and cross country. She is a two-time Olympic 5,000m silver medalist from the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where she also placed fourth over the 10,000m. She is a two-time world champion after winning the 5,000 m in 2017 and again in 2019, when she set a new championship record. Hellen Obiri also took world bronze for the 1,500m in 2013 and silver in the 10,000m in 2022. She won the 3,000m race at the 2012 World Indoor Championships, claimed silver in 2014, and placed fourth in 2018. She is the 2019 World Cross Country champion.
Hellen Obiri is the former Kenyan national record holder for the mile and the 5,000m. Both those records were only recently broken by Faith Kipyegon on her way to setting the current mile World Record of 4:07.64 set in Monaco on July 21, 2023.
