No other city in the world this year can boast of having two IAAF Gold Label Road Races on the same day, but on Sunday (18) the Portuguese capital of Lisbon will host the Rock&rsquo;n&rsquo;Roll Marathon of Lisbon EDP and the Rock&rsquo;n&rsquo;Roll Half Marathon Vodafone RTP.The courses of both races will pass by iconic landmarks such as the Belem Tower, Jeronimo&rsquo;s Monastery, the Discoveries Monument, the 25 of April Bridge, Cristo Rei Statue, Vasco da Gama Bridge and the Orient Rail Road Station.For the half marathon, organisers have assembled a field containing more than 10 runners with personal bests faster than 1:00:00. All of them will be aiming to beat the 1:00:19 course record set in 2013 by Wilson Kiprop. Bernard Koech leads the entries. Although his 58:41 PB was set on San Diego&rsquo;s downhill course, it still makes him the third-fastest man in history under any conditions.He has run faster than an hour for the distance on four other occasions, including a victory at the2013 &nbsp;EDP Half Marathon of Lisbon &ndash; a different event to next month&rsquo;s one in the Portuguese capital &ndash; in 59:54. More recently, he won over 10 miles in Tilburg in 45:21.Fellow Kenyan Alex Korio Oloitiptip is also in the field. He finished fourth in this race last year but recently improved his PB to 59:28 when finishing second in Copenhagen last month.Atsedu Tsegay is one of two strong Ethiopian runners. He set a national record of 58:47 in Prague three years ago but hasn&rsquo;t raced since finishing seventh at this year&rsquo;s IAAF World Cross Country Championships. He will be joined by compatriot Guye Adola, the world half-marathon bronze medallist.Bahrain&rsquo;s Shumi Dechasa, who finished fifth in the marathon at this year&rsquo;s World Championships, will contest his first half marathon since winning the Arab title over the distance in April this year.Geoffrey Kusuro, the fastest Ugandan man over the half marathon with his 59:43 clocking in the Rome-Ostia race earlier this year, is also in the field, along with Eritrea&rsquo;s Nguse Amlosom, who came within 16 seconds of his PB when finishing third in Yangzhou earlier this year in 59:55.Others in the field include Brazilian twins Paulo and Luis Paula, Russia&rsquo;s European marathon bronze medallist Aleksey Reunkov, Ukraine&rsquo;s Oleksandr Sitkovskiy, Kenya&rsquo;s Elijah Serem and Eritrea&rsquo;s Merhawi Kesete.The Portuguese contingent is led by Hermano Ferreira and includes Jose Rocha, Pedro Ribeiro, Tiago Costa, Eduardo Mbengani, Miguel Ribeiro and Ricardo Dias.<h3>Dibaba&rsquo;s first race since winning world title</h3>The women&rsquo;s field is just as loaded as the men&rsquo;s, with world marathon champion Mare Dibaba leading the entries.The Ethiopian has won four of her past six marathons, including the World Championships in Beijing, the 2014 Chicago Marathon and the two most recent editions of the Xiamen Marathon. But in Lisbon she will be running mainly as an ambassador and doesn't intend on challenging for victory.But compatriot Wude Ayalew, the 2009 world 10,000m bronze medallist, does have her eye on topping the podium. Her half-marathon PB of 1:07:58 was set on her debut at the distance back in 2009.Fellow Ethiopian Feyse Tadesse, the 2014 Berlin Marathon runner-up and 2012 world half-marathon silver medallist, will be contesting her first race of 2015.Kenyan women have won 10 of the past 15 editions of this race; Rebecca Kangogo Chesire looks to be their best bet of adding to that tally this weekend. The 23-year-old won the Stramilano Half Marathon earlier this year in a PB of 1:08:21.Priscah Cherono, the 2006 world cross-country silver medallist, Beatrice Mutai and Stramilano runner-up Angela Tanui are also in the field.Sara Moreira, the 2013 European indoor 3000m champion, leads the Portuguese entries.<h3>Marathon course records under threat</h3>Early on Sunday morning, the coastal town of Cascais will host the start of the third edition of Rock&rsquo;n&rsquo;Roll Lisbon Marathon.Organisers are hopeful that the course records &ndash; Samuel Ndungu&rsquo;s 2:08:21 and Visiline Jepkesho&rsquo;s 2:26:47, both set last year &ndash; will be challenged. Both marks are also Portuguese all-comers&rsquo; records.Lawrence Kimaiyo, who has a 2:07:01 PB, finished third in this race last year but will be looking to improve on that this time round. Fellow Kenyans Silas Sang, winner of the Belgrade Marathon this year, and Daniel Limo, the 2015 Los Angeles Marathon champion, should also be in contention.While Kimaiyo owns the fastest PB, Limo&rsquo;s 2:10:36 is the quickest season&rsquo;s best of the field.Based on this year&rsquo;s form, Stephen Kosgei Kibet also looks capable of challenging for the victory. He clocked 2:11:08 in Hamburg earlier this year and ran a 1:01:09 half marathon last month.Asbel Kipsang could be a dark horse. He has won both of his marathons to date and recently clocked a half-marathon PB of 1:00:37.Zimbabwean record-holder Cuthbert Nyasango and Belgium&rsquo;s Abdelhadi El Hachimi are also in the field.The women&rsquo;s race features the anticipated marathon debut of Purity Rionoripo.The Kenyan was a talented junior on the track, winning the 2009 world youth 3000m title. After a few fallow years, she moved to the roads in 2014 and found immediate success, winning her first four half marathons.Her latest victory came in Copenhagen last month where she reduced her half-marathon PB to 1:08:29.Compatriot Margaret Agai has finished on the podium in all four of her marathons to date. The fastest of those runs came in Daegu last year when she won in 2:23:28.Morocco&rsquo;s Malika Assahsah, Kenya&rsquo;s Purity Changwony and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Beshadu Bekele will also take to the marathon start line on Sunday.Ant&oacute;nio Manuel Fernandes for the IAAF

No other city in the world this year can boast of having two IAAF Gold Label Road Races on the same day, but on Sunday (18) the Portuguese capital of Lisbon will host the Rock’n’Roll Marathon of Lisbon EDP and the Rock’n’Roll Half Marathon Vodafone RTP.

