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Boston Globe
03-06-2025
- General
- Boston Globe
Boston 10K pro field to feature Boston Marathon champion Sharon Lokedi, American Olympians
'Winning the Boston Marathon is a highlight of my career so far,' said Lokedi in a release. 'I'm excited to return to Boston to race the 10K and relive the same feeling from the marathon.' Lokedi will be joined in the women's pro field by another Boston Marathon champion, Edna Kiplagat, as well as a pair of American Olympic marathoners, Providence College alum Emily Sisson and 2024 US Olympic Marathon Trials winner Fiona O'Keeffe. Advertisement American Olympians Emily Sisson (left) and Fiona O'Keeffe (center) will race the Boston 10K this month. Mike Ehrmann/Getty The stacked women's field also features 2024 New York City Marathon champion Sheila Chepkirui (who boasts the fastest personal best in the field at 29:46), as well as The women's wheelchair field will be led by four-time Boston Marathon and five-time Boston 10K champion Tatyanna McFadden. Two-time Boston Marathon champion Daniel Romanchuk will headline the men's wheelchair race. The men's professional field is loaded with depth, with Tanzania's Gabriel Geay — event winner in 2018 and 2023, as well as Boston Marathon runner-up in 2023 — among the biggest names on the start list. Joe Klecker, an Olympian over 10,000 meters in 2021, will lead the American charge. Kenya's Dennis Kitiyo has the fastest personal best in the field at 27:01. Advertisement 'The Boston 10K annually brings together some of the fastest and most competitive athletes from around the globe,' said Mary Kate Shea, the BAA's senior director of professional athletes. 'The Boston running community can expect fast times and thrilling races at this year's 10K across all divisions.' Around 10,000 athletes are expected to race on June 22, with the course winding through Cambridge and the Back Bay. The route begins on Charles Street and crosses the Longfellow Bridge for an out-and-back and Memorial Drive before crossing back over the Harvard Bridge on Massachusetts Avenue. Runners will then loop through Kenmore Square, make the right on Hereford and left onto Boylston, finishing between the Boston Common and Public Garden. Amin Touri can be reached at
Boston Globe
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Boston Globe
Men's and women's marathon times are dropping fast, even on Boston's difficult course
'When I crossed then saw the time, I still can't believe it,' said Lokedi, who dethroned two-time defending champion Hellen Obiri by 19 seconds. Advertisement This blistered pastime has become dizzyingly faster over the past couple of years with the high-stepping Kenyans leading the way, as usual. Kelvin Kiptum demolished countryman Eliud Kipchoge's world mark by 34 seconds with an eye-popping 2:00:35 in Chicago in October 2023. Then Ruth Chepngetich chopped more than six minutes off colleague Peres Jepchirchir's global standard with a 2:09:56 in Chicago last fall. Given the country's ongoing doping problems skeptics shook their heads, but the lab tests indicated that both runners were clean on the day. High-tech shoes, which are like running barefoot on springs, obviously make a significant difference. So do modern training methods, which include using baking soda (yes, found in Grandma's cabinet a century ago) to offset lactic acid. And the Windy City's flattop is a proven place for runners to drag race. Advertisement Whatever the reason, 26-mile times are coming down in chunks now. What's notable is that it happened in both the men's and women's races here on a course that by its undulating and twisting nature is not clock-friendly. Boston's layout hasn't changed appreciably since the 19th century, which makes it a unique — and bedeviling — challenge. Related : 'Boston is tough,' said Lokedi. 'It's easy when you start and then you hit the hills. If your legs are tired you can't really do much then. It really helps knowing where certain hills are, where you can make the move.' The key is to still have bounce in your step when you come off Heartbreak Hill and onto the Brookline flats, where the race becomes a track meet. That's where course knowledge comes in. Not that first-timers don't win here. Obiri did it on her first try two years ago. But knowing about the steep downhill coming out of Wellesley, the first Newton hill (it's actually the Route 128 overpass), the Firehouse Turn, and what Korir calls 'Breaking Hill' keeps a contender from making a rash decision that leads to a DNF. Course knowledge was valuable for Korir, who finished ninth in 2023 and fourth last April. 'The last two years helped me to know where to make a move,' he said. The input from older brother Wesley, who prevailed here in 2012 and helped craft Monday's winning game plan, was priceless. The decision was for Korir to lope away from the pack at 20 miles, midway through the hills. He made a decisive move in Chicago after 15 miles and went on to post the second-fastest time (2:02:44) in race history. 