Rio Olympians, Paralympians Place in Boston Marathon

(ATR) Kenya and Switzerland were the big winners at the 121st Boston Marathon.

Geoffrey Kirui of Kenya won the men’s race in his Boston Marathon debut with a time of 2:09:37. The 24-year-old was running in only his third career marathon. Despite his country’s well-earned reputation for outstanding distance runners, Kirui is the first Kenyan to win the men’s race in five years.

Galen Rupp of the USA, who won bronze in the marathon at the Rio Olympics, finished second by 21 seconds in his third career race at this distance. Suguru Osako of Japan finished third.

Two-time world marathon champion Edna Kiplagat of Kenya won the women’s race, also in her debut in Boston. She crossed the line in a time of 2:21:52. Rose Chilemo of Bahrain finished 59 seconds behind in second with Jordan Hasay of the USA in third.

With the London Marathon just six days away, elite runners had to choose between racing there or in Boston, somewhat diluting the quality of the field for both races.

Switzerland dominated the push-rim (wheelchair) races, winning both the men’s and women’s events.

Marcel Hug, who took home gold in the marathon and 800m at the Rio Paralympics, won his third straight Boston Marathon.

His countrywoman Manuela Schar broke through on the women’s side with the biggest win of her career. After coming second in last year’s race, she did one better this time around. She became the first woman to break 90 minutes in the event, coming in at a time of 1:28:17.

Four-time defending champion Tatyana McFadden of the USA finished fourth despite beating her personal best time in the event by six minutes, according to NBC Sports Network. McFadden’s preparation had been hampered by three surgeries for blood clots since February, the last one less than two weeks ago.

Security has been top of mind at the Boston Marathon since the bombings that marred the 2013 event, killing three people and injuring an estimated 264 others. This year’s event has gone off without any security issues.

Written by Gerard Farek

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