Course records the main target in Lisbon

World marathon champion Mare Dibaba and Kenya&rsquo;s Bernard Koech headline the elite fields for the Rock&rsquo;n&rsquo;Roll Vodafone RTP Half Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race, in Lisbon on 18 October.As well as having the fastest half-marathon PB of the field with her 1:07:13 clocking from 2010, Dibaba also owns the fastest marathon PB, having twice clocked 2:19:52.Dibaba will be up against fellow Ethiopian Tirfi Tsegaye, winner of the Berlin and Tokyo marathons last year. Her last half marathon was in 2012 when she clocked a PB of 1:07:42 in the Rome-Ostia race.Wude Ayalew, the 2009 world 10,000m bronze medallist, is also in the field. Her half-marathon PB of 1:07:58 was set on her debut at the distance back in 2009.Sara Moreira, the 2013 European indoor 3000m champion, leads the Portuguese entries.Koech owns a marathon PB of 2:04:53 and a half-marathon best of 58:41. Although it was set on San Diego&rsquo;s downhill course, it still makes him the third-fastest man in history under any conditions.He has run faster than an hour for the distance on four other occasions, including a victory at the EDP Half Marathon of Lisbon &ndash; a different event to next month&rsquo;s one in the Portuguese capital &ndash; in 59:54.Koech will line up alongside 2011 world 10,000m champion Ibrahim Jeilan. The Ethiopian has contested the past two editions of this race, finishing eighth in 2014 and 11th in 2013.Alex Oloitiptip, who finished fourth in this race last year, is also in the field. The Kenyan recently set a half-marathon PB of 59:28 in Copenhagen.&ldquo;Even though this course isn&rsquo;t as flat as the one used for the other Lisbon race held earlier in the year, I believe this group of athletes can bring down the course record of 1:00:19,&rdquo; said race organiser Carlos Moia.The men's course record was set in 2013 by Wilson Kiprop, while the women's course record of 1:07:54 was set in 2011 by Mary Keitany.Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF

World marathon champion Mare Dibaba and Kenya’s Bernard Koech headline the elite fields for the Rock’n’Roll Vodafone RTP Half Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race, in Lisbon on 18 October.

Mare Dibaba and Bernard Koech lead Lisbon Half Marathon fields

Abera Kuma from Ethiopia pulled away from his rivals in the last seven kilometres of the 35th edition of de NN Rotterdam Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race, to win in 2:06:46 on Sunday (12).But Kuma&rsquo;s maiden marathon win was tinged with disappointment as he was aiming for an improvement on his best of 2:05:56, set when he finished third at the Berlin Marathon last September.&ldquo;The wind was really too strong,&rdquo; said Kuma.Kenya&rsquo;s Mark Kiptoo finished second in 2:07:20 and his compatriot Bernard Koech, who did a lot of work in the second part of the race, was third in 2:08:02. The first half of the race was super-quick. After passing 10km in 29:03 and continuing to rocket around the Dutch port city, at 15km the race director Eric Brommert asked the pacemakers to slow down a little bit. Nevertheless, pacemakers Edwin Kiptoo, Vincent Rono and Nicholas Kipkemboi brought the leading group to the half marathon point in a time of 1:02:04, with 10 athletes behind them and a sub-2:05 time clearly on the cards. Just before the leaders had to cross the Erasmus Bridge again at 25km, two of the pacemakers finished their job but also one of the favourites, Jonathan Maiyo, dropped out. A few minutes later, another well-known runner, James Kwambai, couldn&rsquo;t follow the pace of the leaders any more and a little later also had to drop out.At 30km, when the last pacemaker was out of the race, two Kenyans and three Ethiopians were still in the leading group: Koech, Kuma, Kiptoo, Tebalu Zuwade and Abayleh Ayele. Koech continued to lead the way, with the others seemingly happy just trying to follow his pace. Zuwade was the first &lsquo;victim&rsquo; and then Ayele as Koech pushed on, although the pace had progressively slowed down as the runners faced into the teeth of the wind.After going around the Kralingse Plas, the lake and park where the Rotterdam Marathon has its roots, Kuma accelerated, and Koech and Kiptoo couldn&rsquo;t answer this attack. <div class="quote">&ldquo;I was waiting for the more experienced runners to make a move,&rdquo; said Kuma after the third marathon of his career. "I did come here for a personal best, but when the pace slowed down, I decided to try to win the race.&rdquo;</div>&ldquo;It was a great race for us. The support of the crowd was fabulous,&rdquo; said Kiptoo. &ldquo;But next time, we should help each other more to get a better time. There wasn&rsquo;t enough cooperation.&rdquo;&ldquo;I tried to push several times (after the halfway point), but nobody was helping,&rdquo; added Koech. &ldquo;At the end, the strong wind in the last seven kilometres was too much for me.&rdquo;Abdi Nageeye was the fastest in the race for the Dutch national title. He finished ninth overall in 2:12:32. In the women&rsquo;s race, a leading group of four quickly established themselves at the front: Japan&rsquo;s Asami Kato, Ethiopia&rsquo;s Marta Tigabea, Peru&rsquo;s Gladys Tejeda and Kenya&rsquo;s Bornes Kitur. At the halfway point, Kato and Tigabea were still in the lead with 1:12:03 on the clock while Tejeda and Kitur were starting to slip back.Kato forged ahead at about 27km and left Tigabea behind, finishing almost two minutes clear of her nearest challenger in 2:26:30. Tejeda ran a tactically astute race to come through well for second place in a personal best of 2:28:12 while Krista Duchene from Canada was third in 2:29:38."It was a good race but I&rsquo;m a bit disappointed with this time,&rdquo; said Kato, despite improving her own best by more than two minutes.Miranda Boonstra won the Dutch women&rsquo;s title in 2:32:13.The 15,000 runners in the Rotterdam Marathon started the race at a temperature of 12C, which climbed up to 14C while the elite runners were on the road. But the strong breeze, from a south-westerly direction, often reached four metres-per-second.Cors van den Brink for the IAAF

Abera Kuma from Ethiopia pulled away from his rivals in the last seven kilometres of the 35th edition of de NN Rotterdam Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race, to win in 2:06:46 on Sunday (12).

