Agnes Ngetich and Alexander Mutiso won the women\u2019s and men\u2019s races despite a challenging course<\/p>\n
Kenyan runners Agnes Ngetich and Alexander Mutiso set new course records after winning the women\u2019s and men\u2019s races at the Tokyo Legacy Half Marathon in Japan on Sunday.
\nNgetich finished the 21.1km race in one hour, four minutes and 23 seconds (1:04:23), cutting three minutes off the previous women\u2019s course record. Her compatriot Tabitha Njeri Kamau came second in 1:08:28, according to the results.
\nMutiso won the men\u2019s competition in 59 minutes and 51 seconds, beating the previous course record by one second. He finished five seconds ahead of fellow Kenyan Kiprono Sitonik, who took second place.\u00a0
\nSpeaking after the race, Ngetich said she that was pleased with her victory and surprised by her finishing time. She also noted that the course had been challenging, with hills and numerous sharp turns. \u201cI didn\u2019t think I\u2019ll get that time. The course was not easy,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Mutiso said his victory had boosted his confidence ahead of his next marathon. He explained that he made his decisive move on a hilly section of the course between the 17km and 18.5km marks.
\n\u201cI feel good. I see now I am in a good position to prepare well for [my] coming marathon,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The course began and ended at Japan\u2019s National Stadium and followed roads used during the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.\u00a0
\nNgetich\u2019s victory came less than a month after she broke the women-only half marathon world record at the World Athletics Road Running Championships in Copenhagen. The 25-year-old completed that race in 1:05:15.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Kenyan breaks two-hour mark in world record London Marathon win (PHOTOS\/VIDEO)<\/p>\n
Kenyan distance runners have also recorded major victories in other international competitions this year. In April, Sebastian Sawe became the first athlete to complete an official competitive marathon in under two hours, winning the London Marathon in a world-record 1:59:30. Fellow Kenyan John Korir also won the Boston Marathon that month, setting a course record of 2:01:52.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: African athlete sets new half marathon world record<\/p>\n
The London Marathon also saw a record-breaking performance in the women\u2019s race. Ethiopia\u2019s Tigst Assefa set a new women\u2019s-only marathon world record of 2:15:50.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Agnes Ngetich and Alexander Mutiso won the women\u2019s and men\u2019s races despite a challenging course Kenyan runners Agnes Ngetich and Alexander Mutiso set new course records after winning the women\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40133,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t