Charles Mwai Kanyao and Irene Jerotich Kosgei impress at Standard Chartered Marathon: Athletics news
Kenyan athlete, Charles Mwai Kanyao secured a win after putting up an impressive show in a brilliant time of 2 hours, 14 minutes and 33 seconds, at the second edition of the Standard Chartered Marathon Singapore (SCMS) – IAAF Silver Label Road Race.
In the Women’s category, Kenyan athlete, Irene Jerotich Kosgei claimed the title, as she finished the course in a brilliant time of 2 hours, 36 minutes and 42 seconds. She was awarded with a prize money of US$50,000.
Kosgei was one minute ahead of Ethiopian athlete, Roman Gebregessesse, who finished the distance in a time of 2 hours, 37 minutes and 30 seconds, for the second spot on the podium. Kenyan runner, Magadelene Mukunzi finished the course in 2 hours, 38 minutes
and 6 seconds for the third position.
After winning the race, Kosgei said, “At the 35km I took the leap all through, in the sense that I did the same thing last year. As I am familiar with the course, I knew which routes were hard to run, and which were easy. All in all, I am very happy with
myself.”
The Men’s race of 42.195 km commenced with a fairly mixed up structure, as some competitors seemed to be rushing, while others approached with a steady pace. The battle for the top place on the podium was won by Kanyao, who crashed the field of competitive
runners, in a finishing time of 2 hours, 14 minutes and 33 seconds.
Kanyao’s compatriots, Luka Kipkemoi Chelimo and John Kelai followed him shortly. Chelimo covered the distance in a time of 2 hours, 14 minutes and 38 seconds, for the second spot, while Kelai was able to make it across the finish line with a timeline of
2 hours, 15 minutes and 45 seconds, to attain the third position on the podium.
Kanyao was honoured with US$50,000 for scoring the first place in the race. After winning the competition, he said, “It is not easy to win. I trained very hard for this race. The race was difficult but I did my best. It's my first time in Singapore and I'm
glad I came here and won the race.”
Kenyan athletes overpowered rest of the contenders and proved their prowess in the discipline. Long running distance competitions have always been the specialty of Kenyan runners, and the event, held in Singapore, was no surprise.
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