Peres Jepchirchir, the Olympic champion, shattered the women-only world record at the London Marathon, clinching the World Athletics Platinum Label Road Race with a blistering time of 2:16:16 in London on Sunday. Dominating the race, the three-time world half-marathon champion surged ahead of Tigist Assefa, the current World Record-holder, 2021 London victor Joyciline Jepkosgei, and last year’s runner-up Megertu Alemu, all finishing under 2:17, securing her third triumph in a World Marathon Majors event.
Right from the start, the pace was relentless as a leading group of nine women zoomed through the 10km mark in 31:26. By the halfway point at 1:07:04, the group dwindled to seven, as reported by World Athletics on Sunday. Around the 18-mile mark, Jepchirchir, Assefa, Jepkosgei, and Alemu broke away from the pack, maintaining their unity for nearly eight miles.
With the clock ticking past 2:15 and only a minute of running remaining, Alemu was eventually left behind. In a decisive move, Jepchirchir surged ahead, leaving Jepkosgei and Assefa trailing behind. The determined Kenyan dashed across the finish line in 2:16:16, demolishing the women-only world record of 2:17:01 set by Mary Keitany in 2017. Shortly after, Alexander Mutiso Munyao sealed a Kenyan double victory, clinching the men's race in 2:04:01, outpacing Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele by 14 seconds.
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