As they drift into the Windy City for the Chicago Marathon, Jacob Kiplimo and Hawi Feysa are ready to embark on separate missions to defend their titles in the next major on Sunday.
Both arrive to a familiar course in a considerably warmer forecast on race day and face a strong men’s and women’s field that will likely push the pace to a final sprint in the closing stages into Grant Park.
For Kiplimo, surging to another victory in Chicago would cap a standout year, as he continued to raise his profile on the distance running stage after shattering the half marathon world record in 57:20 in Lisbon in March.
He shaved ten seconds off of Yomif Kejelcha’s record from 2024, and the mark would later be reclaimed by Kejelcha in August in Buenos Aires in 56:51.
But weeks after soaring in Lisbon, Kiplimo took third in 2:00:28 at the London Marathon while Sabastian Sawe and Yomif Kejelcha became the first athletes to officially dip under the two-hour barrier. Even with the hype of being in the same realm of marathon immortality in London, Kiplimo found himself third on the all-time list of fastest marathons and enters Chicago wanting more.
“Winning Chicago was a special moment, but defending the title means even more,” Kiplimo said in July when he revealed he would return to Chicago. “My preparation has given me a lot of confidence, and having raced this course before is a real advantage. Right now, I believe I’m capable of competing with anyone in the world, and I’m coming to Chicago with the ambition to prove it once again.”
A formidable men’s field awaits Kiplimo at the start line, with Amos Kipruto, Milkesa Mengesha, Tadese Takele and Daniel Mateiko, who round out the short list of favorites on Sunday. Kipruto finished fourth in 2026 London in 2:01:39, his personal best and inched into a tie for seventh-fastest marathon ever, while Mengesha took tenth in Boston in April in 2:05:35.
Meanwhile, Takele successfully defended his Tokyo Marathon title in March in 2:03:37 as Mateiko took fourth in the same race in 2:03:44.
The women’s race will challenge Feysa to claw back to the top podium spot in a group that includes Brigid Kosgei, Sharon Lokedi, Sutume Kebede and Megertu Alemu as the ones to watch with ten entrants bringing sub-2:18 speed into battle.
Feysa clocked a 2:14:56 in last year’s win after pulling away at the 35km point and opening a massive lead at the 40km mark and has acknowledged that this year’s race will likely come down to who can close out a hard-fought battle with less a mile remaining.
“I believe it will be even more difficult this year to repeat, but I am preparing very well and am confident I will arrive at the start line in good form,” Feysa said. “Chicago is known for being fast and fiercely competitive, so I hope to run a personal best. But the most important thing is to fight for a place on the podium.”
Lokedi makes her Chicago debut but has significant major marathon experience on her resume, after defending her Boston Marathon title in April and winning the New York Marathon in 2022.
But Kosgei kicked off the majors circuit this year with a win in Tokyo in March and heads into Sunday’s race after an eight-year absence from Chicago, which she won in 2:14:04 in 2018. Kebede and Alemu were also in Tokyo this year and took fourth and fifth, but have eyes on not letting Kosgei — or any other competitor — push past and crossing the line first.
Start times
All times Eastern
8:20 a.m. – Men’s wheelchair race
8:21 a.m. – Women’s wheelchair race
8:23 a.m. – Handcycle race
8:35 a.m. – Wave 1 (Elite and Corrals A, B, C, D, E)
9:00 a.m. – Wave 2 (Corrals F, G, H, J)
9:35 a.m. – Wave 3 (Corrals K, L, M, N)
10:30 a.m. – 27th Mile Post-Race Party
How To Watch
In Chicago, the race will be broadcast live on NBC 5, Telemundo Chicago and TeleXitos from 7 to 11 a.m. Central with streaming from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. Central on NBCChicago.com and TelemundoChicago.com, while some parts of the race will be available on NBC Chicago’s YouTube channel and on NBC Chicago’s streaming channel.