Kuma gets maiden marathon win in windy Rotterdam 

Six years after narrowly missing victory in an exciting sprint finish, James Kwambai returns to the NN Rotterdam Marathon on Sunday (12) for a second chance to win at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race.Kwambai and Duncan Kibet both crossed the line in 2:04:27 in 2009, but Kibet was awarded the win after coming from behind in the closing stages. At the time, their clocking in Rotterdam was a Kenyan record. It still stands as the course record, but it could come under threat in the 35th edition of the race this weekend.&ldquo;It was a long time ago,&rdquo; said Kwambai about missing the victory in 2009 by just 0.6. &ldquo;Since then I&rsquo;ve learned so many things and I&rsquo;m a much more experienced athlete now.&rdquo;His performance on that day remains his PB. &ldquo;I&rsquo;ve run a lot of other marathons, but I know the course here very well, as I was the pacemaker in 2005 and 2006,&rdquo; added the 32-year-old Kenyan. &ldquo;So when I was looking for another place where I could run 2:04, I decided to come to Rotterdam.&rdquo;Kwambai showed in Seoul that he has what it takes to win big races, having won the marathon there three times between 2011 and 2013. He has run faster than 2:07 on five occasions and has also won in Beijing and Brescia. &ldquo;I&rsquo;m capable of doing what I need to do,&rdquo; he added at the pre-event press conference. &ldquo;So I don&rsquo;t feel any pressure for Sunday.&rdquo;Like Kwambai, 27-year-old Kenyan Bernard Koech knows how it feels to finish second in Rotterdam.Last year, under difficult circumstances, Eliud Kipchoge won in 2:05:00 and Koech finished runner-up in 2:06:08. It was his second-fastest performance to date after the 2:04:53 PB he set on his debut at the distance in Dubai in 2013.After his second-place finish in Amsterdam, Koech went on to finish fifth in Chicago in 2:08:30. &ldquo;But that wasn&rsquo;t a good race for me,&rdquo; said Koech. &ldquo;At the end, I felt stitches in my stomach and I couldn&rsquo;t run as fast as I wanted.&rdquo;Koech has been training with 2011 London Marathon champion Emmanuel Mutai and 2014 Amsterdam Marathon champion Bernard Kipyego to prepare for his second marathon in Rotterdam.&ldquo;I know that I cannot rule anybody out, but I also know that I&rsquo;m better than last year,&rdquo; said Koech, who warmed up for the race with a third-place finish at the Marugame Half Marathon in Japan, running 1:00:09. &ldquo;With a few good pacemakers, we can make it a good race here.&rdquo;Like his fellow sub-2:05 Kenyans, Jonathan Maiyo has competed in Rotterdam before, making his marathon debut in the Dutch city in 2010. He set his PB of 2:04:56 when finishing fourth in Dubai three years ago, and he finished second in Eindhoven last October in 2:06:47.In preparation for Rotterdam, he finished third at the RAK Half Marathon in February in 1:00:07. &ldquo;That was a strong half marathon for me and I&rsquo;m feeling goood,&rdquo; he said, looking forward to the race on Sunday. &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t have many problems during my preparations and I think I can run 2:04 again. I have been training with Abel Kirui (the two-time world champion), who will start in Boston, and we both run at the same pace on our long runs.&rdquo;Aside from the leading Kenyan trio, there are several other runners with promising PBs, including Ethiopia&rsquo;s 2011 world bronze medallist Feyisa Lilesa (2:04:52), former world 5000m and 10,000m finalist Abera Kuma (2:05:56) and Megersa Bacha (2:06:56), as well as Kenya&rsquo;s 2009 Amsterdam winner Gilbert Yego (2:06:18) and 2012 African 5000m champion Mark Kiptoo (2:06:16).Race director Eric Brommert is expecting a large group of runners in the leading pack at the beginning of the race.&ldquo;We have made two changes that will help us to improve the course record,&rdquo; said Brommert. &ldquo;The start will be at 10am, half an hour earlier than in the past. There will be less wind and better temperatures for the top field at that time of the day. On Sunday it will be 12-14C.&ldquo;We have also made some improvements to the course. We have fewer curves than in previous years. The only problem could be the wind in the first 10 kilometres. That&rsquo;s why we want to run a bit conservative, hoping for 1:02:30 at halfway and then a negative split. That should lead us to another finishing time faster than 2:05.&rdquo;The race doubles up as the Dutch Championships. Michel Butter is the fastest Dutch runner in the field with his PB of 2:09:58, but he is playing down his chances as he comes back from a long period of physical problems. Butter dropped out of the World Championships marathon in Moscow in 2013 with a hip injury.&ldquo;Last year I wanted to return in time for the European Championships in Zurich, but I had to conclude that I needed more time to build up for a complete marathon,&rdquo; said Butter &ldquo;I&rsquo;m still not at the level where I want to be, but I need to run another marathon to regain my inspiration.&rdquo;Abdi Nageeye will be the main contender for the national title. He made his marathon debut last year in Enschede with 2:11:33, and based on his recent 1:02:40 half-marathon PB, he looks set to run faster than 2:10.In the women&rsquo;s field, Miranda Boonstra from the Netherlands has the fastest PB with her 2:27:32 clocking in Rotterdam three years ago, but the 42-year-old hasn&rsquo;t run faster than 2:31 since 2012.Canada&rsquo;s Krista Duchene finished three places behind Boonstra in Rotterdam in 2012, but then went on to improve her PB to 2:28:32 in Toronto two years ago. This will be her first marathon since then.Asami Kato has a slower PB than Boonstra and Duchene, but is more than a decade younger and has improved with each of her marathons to date. Her most recent one was a victory in Brisbane last year, clocking 2:28:51.Cors van den Brink for the IAAF

Six years after narrowly missing victory in an exciting sprint finish, James Kwambai returns to the NN Rotterdam Marathon on Sunday (12) for a second chance to win at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race.

Kwambai looking for redemption in Rotterdam

Bernard Koech crossed the finish-line in second place at last year&rsquo;s NN Marathon Rotterdam. On 12 April he will be back at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race in the hope of improving on that performance.In his debut at the distance, Koech clocked 2:04:53 to finish fifth in Dubai in 2013. A year later, he finished second to fellow Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge in Rotterdam in 2:06:08.Koech is now set to return to the Dutch city, seeking his first win on what is widely regarded as a fast course.The 27-year-old recently finished third at the Marugame Half Marathon in 1:00:09, but his PB of 58:41 makes him the third-fastest man in history at that distance.In Rotterdam next month, Koech will be up against Kenyan compatriots Eliud Kiptanui, Mark Kipoo and Gilbet Yegon, as well as Ethiopia&rsquo;s Megersa Bacha.Kiptanui ran his best time in 2010 in Prague, where he won in 2:05:39 in what was his debut at the classic distance. One year later, he finished sixth at the IAAF World Championships in Daegu.At 38, Kiptoo is still going strong. He won the Frankfurt Marathon last year, but set his PB of 2:06:16 when finishing second at the 2013 edition of the race.Yegon won the 2009 Amsterdam Marathon in 2:06:18. He came within a minute of that time when finishing third behind Kiptoo in Frankfurt last year in 2:07:08.Bacha is another consistent performer. The 30-year-old has contested four marathons to date, finishing no lower than fourth in all of them. He set his PB of 2:06:56 in Paris two years ago.Organisers for the IAAF

Bernard Koech crossed the finish-line in second place at last year’s NN Marathon Rotterdam. On 12 April he will be back at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race in the hope of improving on that performance.

