Eliud Kipchoge extends his empire to Tokyo!

March 6, 2022: Tokyo Marathon, Men's Race

Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge has reaffirmed that he is not just the greatest long-distance runner of our time, but possibly the greatest of all time. 

On March 6, 2022, Kipchoge ran to glory at the Tokyo Marathon, the first major marathon of the year. After winning the gold medal in the men's marathon at Tokyo Olympics last year, he returned to the Japanese capital to claim his first major marathon title in the city. 

Kipchoge won the men's race in 2 hours, 2 minutes and 40 seconds. It was the fastest time ever on Japanese soil and the fourth fastest time in history, behind his own world record of 2:01:39 (set in Berlin in 2018), Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele's 2:01:41 (Berlin 2019) and his own time of 2:02:37 at the London Marathon in 2019.

Kipchoge now has four of the six major marathon titles to his name: four wins in London, three in Berlin, one victory in Chicago and now a triumph in Tokyo, with Boston and New York City yet to be ticked off. 

Kipchoge's compatriot Amos Kipruto, who was running neck-and-neck with him until the 35th km, finished second in a personal best time of 2:03:13. Ethiopia's Tamirat Tola took the third place in 2:04:14. 

Kengo Suzuki was the fastest Japanese runner, finishing fourth in a highly impressive time of 2:05:28. A total of 50 runners, including 43 Japanese athletes, recorded sub-2:15. 

A flying start to the big city marathon season!