For John Korir and Sharon Lokedi, there was only one mission and one outcome at the Boston Marathon on Monday as both repeated as champions in commanding fashion.
Korir made a decisive move at mile 20 that catapulted him to a course record 2:01:52 win while Lokedi broke away from a loaded women’s lead pack at mile 23 and never looked back as she returned to the podium for a second straight year.
In a deep men’s field that started out aggressively, Korir was composed and reserved as CJ Albertson, Rory Linkletter, Hendrik Pfeiffer, Benson Kipruto, Ryan Ford, Milkesa Mengesha, Alex Maier and Clayton Young were all part of a group that traded turns at taking the lead.
But Korir stayed patient as he crossed the halfway point at 1:01:50 alongside Mengesha as the pack continued to push the pace. At mile 20 at 1:33:48, Korir shifted gears and surged ahead of Mengesha, who began to fade as the chase pack passed him.
In the final 10km, Korir accelerated with ease and as he approached the 40km mark at 1:55:48, a course record was within reach. As he neared the finish line, Korir gestured in celebration as he broke the tape in 2:01:52, for a personal best. Alphonce Simbu was second in 2:02:47 and Kipruto took third in 2:02:50 as all three clocked times faster than the previous course record.
“I knew I would defend my title, but I didn’t know I would run that fast,” Korir said. “For many years, my mind was set on the course record and I thank God that I have achieved it now.”
Korir shattered the 2:03:02 course record by 70 seconds that was previously held by Geoffrey Mutai from the 2011 event.
Lokedi was just as dominant in the women’s race as she grabbed her second straight title in 2:18:51.
At mile 23 at 2:03:22, Lokedi already held a seven second lead over Loice Chemnung but maintained her pace as the gap widened. She was among a crowded lead pack that held steady past the 35km point at 1:41:14, with Jess McClain, Mercy Chelangat, Annie Frisbie, Irine Cheptai and Mary Ngugi-Cooper among those remaining with the group.
Still, Lokedi would not leave the race up to a late kick like last year’s battle with Hellen Obiri — and chose her moment after creating separation from Chemnung. By the 40km point at 2:12:08, Lokedi cruised into the closing stages of the course as the race inched toward Boylston Street as she realized she was closer to another win.
“I just had to be patient,” Lokedi said. “After I broke, I was like ‘I don’t know what I’m gonna do, but I’m just gonna follow the car.”
Chemnung took second in 2:18:51 and Ngugi-Cooper finished third in 2:20:07.
Meanwhile, in the men’s wheelchair division, Marcel Hug continued his surge to history as he threw down a commanding performance to win in 1:16:06 for his ninth career win in Boston. Hug won the race by over six and a half minutes, with Daniel Romanchuk taking second in 1:22:44. Hug is now one win shy of Ernst van Dyk’s record of 10 wins in Boston.
“Every single win here in Boston is really something special, very unique and means a lot to me,” Hug said. “And now to win nine times is even more incredible.”
In the women’s wheelchair race, Eden Rainbow-Cooper bolted to her second women’s title in 1:30:51, while Catherine Debrunner took second in 1:32:59 as Tatyana McFadden finished third in 1:36:43.