Koech looks to go one better in Rotterdam

Paul Kuira, a Kenyan based in Japan, out-kicked New Zealand&rsquo;s Zane Robertson in the final 20 metres on the track to win the 69th edition of Kawaga Marugame International Half Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race, in a course record 59:47 on Sunday (1). Robertson was also credited with the same time 59:47, both men being inside the former course record of 59:48 by Kenya&rsquo;s Mekubo Mogusu from 2007. It was also the fastest half marathon of 2015 so far.The lead pack in Marugame covered the first 5km in 14:14, then sped up to cover the next 5km in 13:56. By 10km, reached in 28:10, the lead pack still consisted of nine runners: Kuira, Robertson, Bernard Koech, Benjamin Ngandu, Juan Luis Barrios, Jacob Wanjuki, Masato Kikuchi, Keita Shitara, and Ken Yokote. The pace often slackens after the halfway point in Marugame but the leaders covered the next 5km in 14:07 as Kuira, Robertson, and the Kenyan pair of Koech and Ngandu passed 15km together in 42:17.&nbsp; Ngandu surged briefly but the others quickly covered his move, then Kuira moved ahead and Robertson was able to stay with him.Coming into the stadium, Robertson took the lead. Kuira not only stayed close but, with the finishing line in sight, changed gear to win by fractions of a second.&nbsp; Kuira and Robertson became the 116th and 117th runners, respectively, to crack 60 minutes for the half marathon, including non-record eligible courses.The last non-African to crack 60 minutes was Marilson dos Santos in 2007. Robertson&rsquo;s time was also a New Zealand record as well as an Oceania record. It was a half marathon debut for both Kuira and Robertson. The performances of both men certainly caught everyone by surprise considering their background on the track.<h3>Debut delight </h3> Kuira&rsquo;s 10,000m personal best, recorded in 2014 is a respectable 27:40.43 while Robertson has a 5000m best of 13:13.83. His best performances are a third-place finish in the 2014 Commonwealth Games 5000m and second place over the same distance at the 2014 Continental Cup.&nbsp; Koech finished third on Sunday with 1:00:09 and Ngandu was fourth with 1:00:20, the latter improving his personal best by 46 seconds. Barrios, from Mexico, finished fifth with 1:00:46 and also improved his personal best. Masato Kikuchi, in seventh place with 1:00:57, was the first Japanese runner home. &nbsp;Eloise Wellings of Australia won the women&rsquo;s race convincingly with 1:10:41. She was also a half marathon debutante.&nbsp; After passing 5km in the pack in 16:44, 10km was passed in 32:57 and only Japan&rsquo;s Kaho Tanaka was with her. By 15km, reached in 49:47, Wellings was alone in front, and won by 18 seconds. Mao Kiyota came through for second in 1:10:59, nearly two minutes faster than her previous best. Yuko Mizuguchi was third with 1:11:03, while the 2014 champion Eri Makikawa was fourth with 1:11:04. Tanaka drifted back to sixth while USA&rsquo;s Shalane Flanagan was, unfortunately, a late non-starter. Ken Nakamura for the IAAF

Paul Kuira, a Kenyan based in Japan, out-kicked New Zealand’s Zane Robertson in the final 20 metres on the track to win the 69th edition of Kawaga Marugame International Half Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race, in a course record 59:47 on Sunday (1). 

Course record for Kuira at Marugame Half Marathon

Four runners who have gone under the elite bench mark of one hour, including the defending champion Martin Mathathi will be on the start line of the 69th edition of Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race on Sunday (1).Mathathi won the last year&rsquo;s race with 1:00:11, the Kenya&rsquo;s fastest half marathon since 2011 when recorded his personal best of 58:56 at the Great North Run in the north of England. However, the fastest half marathon runner in the quality field is Bernard Koech, who recorded 58:41 in the 2013 San Diego Half Marathon. However, the San Diego is downhill and point-to-point in nature so his fastest half marathon on a standard course is 59:10 at the 2012 Lille Half Marathon. Koech has run total of five half marathons under 60 minutes. The other sub-60 men are Eritrea&rsquo;s Samuel Tsegay and Tanzania&rsquo;s Fabiano Joseph. Tsegay recorded his best when he finished second with 59:21 at the 2014 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships. Joseph, 2005 world half marathon champion recorded his best of 59:56 back in and may not be in the same form as the others. Other contenders will be a contingent of Kenyans living in Japan: Paul Kuira, Edward Waweru, Jacob Wanjuki, Benjamin Gandu, and Enoch Omwamba. The battle for the top Japanese runner is likely to be between Masato Kikuchi, Keita Shitara, his twin brother Yuta Shitara, and Akinobu Murasawa. Kikuchi was 18th in the 2014 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships and has a half marathon best of 1:01:17 from 2014, while the Shitara brothers have half marathon best of 1:01:45 (Keita) and 1:01:48 (Yuta) from 2012. The Shitara brothers and Murasawa have also run under 28 minutes for 10,000m on the track.<h3>Flanagan the favourite </h3> On the women&rsquo;s side, Shalane Flanagan, the 2008 Olympic Games bronze medallist is the top name. The American has half marathon best of 1:08:31 from 2013. Although Flanagan is a prohibitive favourite, Ethiopia&rsquo;s Ehitu Kiros has the half marathon best of 1:09:38 and may be able to challenge Flanagan.&nbsp; Australia&rsquo;s Eloise Wellings, who has the 10,000m best of 31:41.31, is making the half marathon debut and it will be interesting to see whether she can also excel at the half marathon distance. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The fastest Japanese woman in the field is Hanae Tanaka, who has the half marathon best of 1:09:18 from 2013 but there are five other domestic runners who have run under 71 minutes.Eri Hayakawa has a half marathon best of 1:10:13 from 2013, Misato Horie a best of 1:10:26 from 2013, Eri Makikawa ran 1:10:27 to win at the 2014 Marugame Half Marathon, Rui Aoyama has a the best of 1:10:28 from 2013 and Azusa Nojiri completes the list with a best of 1:10:53. Several runners, such as Nojiri, will be using the Marugame Half Marathon as a tune-up race for Tokyo Marathon next month. &nbsp;On the men&rsquo;s side, Arata Fujiwara has the half marathon best of 1:01:34, a marathon best of 2:07:48, and is among the invited runners for the Tokyo Marathon.&nbsp; The course record in Marugame is 59:48 by Kenya&rsquo;s Mekubo Mogusu in 2007 and possibly could be broken if the weather and pace is right, while the women&rsquo;s course record is 1:07:26 by Japan&rsquo;s Kayoko Fukushi in 2006. Ken Nakamura for the IAAF

Four runners who have gone under the elite bench mark of one hour, including the defending champion Martin Mathathi will be on the start line of the 69th edition of Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon, an IAAF Silver Label Road Race on Sunday (1).

