Eliud Kipchoge recorded the 18th marathon victory of his illustrious career with a convincing performance at the Melbourne Marathon.
The two-time Olympic champion wound back the clock with a convincing victory on the streets of Melbourne, stopping the clock in 2:09:10. It was his slowest ever winning time for the distance, but his first victory since the Berlin Marathon in 2023.
Widely regarded as the greatest marathoner of all-time, 41-year-old Kipchoge is on a farewell tour where he is running a marathon on every continent.
“I felt good and really enjoyed the course. Above all, I enjoyed the crowd,” Kipchoge told North South after the race.
“To win, and to get the MCG crown – coming 70 years after the Olympic Games was here in 1956 – it’s just a wonderful day.”
The Kenyan ran most of the second half of the race by himself, dropping Australian favourite, Jimmy Whelan, just after the 25km mark. The first half had been covered in a solid 64:18.
Whelan, the former pro-cyclist who was making his marathon debut after a successful transition to running, including a 61:19 half marathon PB, suffered after the 30km mark, eventually finishing fifth in 2:17:03.
Veteran Australian runner Tom Do Canto, 40, was the best of the Australians, taking second in a personal best 2:10:35. Former winner Reece Edwards was third in 2:14:33.
New Zealand’s Camille French took line honours in the women’s race in 2:28:25 after a 72:31 first half.
Sinead Diver, was second 23 seconds behind in 2:28:49. It was the fastest performance by the 49-year-old since her 2022 Australian record setting run of 2:21:34 (a mark which has since been eclipsed by Jess Stenson at 2:21:24).
“This is my fourth time running this event, and this was the best by far,” Diver told North South. “The course was great and the weather, we got really lucky today as well. The crowds were amazing and the finish [inside the MCG] is one of the best.”
Ireland’s Nichola Sheridan was third in 2:29:13 while Rebecca Lowe capped off a strong three week period, breaking 2 hours, 30 minutes for the first time with a 2:29:34 fourth place. Lowe was the top Australian female finisher in the Half Marathon at the World Road Running Championships on 20 September, in a personal best of 71:38.
The half marathon saw a gun to tape victory from Seth O’Donnell, who clocked a swift 61:20. Logan Janetzki took second place in 64:28 with Liam Cashin third in 64:48. O’Donnell went through the first 10km in 28:05 according to race splits, with Brett Robinson a clear second a minute behind, before dropping out during the second half of the race.
“It’s not rocket science really,” O’Donnell said of his tactics. “I’m just backing in my system. I want to run fast, and I want to win. There’s nothing more to it than that.”
New Zealand’s Georgia Grgec was a convincing winner in the women’s race in 69:24, more than two-and-a-half minutes clear of Tara Palm (72:07) and Donve Viljoen (73:15).
The lead two runners in each race were provided a clear running corridor by broadcast motorcycles, but other runners fared less well as they ran into a sea of marathon finishers.
