The Associated Press
BOSTON–The Kenyans are back in Boston after a relative lull that saw them shut out in the world’s most prestigious marathon twice in the past three years.
More surprisingly, so are the Americans.
Geoffrey Kirui won the 121st Boston Marathon yesterday, pulling away from three-time U.S. Olympian Galen Rupp with two miles to go to give Kenya its first men’s victory in five years.
Edna Kiplagat won the women’s race to complete the Kenyan sweep.
They were followed closely by Americans, who grabbed two of the top four women’s spots and six of the top 10 for men–the first time that’s happened since the race went professional in 1986.
“It’s so exciting to see Americans being competitive here,” said Rupp, the Olympic bronze-medallist who was making his Boston Marathon debut.
“It’s a real exciting time,” he added. “And it’s awesome to see American distance running on the upswing and being competitive in these races.”
Kirui finished in two hours, nine minutes, and 37 seconds to claim a silver trophy, a guilded olive wreath from Marathon, Greece, and the $150,000 first prize.
Rupp was 21 seconds back and Japan’s Suguru Osako 30 seconds behind him.
Rounding out the top 10 were runners from California, Arizona, Colorado, Oregon, and Utah.
“American distance running is looking good today,” said sixth-place finisher Abdi Abdirahman, a Somali immigrant and Tucson resident who is a four-time Olympian.
“We have the podium for both men and women, so the future is great.”
Kiplagat finished in 2:21:52 to win her Boston debut, adding the victory to two world championships and wins in London, New York, and L.A.
She pulled ahead of Rose Chelimo of Bahrain in the Newton hills to win by 59 seconds.
American Jordan Hasay, making her first run at the 26.2-mile distance, was third while Desi Linden was fourth–the first time since 1991 that two U.S. women have finished in the top four.
“It keeps happening. We keep getting closer,” said Linden, the 2011 runner-up by two seconds.
“We’re putting more numbers in there and it’s just a matter of time,”
Earlier yesterday, city officials announced plans for memorials to mark the sites where two bombs exploded during the 2013 race.
Also in the field yesterday was Boston Police Commissioner William Evans, who ran for the 18th time in 2013 but has skipped the races since the bombings so he could be available in case of another emergency.
Evans, who completed his 52nd marathon overall, said he wanted to show that Boston is back to normal.
“If I can come back, everyone can,” he said.