Course record under threat at the Kagawa Marugame Half Marathon 

Kenya&rsquo;s Martin Mathathi and Japan&rsquo;s Eri Makikawa will line up at the Kagawa Marugame International Half Marathon on 1 February to defend their titles at the IAAF Silver Label Road Race.But their task won&rsquo;t be an easy one. Mathathi will be up against Bernard Koech, the fastest man of 2013 with his 58:41 clocking, while Makikawa will take on USA&rsquo;s Shalane Flanagan, the 2008 Olympic and 2011 World Cross bronze medallist.Mathathi was just 23 seconds shy of his PB when he triumphed in Marugame last year in 1:00:11, crossing the line 39 seconds ahead of his nearest challenger. Makikawa enjoyed a similarly comfortable victory in the women&rsquo;s race, clocking a PB of 1:00:27 in the process.In his most recent race, Mathathi finished a distant 21st at the Fukuoka Marathon, but the 2007 world 10,000m bronze medallist will need to be back at his best to challenge the likes of Koech.The 26-year-old Kenyan has broken the 60-minute barrier on five occasions, including last year when running 59:46 in Ras al-Khaimah. Later in 2014 he clocked a world-leading 45:12 when winning over 10 miles in Tilburg.Also in the field are Eritrea&rsquo;s world half-marathon silver medallist Samuel Tsegaye, former world half-marathon champion Fabiano Joseph of Tanzania, and Olympic 5000m finalist Juan Luis Barrios of Mexico. Meanwhile, Commonwealth 5000m bronze medallist Zane Robertson will be making his half-marathon debut.The best Japanese runners in the field include the likes of last year&rsquo;s fifth-place finisher Masato Kikuchi, 2012 Olympic marathon representative Arata Fujiwara, and 21-year-old Daichi Kamino, who recently earned himself the nickname of &lsquo;Mountain God&rsquo; after recording the best ever time on the uphill stage of the Hakone Ekiden.In a high-quality women&rsquo;s field, defending champion Makikawa is just the ninth fastest.Flanagan has the best PB with her 1:08:31 clocking from New Orleans in 2013. Following a 2014 season in which she ran 2:22:02 in Boston and 2:21:14 in Berlin, the 33-year-old is now looking for a fast time over half the distance in what will be her first road race in Asia.Ethiopia&rsquo;s Ehitu Kiros will also be contesting her first race on Japanese soil. The 27-year-old had a low-key season in 2014, but she hopes to recapture the kind of form that took her to PBs of 1:09:38 and 2:23:39 in 2013.Former World University Games silver medallist Hanae Tanaka is the fastest Japanese woman in the field. Competing in just her third race over 13.1 miles, she will be aiming to improve on her best of 1:09:18.Other notable athletes in the field include Yokohama Marathon runner-up Azusa Nojiri and Australia&rsquo;s Olympic 10,000m finalist Eloise Wellings, who will be making her half-marathon debut.This will be the 67th edition of the Marugame race, but just the 19th year in which it has been held over the half-marathon distance. It was a marathon for the first 13 editions before being reduced to a 35km race in 1961 and then a 20km event in 1971.The course records currently belong to Mekubo Mogusu (59:48) and Kayoko Fukushi (1:07:26). Mogusu remains the only man to have run faster than 60 minutes on the course, while Fukushi is one of three women to have broken the 68-minute barrier in Marugame.IAAF<h3>Elite fields (with PBs)</h3> Men Bernard Koech (KEN) 58:41 Samuel Tsegaye (ERI) 59:21 Martin Mathathi (KEN) 59:48 Fabiano Joseph (TAN) 59:56 Jacob Wanjuki (KEN) 1:00:32 Masato Kikuchi (JPN) 1:01:17 Juan Luis Barrios (MEX) 1:01:21 Arata Fujiwara (JPN) 1:01:34 Keita Shitara (JPN) 1:01:45 Shogo Nakamura (JPN) 1:01:57 Edward Waweru (KEN) 1:02:08 Kenta Iinuma (JPN) 1:02:09 Yoshihiro Wakamatsu (JPN) 1:02:17 Keisuke Tanaka (JPN) 1:02:38 Shin-ichiro Tai (JPN) 1:02:54 Natsuo Terada (JPN) 1:02:37 Daichi Kamino (JPN) 1:02:42 Yohei Nishiyama (JPN) 1:02:38 Ser-Od Bat-Ochir (MGL) 1:03:32 Zane Robertson (NZL) debut Akinobu Murasawa (JPN) debut Paul Kuira (KEN) debutWomen Shalane Flanagan (USA) 1:08:31 Hanae Tanaka (JPN) 1:09:18 Ehitu Kiros (ETH) 1:09:38 Sayo Nomura (JPN) 1:10:03 Madoka Ogi (JPN) 1:10:11 Eri Hayakawa (JPN) 1:10:13 Zivile Balciunaite (LTU) 1:10:23 Misato Horie (JPN) 1:10:26 Eri Makikawa (JPN) 1:10:27 Rui Aoyama (JPN) 1:10:28 Hiroko Shoi (JPN) 1:10:48 Azusa Nojiri (JPN) 1:10:53 Aki Otagiri (JPN) 1:11:43 Yoko Aizu (JPN) 1:12:18 Yuko Mizuguchi (JPN) 1:13:27 Hitomi Nakamura (JPN) 1:13:50 Eloise Wellings (AUS) debut Honoka Yuzawa (JPN) debut

Kenya’s Martin Mathathi and Japan’s Eri Makikawa will line up at the Kagawa Marugame International Half Marathon on 1 February to defend their titles at the IAAF Silver Label Road Race.

