Jacob Kiplimo, Hawi Feysa produce dominant wins in Chicago Marathon
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Ethiopian long-distance runner Hawi Feysa runs through the Pilsen neighborhood during the 2025 Chicago Marathon.
AFP
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CHICAGO – Jacob Kiplimo of Uganda and Ethiopia’s Hawi Feysa powered to victories at the Chicago Marathon on Oct 12, as the annual showpiece took place against a backdrop of escalating tensions in the city caused by United States President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown.
Kiplimo dominated the men’s field, breaking the tape in 2hr 2min 23sec in his second race over the distance, while Feysa enjoyed a lopsided win in the women’s race.
The half-marathon world record holder Kiplimo crossed the finish line 1min 31sec ahead of Amos Kipruto, whose Kenyan compatriot Alex Masai was third in 2:04:37.
Kiplimo, who finished second in his marathon debut in London in April in 2:02:37, broke away at the 30km mark and built a comfortable cushion in the closing stretch.
The 24-year-old peeked over his shoulder a few times towards the end of the race but had nothing to worry about, as he jogged through the final straight all by himself and sat down in sheer exhaustion after finishing in a national record.
“To come here to win the race is a big achievement for me,” he said, telling a TV reporter he was hungry to go even faster.
“I’m so happy about the results for today. I came here to make a big achievement, so I’m happy about it.”
Kiplimo also said he had not been targeting the world record over the closing stages of the race when he was effectively running alone.
He was on world record pace for much of the race. However, he slowed over the final kilometres to leave the late Kelvin Kiptum’s world mark of 2:00:35 – set in Chicago in 2023 – intact.
“I was just thinking about running a personal best, somewhere around 2hr 2min, but I’m happy about it,” Kiplimo added.
Feysa, who finished third on the podium in Tokyo in March, appeared emotional through the final stretch and fell to her knees after crossing the line in 2:14:56, while her Ethiopian compatriot Megertu Alemu was second in 2:17:18.
Tanzanian Magdalena Shauri took third place in 2:18:03.
Feysa, 26, ran the last five kilometres of the race on her own, thriving in Chicago’s pristine, sunny conditions to shave more than 2min off her personal best.
“Winning here, it’s been amazing,” she said via a translator.
“I worked really hard, trained really hard to have this victory. It’s the first time the organisers invited me here, so winning here is amazing. I’m really happy.”
The famously flat course in Chicago is notorious for producing speedy times, with the late Kiptum breaking the men’s record and his fellow Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich breaking the women's mark in 2:09:56 in 2024.
Chepngetich was provisionally suspended in July for the presence and use of a prohibited substance.
While there were no world records this time, Conner Mantz gave the home fans a thrill as he broke Khalid Khannouchi’s 23-year-old US record, finishing fourth overall in 2:04:43. Khannouchi set the previous American mark of 2:05:38 in London.
Switzerland’s Marcel Hug obliterated the men’s wheelchair race in 1:23:20, finishing more than 4min ahead of Britain’s David Weir, while American Susannah Scaroni won on the women’s side in 1:38:14, besting Swiss rival Manuela Schar by 49sec.
The race – one of the world’s major marathons with an estimated 53,000 runners taking part – was taking place amid an uneasy political climate in Chicago, which has seen immigration raids throughout the Midwestern metropolis that have triggered widespread concern.
Some local Latino running clubs in the city had voiced unease about the possibility of immigration raids taking place during the race.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson had beforehand called for the city to make the race a celebration as a response to the Trump administration’s crackdown.
“I believe the best way in which we can demonstrate resistance is not bending the knee to tyranny,” he said.
“President Trump is literally undermining the economic prowess of cities like Chicago, right? So we’re encouraging everyone to get out to celebrate.”
In the event, the race passed off peacefully with no hint of the political tensions impacting the marathon. REUTERS, AFP
