Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich is chasing history at the 2024 Bank of America Chicago Marathon as she aims for a third consecutive victory at the World Athletics Platinum Label road race.
Chepngetich, the 2019 world marathon champion, has her sights set on completing a hat-trick after winning the prestigious event in both 2021 and 2022.
Chepngetich is part of an elite field that includes some of the fastest marathon runners in the world.
She will face stiff competition from fellow Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei and Ethiopia’s Sutume Kebede, both of whom have run under 2:17, along with another six women who have posted sub-2:20 times.
Chepngetich, who set her personal best of 2:14:18 in Chicago in 2022 – the fourth-fastest time in women’s marathon history – will be looking to replicate that form.
Although she finished second in last year’s Chicago Marathon behind Sifan Hassan, clocking 2:14:18, Chepngetich’s impressive performance solidified her status as one of the top marathoners globally.
Despite a ninth-place finish at the London Marathon in April, where she ran 2:24:36, she bounced back with a strong victory at the Buenos Aires Half Marathon in August, finishing in 1:05:58.
Joyciline Jepkosgei, another top contender, has a strong marathon pedigree, having won the London Marathon in 2021 and the New York City Marathon in 2019.
She finished fourth in Chicago last year with a time of 2:17:23, and returned to form in April this year, setting a new personal best of 2:16:24 in London.
Sutume Kebede, who has the fastest time of the season, is another serious challenger. Kebede set a personal best of 2:15:55 to win the Tokyo Marathon in March, placing her eighth on the all-time list.
After finishing 15th in last year’s Chicago Marathon, she is determined to perform better this time, inspired by the legacy of her late teammate, Kelvin Kiptum, who set the world marathon record of 2:00:35 in Chicago last year.
Kiptum tragically passed away in a road accident in February, and this year’s race will honor his memory with a moment of silence.
The women’s race is stacked with talent, featuring Ethiopia’s Degitu Azimeraw, Ashete Bekere, and Hiwot Gebrekidan, all of whom have run under 2:18, as well as Kenya’s Irine Cheptai, who clocked 2:18:22 at the Hamburg Marathon in April.
Also in the mix are Keira D’Amato and Betsy Saina, the second and third fastest US women’s marathoners, respectively, both having gone under 2:20. They will be joined by fellow Americans Sara Hall and Emma Bates in a fiercely competitive field.
On the men’s side, Ethiopia’s Birhanu Legese leads the pack, boasting a personal best of 2:02:48 from the 2019 Berlin Marathon, making him the sixth-fastest man in marathon history.
Legese, a two-time Tokyo Marathon champion, will be eager to return to winning ways after a third-place finish in Rotterdam in April, where he ran 2:05:16.
His previous appearance in Chicago was in 2018, where he finished 10th, and he will be looking to improve on that performance.
Legese will face tough competition from six other men with personal bests under 2:06, including Kenya’s Amos Kipruto, Vincent Ngetich, and John Korir, making the men’s race just as fiercely contested as the women’s.
As Chepngetich sets her sights on history, the 2024 Chicago Marathon promises to deliver thrilling performances from some of the world’s best marathoners.