Mathathi and Makikawa will defend Marugame titles

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon organisers are talking about course records – or better yet, a men’s world record – and, to fulfil those lofty ambitions, the IAAF Gold Label Road Race has signed up seven men with personal bests of 2:05 or better and five women who have or could dip under the 2:20 mark to be on the start line on Sunday (12).Looking to break Dennis Kimetto’s 2:03:45 course record set last year, or his still-warm 2:02:57 world record, are Kenenisa Bekele, Eliud Kipchoge, Tadese Tola, Feyisa Lilesa, Bernard Koech, Sammy Kitwara and Dickson Chumba. The most decorated of the contenders is Bekele, the three-time Olympic gold medallist and current 5000m and 10,000m world record-holder.The Ethiopian made his highly anticipated transition from track to roads at this year’s Paris Marathon in April, winning in a course record time of 2:05:03. When the racing breaks out on Chicago’s historically fast course, the result of Bekele’s ramped-up long runs may become devastatingly clear.“I might have over-trained for Paris," he said at Friday's press conference. "Chicago I did a little bit of different training. I got experience from Paris so that for this race I will be better than I was in Paris.“Track and the marathon are very different. The marathon is a race by itself; it doesn’t matter about anything else, and it doesn’t matter if there is a strong competitor there or not. The only record I have left to break is the marathon, if I can do it, I can do it. If not, this is my second marathon. Of course I am happy if I do though.” Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge, also a fairly recent track-to-road convert, has three impressive marathons under his belt&nbsp;– between 2:05:30 and 2:04:05&nbsp;– and the fastest personal best of the field. Though Bekele emerged on top more often in their many track duels, Kipchoge has so far been successful in translating his sub-12:50 5000m speed to the 42km distance and might be considered the slight favourite in a direct head-to-head on the road. "I believe in myself, I think on Sunday I am not going to compete with Kenenisa," said Kipchoge. "I will run my own race but I believe I have more experience because it is my fourth one and his second. I am in great condition to go under my personal best of 2:04:05 on Sunday." Two recent entries, Ethiopians Tadese Tola (a best of 2:04:49) and Feyisa Lilesa (2:04:52), guarantee to add to the impressive depth of the Chicago elite field. Tola has a run two good marathons this year – finishing second in Tokyo in 2:05:57 in February and then winning the Warsaw Marathon in 2:06:54 just two months later&nbsp;– but has apparently taken time since then to train hard, so he could be a real threat. Can Lilesa, Koech or Chumba cause an upset? Lilesa was a part of the dream field at the London Marathon in April and went with the suicidal pace but finished in 2:08:26. However, his best was clocked in Chicago and with prudent pacing, his talent may shine again.Kenya’s Bernard Koech bested his training partner, Kipchoge, in the 2013 Rock ‘N’ Roll San Diego half marathon in 58:41, the fourth-fastest clocking in history. With careful pacing and company throughout the 42km, an improvement on his 2:04:53 personal best seems certainly possible. Road specialist Sammy Kitwara has course knowledge on his side; this will be his third appearance in Chicago and his best at the marathon was set at the 2013 Chicago Marathon with 2:05:16.A prolific marathoner, Kenyan Dickson Chumba is somewhat inconsistent but has run faster than 2:06 twice since 2012, most recently winning the Tokyo Marathon in February in a course record time of 2:05:42.As leaders target the white-hot course record, the chasing pack will be ready to eat up the victims of a fast pace. Leading a closely matched seven-man Japanese contingent is Koji Kobayashi (2:08:51), with Bobby Curtis (2:13:24) the fastest seed of 13 elite US runners. Among those, Christo Landry’s recent US record 25km (1:14:18) suggests he might be ready for a breakthrough marathon performance.Debut US marathon runner Matt Llano hopes to build on his 1:01:47 half marathon, set in January 2014, in his debut race over the classic distance. Following in the footsteps of Ndereba and RadcliffeTwo of the four world record performances on the Chicago Marathon course were set by women. In 2001, Kenya’s Catherine Ndereba lowered the then world mark to 2:18:47, which was smashed the following year by Britain’s Paula Radcliffe, who clocked a stunning 2:17:18. Still the course record, Radcliffe’s time might appear unassailable, but this year’s field has at least three women who could make a legitimate run at it. Defending champion Rita Jeptoo has course knowledge and the momentum of two recent sub-2:20 performances to her credit: 2:19:57 last year in Chicago and a course record of 2:18:57 at the Boston Marathon this past April. The 33-year-old Kenyan will be pushed by her training partner, Jemima Sumgong, whose marathon has improved by eight minutes since 2011. In December 2011, Sumgong won the Castellon Marathon in 2:28:32, again taking the top spot at the Rotterdam Marathon in 2013 in 2:23:27. In the autumn, she ran with Jeptoo in Chicago until 35km, posting a huge personal best of 2:20:27. The dangerous Florence Kiplagat is the world half marathon record-holder, having crushed the previous record earlier this year with 1:05:12. Two months later, she came a close second at the London Marathon in 2:20:24 so her stated goal of improving on her 2:19:44 best seems rather conservative. Ethiopia’s Mare Dibaba’s late entry may scuttle a Kenyan clean sweep of the podium. This past January, the 24-year-old won the Xiamen International Marathon in 2:21:36, running alone from start to finish. She feels Chicago’s competitive field and fast course is the ticket to improving her 2:19:52 personal best, set in Dubai in 2012.Though she’s only 20 years old, Ethiopian Birhane Dibaba has a best of 2:22:30 set this past February in Tokyo. Credibly, she’s announced dual intentions of going for the win and running 2:20 or faster.Leading a deep field of US women, Amy Hastings hopes to take up where she left off two years and several injuries ago. Her recent win at the 2014 Peachtree 10K (32:16) and second place at the US 20km Championships (1:08:54) indicate she’s back to the form that saw her debut in an impressive 2:27:03.&nbsp; US Olympian Lisa Uhl was persuaded to move up to the marathon by watching last year’s exciting race in Chicago and she appears ready to apply her 31:12.80 10,000m speed in her marathon debut.&nbsp; Sarah Barker for the IAAF

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon organisers are talking about course records – or better yet, a men’s world record – and, to fulfil those lofty ambitions, the IAAF Gold Label Road Race has signed up seven men with personal bests of 2:05 or better and five women who have or could dip under the 2:20 mark to be on the start line on Sunday (12).

What does Chicago have in store after Kimetto's world record?

