Jepchirchir, Obiri to face top-class rivalry in New York Marathon
By Joel Sang, October 31, 2023Kenyan runners Peres Jepchirchir, Brigid Kosgei, and Hellen Obiri will face a strong field in the women’s race during the New York Marathon on Sunday, November 5, 2023.
Jepchirchir, who won in 2021, will be making a return, and her primary target will be to improve on her third-place finish in London last April, while Obiri will be seeking her second victory in her third career marathon.
Obiri, Jepchirchir lead Kenya
Jepchirchir and Obiri will face a stern test from Sharon Lokedi, who is the marathon’s defending champion, while Brigid Kosgei, an Olympic silver medallist and who was the marathon world record holder until September, will also offer stiff competition.
Obiri goes to the race boosted by the fact that she and 2023 Tokyo Marathon winner Rosemary Wanjiru are the only Kenyan women who have earned podium finishes at a World Marathon Majors race in 2023.
The Kisii Express, as Obiri is known on the streets, won the Boston race, which was just her second marathon, after finishing sixth in her debut in New York in 2022.
“With a year of marathon experience now under my belt, a win in Boston, and my move to the U.S., I’m coming to New York this year with more confidence and in search of a title,” Obiri said, as quoted by Olympics.com.
Jepchirchir, 30, is the only athlete to win the Olympic, New York City, and Boston Marathons, and she has been unbeaten since winning her debut in Boston last year until Dutch runner Sifan Hassan defeated her in London last April.
“New York is an important step in defending my Olympic gold medal next summer in Paris,” Jepchirchir said of her return to New York after pulling out with an injury last year.
Kosgei, who is a back-to-back London marathon winner and former world record holder, will also race for the first time in New York. She pulled out of the London Marathon last time, just four minutes into the race, with a hamstring concern. Kosgei’s last victory came at the 2022 Tokyo Marathon.
Lokedi, on the other hand, is aiming to retain her title; “This year, I’m returning with a different mindset, hungry to defend my title and race against the fastest women in the world,” the 2018 NCAA champion, who stunned the world with her marathon debut last year, said.
Kenya’s unit will also be comprised of Edna Kiplagat, 43, a two-time world champion and Boston, London, and New York City winner.
Ethiopian challenge
As usual, Kenya and Ethiopia will go tete-a-tete, and the Ethiopian unit has the women’s 10,000m and half-marathon world record holder, Letesenbet Gidey. Gidey is making her New York City debut after her 2022 victory in Valencia in 2:16:49, which is still the fastest women’s marathon debut in history.
2022’s London Marathon champ, Yalemzerf Yehualaw, will also be running her New York Marathon for the first time, meaning that Ethiopia will also have a strong side to carry its flag.
Molly Huddle of the US, who was third in 2016 and fourth in 2018, is returning to New York, as is Kelly Taylor, another top-ten finisher in all her three past appearances.
Taylor is the fastest of the local stars, with a personal best of 2:24:29, according to Olympics.com.