Elite Women’s Entries
Brigid Kosgei (Kenya) – 2:14:04
Hawi Feysa (Ethiopia) – 2:14:57
Sutume Kebede (Ethiopia) – 2:15:55
Megertu Alemu (Ethiopia) – 2:16:34
Brillian Kipkoech (Kenya) – 2:17:05
Sharon Lokedi (Kenya) – 2:17:22
Degitu Azimeraw (Ethiopia) – 2:17:58
Loice Chemnung (Kenya) – 2:18:24
Joan Kilimo (Kenya) – 2:18:40
Magdalyne Masai (Kenya) – 2:18:58
Fantu Worku (Ethiopia) – 2:19:08
Mary Ngugi-Cooper (Kenya) – 2:19:26
Sara Hall (USA) – 2:20:32
Yuka Akasaki (Japan) – 2:21:33
Susanna Sullivan (USA) – 2:21:56
Des Linden (USA) – 2:22:38
Isobel Batt-Doyle (Australia) – 2:22:59
Natosha Rogers (USA) – 2:23:28
Dakotah Popehn (USA) – 2:24:20
Jess Warner-Judd (Great Britain) – 2:24:45
Laura Galvan (Merxico) – debut
Emma Grace Hurley (USA) – debut
Amy-Eloise Neale (Great Britain) – debut
Elite Men’s Entries
Jacob Kiplimo (Uganda) – 2:00:28
Amos Kipruto (Kenya) – 2:01:39
Milkesa Mengesha (Ethiopia) – 2:03:17
Tadese Takele (Ethiopia) – 2:03:23
Daniel Mateiko (Kenya) – 2:03:44
Asrar Hiyrden (Ethiopia) – 2:03:59
Charles Hicks (USA) – 2:04:35
Suguru Osako (Japan) – 2:04:55
Mohamed Reda El Aaraby (Morocco) – 2:05:18
Clayton Young (USA) – 2:05:41
Sondre Moen (Norway) – 2:05:48
Vincent Mauri (USA) – 2:05:54
Yemane Haileselassie (Eritrea) – 2:06:06
Galen Rupp (USA) – 2:06:07
Akira Akasaki (Japan) – 2:06:15
Boki Diriba (Ethiopia) – 2:06:26
Hendrik Pfeiffer (Germany) – 2:06:34
Rory Linkletter (Canada) – 2:06:49
Abbabiya Simbassa (USA) – 2:06:53
Tomoki Ota (Japan) – debut
Kieran Tuntivate (Thailand) – debut
Adriaan Wildschutt (South Africa) – debut
Women’s Wheelchair
Manuela Schär (Switzerland) – 1:28:17
Tatyana McFadden (USA) – 1:31:30
Catherine Debrunner (Switzerland) – 1:34:16
Eden Rainbow Cooper (Great Britain) – 1:34:17
Jenna Fesemyer (USA) – 1:33:50
Vanessa De Souza (Brazil) – 1:40:16
Patricia Eachus (Switzerland) – 1:40:22
Hoda Elshorbagy (Egypt) – 1:47:32
Eva Houston (USA) – 1:59:49
Hannah Dederick (USA) – 2:02:23
Rachel Cleaver (USA) – 2:23:38
Men’s Wheelchair
Marcel Hug (Switzerland) – 1:15:33
Josh Cassidy (Canada) – 1:18:25
Aaron Pike (USA) – 1:20:02
JohnBoy Smith (Great Britain) – 1:20:05
Daniel Romanchuk (USA) – 1:20:37
David Weir (Great Britain) – 1:22:12
Patrick Monahan (Ireland) – 1:22:23
Miguel Jimenez Vergara (USA) – 1:22:24
Tomoki Suzuki (Japan) – 1:22:55
Sho Watanabe (Japan) – 1:24:00
Jetze Plat (Netherlands) – 1:24:28
Brian Siemann (USA) – 1:26:46
Evan Correll (USA) – 1:27:19
Jason Robinson (USA) – 1:29:01
Simon Lawson (Great Britain) – 1:25:06
Lito Anker (Netherlands) — 1:33:53
Rob Smith (Great Britain) – 1:55:51
Norbert Holowat (USA) – 2:13:16