'So I had to try that tactic here and it worked,' said Korir, who quickly found himself with an 18-second lead. Advertisement Had one or more of his rivals dared to go with him, Korir would have welcomed the company. 'If I have someone and we can push together the last 6 miles we could have gone for the course record,' he said. 'But because I was alone I had to try my best and see how fast I can run.' Lokedi had all the company she needed in Obiri, who busted her and two-time champ Edna Kiplagat in Kenmore Square last year. She'd figured that the real racing would start with 10 kilometers left on the way toward Heartbreak. She didn't reckon on having it begin in Wellesley. 'Halfway I saw we ran 68 [minutes] and I was like, 'Oh, Jesus,' ' said Lokedi, who had Obiri, world titlist Amane Beriso, and two others alongside. 'We just kept going. I'm like, I hope I still get it in the end.' Like Obiri, who earned Olympic silvers in the 5,000 meters in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo, Lokedi is a formidable track runner who won the NCAA 10,000 when she ran for Kansas. So she was comfortable with a drag race down Beacon Street. 'We're running fast, I know that for sure,' she said. Unlike a track meet you can't see the finish line until you make the left turn off Hereford Street. 'Fight, fight, fight, fight — that's what it was in my head the whole time,' Lokedi said. 'Just don't give up. Keep fighting.' Advertisement It wasn't surprising that Lokedi won here. She owned New York three years ago and just missed an Olympic medal in Paris. What was surprising to her and everyone else was her time, which would have won all but one men's race here until the mid-'60s. The world mark wasn't in danger, but you can't set a world mark here anyway because of the elevation differential. But you get the same winner's paycheck here ($150,000) that you do in Chicago and New York and the rest of the majors, plus $50,000 more for a course record. Lokedi's 2:17:22 did set one record. It's the fastest marathon time on a course with a Breaking Hill. John Powers can be reached at
Forbes
22-04-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
2025 Boston Marathon: Sharon Lokedi Sets A New Record; John Korir Creates Historic Legacy
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 21: Sharon Lokedi of Kenya crosses the finish line to win the 129th ... More Boston Marathon Women's division on April 21, 2025 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by) On Monday, Sharon Lokedi won the 2025 Boston Marathon with a new record. The 31-year-old won the world's oldest annual marathon in 2:17:22, breaking the course record. Lokedi bested the previous record of 2:19:59 set by Ethiopia's Buzunesh Deba in 2014. With this time, the Kenyan managed to surpass the defending champion Hellen Obiri (2:17:41) by 19 seconds. Lokedi, who started the race in the middle of the lead pack, surged in the last 1000 meters to surpass Obiri and deny her from completing a historic three-peat. Yalemzerf Yehualaw of Ethiopia placed third in 2:18:06. The race was certainly one of the closest in history, as all three winners managed to surpass the decade-long previous record. "It feels so good. It was tough, and I toughed it out." Lokedi stated in the post-race interview. Over the past few years, Obiri, a two-time Olympic silver medalist in 5,000 meters, and Sharon Lokedi, last year's Boston Marathon runner-up, have developed into a duo that has left the spectators on tiptoes until the end of the race. At the 2024 Boston Marathon, Obiri claimed her second consecutive title, leaving Lokedi behind by eight seconds. The two also faced each other at the New York Marathon in 2023, where the defending champion Lokedi placed third while Oberi claimed the gold. BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 21: John Korir of Kenya celebrates with the trophy after winning the ... More 129th Boston Marathon Men's division on April 21, 2025 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by) Notably, the men's race was also claimed by a Kenyan runner, John Korir, placing first in 2:04:45. Korir, who took a fall in the beginning of the race, surged at mile 19 to 'become the fastest in the family.' The 28-year-old followed in the footsteps of his older brother Wesley, who won the event in 2012 and became the first sibling duo in history to win the Boston Marathon. Korir, who posted the second-fastest time in men's race history at the 129th Boston Marathon, was also almost eight minutes faster than Wesley, who notably claimed the title on one of city's hottest marathon days, peaking at 89 degrees. 'My brother Wesley, who won here in 2012, has always encouraged me to work hard, saying one day I will make it. I'm happy it has come to pass today," he stated Korir was followed by Alphonce Simbu of Tanzania, finishing second in 2:05:04. 28-year-old Conner Mantz was the top finisher for the U.S. placing fourth in 2:05:08. Mantz,who finished 11th in 2023, turned in the best performnce by an American runner at the Boston Marathon since 2018.
