This story will be updated.
For the second year in a row at the Chicago Marathon, Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya took the race out at a torrid pace and left all challengers far behind her.
She ran the second-fastest marathon in history, finishing in 2:14:18.
More From Runner's World
She hit her first 5K in 15:11, a pace that put her ahead of many of the elite men and, if she held it, would project to a 2:09 finish. By the halfway point, which she split in 1:05:44, Chepngetich, 28, had a 3:42 gap on her nearest pursuer, and she was on pace to shatter Brigid Kosgei’s world record, 2:14:04, set in 2019 in Chicago. She even dropped one of her two male pacesetters.
Chepngetich, 28, slowed somewhat in the second half of the race, running 1:08:30. She missed the record by 14 seconds, raising the question of where the world record would currently stand if she had run a little more conservatively in the first half.
Emily Sisson was second in an American record of 2:18:29. Vivian Kiplagat of Kenya was third in 2:20:52, Ruti Aga of Ethiopia was fourth in 2:21:41, and Waganesh Mekasha Amare, also of Ethiopia, was sixth in 2:23:41.
American Susannah Sullivan was sixth in 2:25:14, and Sara Vaughn was seventh in 2:26:23. The U.S. put five runners in the top 10.
The women’s all-time list in marathon also got a shakeup last month in Berlin. Tigist Assefa of Ethiopia ran 2:15:37, which at the time put her third on the all-time list. With Chepngetich’s performance today, Assefa moves to fourth.
Sarah Lorge Butler is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World since 2005. She is the author of two popular fitness books, Run Your Butt Off! and Walk Your Butt Off!