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon’s 2014 elite competition will feature five men with personal bests of 2:05 or faster, and four women with the potential to break the tape on Columbus Drive under 2:20, organisers of the IAAF Gold Label Road Race announced on Thursday (4). Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele (best of 2:05:04) and Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge (2:04:05) will rekindle their historic track rivalry on the road as both men chase records. Bekele and Kipchoge began their competition on the start line more than a decade ago at the 2003 IAAF World Championships in the 5000m and while the two men have gone head-to-head more than a dozen times in their careers, their biggest challenge on race day will be the course record, 2:03:45, set last year by Kenya's Dennis Kimetto. Only five men in history have broken 2:04 on record-eligible courses. Bekele transitioned to the marathon this year after an illustrious track and cross-country career that produced four world records. Similar to Bekele, Kipchoge made the transition from the track to the roads in 2012, and won his marathon debut at the 2013 Hamburg Marathon in a course record 2:05:30. He started his 2014 campaign with a win at the Rotterdam Marathon, clocking an even 2:05:00 despite windy conditions and uneven pacing."I am looking forward to coming to Chicago and competing with Kenenisa on the road this time," said Kipchoge. "I chose Chicago because it has a fast course and I want to better my personal best. It's also one of the best races in the world,” said Kipchoge.Far from a two-person race, the 2014 field includes several men with the raw talent and right speed to join the quest for a course record. Kenya's Sammy Kitwara returns to Chicago for a third time and brings something unique to this year's field: experience on Chicago's famously fast and flat course. Kitwara finished fourth in his Chicago, and marathon, debut in 2012 when he ran 2:05:54. His speed over the half marathon distance – he holds the fifth fastest men's time in history with 58:48&nbsp;– ranks him high among the list of potential winners. Kenya's Bernard Koech does not have the longest resume in the field, but he has the second-fastest marathon best of 2:04:53, from his marathon debut in Dubai in 2013.Like Kitwara, Koech has incredible half marathon speed. At the 2013 Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Half Marathon, he produced the fastest half marathon time run on US soil, beating Kipchoge and running 58:41.Koji Kobayashi leads a strong contingent of Japanese runners. He started his year with a personal best at the Tokyo Marathon, finishing ninth in 2:08:51. Ecuador's Bayron Piedra rounds out the international field. The two-time Pan-American Games silver medallist has little experience over long distances, but enough speed over 5000m and 10,000m to clock a fast time. The US charge will be led by former track star-turned-distance runner Bobby Curtis, who has a best of 2:13:24.Jeptoo looking for sub-2:20 hat trickIn the women's race, Kenya’s 2013 Chicago champion Rita Jeptoo (best of 2:18:57) will face her compatriots Kenya's Florence Kiplagat (2:19:44) and Jemima Sumgong (2:20:48), as well as a relative newcomer, Ethiopia's Birhane Dibaba (2:22:30).Jeptoo ran her first career sub-2:20 in last year's race, the fifth fastest time in Chicago Marathon history, and she returns after smashing the Boston Marathon course record in April, running 2:18:57. If Jeptoo cracks the 2:20 barrier for a third time, she will become just the third woman in history to run under 2:20 three times in a career. Sumgong, the 2013 Rotterdam Marathon champion, stayed with Jeptoo through to 35km during last year's duel and came home with a second-place finish and a personal best of 2:20:48.Out to prevent a repeat one-two finish by Jeptoo and Sumgong is half marathon world record-holder Kiplagat, the 2011 and 2013 Berlin Marathon champion. Kiplagat pulled out of the 2012 Chicago Marathon with an injury, and she has made no secret of coming to Chicago this autumn to improve her 2:19:44 personal best from the 2011 Berlin Marathon."It is no retreat and no surrender for me; it's a do-or-die game‎ and I will give all my best to succeed and make the 12th of October a great day!" commented Kiplagat.Dibaba, 20, stole the show at the 2014 Suja Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Half Marathon when she outsprinted Jeptoo with 50 metres to go, winning in 1:09:34. Although Dibaba is the youngest competitor in the elite field, she has run six marathons. She ran her first marathon at age 18, and she has finished her past three marathons in 2:23 or faster.Amy Hastings leads a talented field of US women. The ninth fastest US woman over the marathon distance and the fifth fastest over 10,000m, Hastings made her marathon debut in 2011 in convincing fashion, finishing second in the Los Angeles Marathon in 2:27:03.Joining Hastings will be top US finisher at the 2013 Chicago Marathon, Clara Santucci (2:29:54). London 2012 Olympic Games participant Lisa Uhl, the seventh-fastest US woman over 10,000m, will also make her marathon debut."This year's field is built for speed and record-breaking performances," said Bank of America Chicago Marathon executive race director Carey Pinkowski.&nbsp;"We have big expectations due to this group of men and women who know how to race, dig deep and win."Organisers for the IAAF

The Bank of America Chicago Marathon’s 2014 elite competition will feature five men with personal bests of 2:05 or faster, and four women with the potential to break the tape on Columbus Drive under 2:20, organisers of the IAAF Gold Label Road Race announced on Thursday (4).