USA Today
21-04-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Who were the winners of the 2025 Boston Marathon?
Who were the winners of the 2025 Boston Marathon? The 129th running of the Boston Marathon — the oldest annual marathon in the world — is still ongoing, but we have our winners from Monday's 26.2-mile race. On the women's side, Sharon Lokedi of Kenya took home first place honors while shattering the previous course record by more than two minutes. It was a close race down the stretch between Lokedi and two-time defending champion Hellen Obiri, but after coming up just short and finishing as the runner-up in 2024, Lokedi finished on top of the podium this year with a time of two hours, 17 minutes and 22 seconds. She won the race by 19 seconds. The men's race was a bit less exciting, with John Korir (also of Kenya) pulling away in the final few miles to win with a time of 2:04:45. Korir won the Chicago Marathon last year, and along with his brother Wesley — who won in 2012 — became part of the first sibling duo to win the Boston Marathon. Korir fell at the beginning of the race but ultimately shrugged it off to finish with the third-fastest men's time ever. His brother was at the finish line to greet him upon his victory.
Irish Examiner
21-04-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Sharon Lokedi breaks Boston Marathon course record by 2.5 minutes
Sharon Lokedi of Kenya broke the Boston Marathon course record by more than two-and-a-half minutes on Monday, outkicking two-time defending champion Hellen Obiri a year after losing to her in one of the closest finishes in race history. Fellow Kenyan John Korir recovered from a starting line fall to join his brother as a race champion — the first relatives to win the world's oldest and most prestigious annual marathon in a history that dates to 1897. On a day that also marked the 50th anniversary of Bob Hall's pioneering wheelchair race, Marcel Hug of Switzerland claimed his eighth victory and Susannah Scaroni of the US took the women's title. 'I always feel emotional when the national anthem is played,' said Scaroni, who won in 2023 but couldn't defend her title last year because of an injury. 'And to have ours played on this amazing, historic anniversary gives me goosebumps.' Lokedi finished in 2 hours, 17 minutes, 22 seconds to claim the $150,000 (€130,000) first prize and another $50,000 bonus for breaking the course record of 2:19:59 set by Buzunesh Deba in 2014. A year after sprinting to an eight-second victory, Obiri was 19 seconds back in her attempt to become the first woman to win three straight since Fatuma Roba in 1999. 'Where she passed me last year, I passed her this year,' Lokedi said with a laugh. 'I didn't even believe. I kept looking back and thinking, 'Where is she?' I'm just so grateful to her for pushing me all the way through.' Brotherly love Six months after winning on Chicago's flatter course, Korir finished in 2:04:45 — the second-fastest winning time in Boston history as the runners took advantage of perfect marathon weather to conquer the 42.2km from Hopkinton to Boston's Copley Square. And he did it despite getting tripped up from behind near the start and falling. He got up to rejoin the lead pack at the rear. 'What came to my mind was should I stay down, or should I (get) up and go?' he said. 'Something told me to (get) up and go, and that everything will be OK... And everything went away.' Korir's race bib fell off and he tucked it into his running tights, pulling it out as he sprinted to the finish line. Waiting to congratulate him: 2012 Boston winner Wesley Korir, his older brother. Although the race has been won by a pair of unrelated John Kelleys and two different Robert Cheruiyots, the Korirs are the first brothers to have won. 'He explained to be tough and believe in yourself,' said John Korir, who finished fourth and ninth in his two previous Boston attempts. 'So I believed in myself and I followed his advice.' Conner Mantz of Provo, Utah, finished fourth after losing a three-way sprint to the finish with Alphonce Felix Simbu of Tanzania, who finished second, and Cybrian Kotut of Kenya, who was third. 'I looked up to them' Yalemzerf Yehualaw of Ethiopia was third in the women's race. Jess McClain of Phoenix was the top American, in seventh place; 2018 winner Des Linden, who had announced she would retire from competitive running, won the masters division and was 17th overall. When she crossed the finish line, the other American women bowed to her in tribute. 'I had those folks in front of me who paved the way, and I looked up to them. And they always made me feel like I belonged, made me feel like my dreams are valid, helped me along the way,' Linden said. 'So I've always tried to do that for the folks in this sport as well.' Associated Press Read More Mark Allen inspired by recent world champions as he enjoys timely return to form
