Ruth Chepngetich defended her Chicago Marathon title but failed to set a WR

The Kenyan road racing athlete Ruth Chepngetich defended her Chicago Marathon title with a dominant performance. She covered the distance of 42 kilometers and 195 meters in 2:14:18 hours but was just 14 seconds short of breaking the world record of her compatriot Brigid Kosgei.

Ruth Chepngetich built up a lead of nearly 4 minutes over her rivals by the mid-distance mark and didn’t allow any other runner to come close to her time. However, this prevented the 2019 world champion from having a high speed in the final kilometers of the marathon when she dropped the world record.

“I wanted to break the world record, but I’m still happy. I’m ready to come back next year and try again”, said Ruth Chepngetich after the finish.

American Emily Sisson finished second with 2:18:29 hours, and third was the Kenyan runner Vivian Jerono Kiplagat.

Ruth Chepngetich is a Kenyan road racing athlete, who competes in the marathon and other long-distance events. She was the 2019 Marathon World champion in hot and humid conditions. Ruth Chepngetich twice won the Chicago Marathon. Her personal best in the marathon is second of all time in the world. She holds the third-fastest mark of all time for the half marathon.