Jeptoo, Bekele and Kipchoge head 2014 Chicago Marathon elite fields

Kenyan trio Eliud Kipchoge, Bernard Koech and Bernard Kipyego have been working together for several months in their local training location of Kaptagat in a bid to make the 2014 ABN AMRO Rotterdam Marathon a race to remember on Sunday (13).Collectively, they promised to work together, hopefully for between 35 or 38 kilometres into the race, with the target of producing some impressive performances at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race.&nbsp; “This marathon is about fast times for all of us,” Kipchoge told the media at the press conference on Thursday. “Rotterdam has a fast course and that’s the reason why I choose this race for my third marathon.”The 29-year-old former 5000m World Championships gold medallist on the track runner came to Rotterdam in February, straight just after winning the Barcelona half marathon in 1:00.52 and the race organisers of the famous Dutch race drove him around the course. “I now know every kilometre of it, from the start till the finish, and it’s very flat and fast,” he added.Kipchoge is clearly the man to beat on Sunday in the 34th edition of the famous race, which has seen three world records in the past.He won the 2013 Hamburg Marathon on his debut in 2:05:00, one of the fastest ever first-time outings, and then was a surprising second in the Berlin Marathon last September, where Wilson Kipsang broke the world record with a time of 2.03.23. In only his second race over the classic distance, Kipchoge himself finished in 2.04.05 and he is currently the sixth fastest man ever on a record-legal marathon course.‘This weekend, the world record is not on my mind; that’s a goal for the future, just like running the marathon in the Olympic Games in Rio. Here in Rotterdam I want to run a personal best,” added Kipchoge.Of course, if he achieves that ambition than it would also improve on the Rotterdam course record, held jointly by his compatriots Duncan Kibet and James Kwambai who both ran 2.04.27 in 2009.Kipchoge says he is an ‘old school athlete’. After a long and successful career on the track and in cross country, he ran his first marathon in 2013, but he said his training schedule didn’t change a lot. “I do one long run every week, that’s all.” Elaborating, Kipchoge said he has runs over 30 kilometres twice a month and also 42 kilometres twice a month. “My body has adopted to the programme of my coach Patrick Sang (the two-time World Championships 3000m steeplechase silver medallist) very well and, in the last couple of months, I did exactly what I had planned.’Kipchoge is an athlete who takes a methodical view of his training and writes down a report of every training session. “At the end of the season, I want to evaluate what I’ve been doing and afterwards I can close the book and start preparing for the next race.”“The marathon is not about magic. It is all about mentality. You have to prepare very well and you have to focus, and I believe that a long experience on the track and in the cross is the best way to run a fast marathon,” commented Kipchoge.Another important element in the marathon career of Kipchoge is the cooperation with his training partners or “my friends”, as he calls them. He has been working together with Bernard Koech in recent times and they both convinced Bernard Kipyego to join them on their road to Rotterdam.Koech looking to learn from past mistakesNow 26, Koech had an impressive debut at the Dubai Marathon in January 2013, when he run 2.04.53. Last October, he was third in Amsterdam, but what was for him a disappointing 2.06.29.“I made a big mistake there. I always want to be a frontrunner, but I had to learn that in a marathon you have to be patient,” said Koech.“I was tired after 35 kilometres. On Sunday, I hope we will stay together until 35 kilometres, and then we will see who is the best from that point in the race.”After some modest success on the track, he made the switch to becoming a road warrior two years ago. “I had problems with my knee in 2012 and decided to try it on the road. Now my injuries are over.”Kipyego is the most experienced marathoner of the triop of friends and training partners. He will start in his 10th race over 42km on Sunday.His best of 2.06.29 came at the 2011 Chicago Race but with 59:10 to his name in the half marathon he would like to do better.“But a full marathon is quite different than a 21 kilometre race,” mused Kipyego. “I definitively had a lack of training mileage (in the past). Now, I’ve done more long runs and I feel I’m better prepared. I’m ready for it.”The race can also boast of three other strong runners , all with career bests under 2:06, who could challenge the&nbsp;Three Musketeers from Kaptagat.Kenya's experienced Alber Matebor, 33, has 18 marathons under his belt with his best performance of 2.05.25 coming three years ago in Frnkfurt. Since 2011, he has always finished in the top 10 of this highly competitive event.His compatriot Jafred Kipchumba, 30, knows what it takes to be a winner in The Netherlands after triumphing in the nearby Marathon Eindhoven in 2011 in what was then a course record of 2.05.48 while Ethiopia's Birhanu&nbsp;Gebru, 27, is currently enjoying an excellent streak of form. Last October, Gebru finished second in the Amsterdam Marathon in what was then his personal best of 2.06.06 and he improved on this n Dubai earlier this year when he was third in 2.05.49.In the women’s race, Abebech Afework is the clear favourite. The 23-year-old Ethiopian was second in the last year’s Rotterdam race in a personal best of 2.23.59 and will start at a pace designed to bring her to the finish line in 2.22, in her fifth marathon. She has already been a marathon winner in 2014, taking the Houston Marathon in 2.25.52 back in January.&nbsp; Rotterdam is expecting 35.000 runners to take to the streets this weekend, including the kid’s runs and an accompanying 10km race.The weather should be ideal for runners of all standards, with temperatures between 11 and 14 degrees Celsius.Cors van den Brink for the IAAF

Kenyan trio Eliud Kipchoge, Bernard Koech and Bernard Kipyego have been working together for several months in their local training location of Kaptagat in a bid to make the 2014 ABN AMRO Rotterdam Marathon a race to remember on Sunday (13).

Eliud Kipchoge looking to contune his upward marathon trajectory in Rotterdam

Eliud Kipchoge is the favourite for the ABN AMRO Rotterdam Marathon, but he will face stiff opposition at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race on Sunday 13 April as he is one of four men in the race with PBs faster than 2:06.Among them is fellow Kenyan Bernard Koech. Kipchoge’s PB of 2:04:05 makes him the sixth-fastest man ever, but training partner Koech is only 48 seconds slower, having clocked 2:04:53 on his debut in Dubai last year.Although they have never raced against each other over 26.2 miles, Koech was twice defeated Kipchoge in the half marathon, finishing 15 seconds ahead of him in Lille two years ago and then winning by almost two minutes from Kipchoge in San Diego last year, clocking 58:41.Despite some back problems, a few months later he finished third at the Amsterdam Marathon in 2:06:29.Kenya's Albert Matebor and Ethiopia’s Girmay Birhanu are the other sub-2:06 runners in the field.Matebor’s best of 2:05:25 was set three years ago when finishing third in Frankfurt. The 33-year-old is also a former winner of the Verona Marathon.Despite having a best of 2:05:49, set at this year’s Dubai Marathon, Birhanu is yet to win a marathon and so will be keen to rectify that in Rotterdam. Last year he finished in the runner-up position at the Amsterdam, Rome and Prague Marathons.Also in the field is Kenya's Bernard Kipyego. The 2009 world half-marathon silver medallist recently finished fifth at the RAK Half Marathon in 59:47. It was his fastest clocking since 2011, the year in which he set his marathon best of 2:06:29 when finishing third in Chicago.Ethiopia's Abrh Milaw has already set a marathon PB this year, clocking 2:07:46 in Dubai in January. The 26-year-old will be looking to go even faster in Rotterdam.Compatriot Deriba Robi has also been in PB form recently, winning in Marrakech at the end of January in 2:08:04. He too will hope for another strong showing, as will fellow Ethiopians Abebe Degefa and Alemayehu Abebe, both sub-2:10 runners at their best.Sammy Kitwara, who has a PB of 2:05:16 from his third-place finish in Chicago last year, will be the pace maker as the elite men set out trying to improve the course record. The mark of 2:04:27 has stood since 2009 in a memorable race where Duncan Kibet finished a fraction ahead of James Kwambai.Organisers for the IAAF

Eliud Kipchoge is the favourite for the ABN AMRO Rotterdam Marathon, but he will face stiff opposition at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race on Sunday 13 April as he is one of four men in the race with PBs faster than 2:06.