Geoffrey Toroitich Kipchumba wins the Amsterdam Marathon (© AFP / Getty Images)
In just his second race over the distance, Kenya’s Geoffrey Toroitich Kipchumba broke the course record at the TCS Amsterdam Marathon, winning the World Athletics Platinum Label road race on Sunday (19) in 2:03:30.
Aynalem Desta, another relative newcomer to marathon running, won the women’s race in a huge PB of 2:17:37, the third-fastest time recorded in the Dutch capital.
Much of the focus in the men’s race was on defending champion and two-time winner Tsegay Getachew and double Olympic champion Joshua Cheptegei. They both featured prominently within the lead pack for most of the race as the leading group went through 10km in 29:16.
The half-way split of 1:02:14 suggested that the course record (2:03:39) may be too big an ask, but the lead pack worked together to pick up the pace in the second half. They went through 30km in 1:28:22 with seven men still in contention, including Toroitich, Getachew, Cheptegei and Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay.
Cheptegei, who was contesting his third marathon, started to drift off the lead pack a few kilometres later, leaving Toroitich, Getachew, Geay and Getaneh Molla in the lead quartet. Getachew was next to fade, then Geay.
With roughly three kilometres to go, Toroitich finally broke free from Molla, the last of his challengers, and went on to open a comfortable leading margin. The Kenyan crossed the line in Amsterdam’s Olympic Stadium in 2:03:30, taking nine seconds off the course record set four years ago by Olympic champion Tamirat Tola.
Getachew and Molla claimed the other podium places in 2:04:18 and 2:04:19 respectively. Geay was fourth (2:04:36) and Cheptegei fifth, clocking a PB of 2:04:52.
The women’s race was also won with negative splits, and while there was an Ethiopian victory as expected, eventual winner Desta was considered one of the outside contenders.
The former steeplechase specialist was part of the lead pack through 10km (32:41) and half way (1:09:10).
By 30km, reached in 1:38:07, the lead pack was down to four Ethiopian athletes: Desta, Bertukan Welde, Mekides Shimeles and Waganesh Mekasha. A few kilometres later, Mekasha started to fade. By 40km, it was down to just Desta and Welde.
Desta managed to forge a lead in the closing stages and won in 2:17:37, chopping more than four minutes from her PB and coming within 45 seconds of the course record set last year by Yalemzerf Yehualaw.
Welde finished second in a PB of 2:17:56 and Shimeles completed the Ethiopian podium sweep in 2:19:56.
Leading results
Women
1 Aynalem Desta (ETH) 2:17:37
2 Bertukan Welde (ETH) 2:17:56
3 Mekides Shimeles (ETH) 2:19:56
4 Waganesh Mekasha (ETH) 2:20:26
5 Gadise Mulu (ETH) 2:21:04
6 Bosena Mulate (ETH) 2:21:23
7 Rose Chelimo (BRN) 2:22:55
8 Margaux Sieracki (FRA) 2:25:50
9 Zinah Senbeta (ETH) 2:27:32
10 Louise Small (GBR) 2:27:51
Men
1 Geoffrey Toroitich Kipchumba (KEN) 2:03:30
2 Tsegaye Getachew (ETH) 2:04:18
3 Getaneh Molla (ETH) 2:04:19
4 Gabriel Geay (TAN) 2:04:36
5 Joshua Cheptegei (UGA) 2:04:52
6 Bazezaw Asmare (ETH) 2:05:17
7 Bute Gemechu (ETH) 2:06:12
8 Aron Kifle (ERI) 2:07:12
9 Tadesse Getahon (ISR) 2:07:15
10 Phil Sesemann (GBR) 2:07:18
