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Ethiopian Runner Tamirat Tola Wins Men’s Marathon At Paris Olympics To End Kenya Dominance
PARIS — Ethiopian runner Tamirat Tola won the men’s marathon at the Paris Olympics on Saturday, ending Kenya’s supremacy in the event.
Tola set an Olympic record of 2 hours, 6 minutes, and 26 seconds, with Belgium’s Bashir Abdi finishing 21 seconds behind and Kenya’s Benson Kipruto winning bronze, 34 seconds adrift.
Ethiopian Runner Tamirat Tola Wins Men’s Marathon At Paris Olympics To End Kenya Dominance
Tola, 32, looked back as he approached the finish line, but he was clear and had time to enjoy the ovation. Two weeks ago, he entered the Olympic marathon as a substitute for injured compatriot Sisay Lemma.
“I was the reserve in the Ethiopian team, but when Sisay had injuries, I had a chance,” explained Tola. “I was prepared and confident that I could realise my dream. “I am very proud and happy.”
Tola won her second Olympic medal, the other coming in the 10,000 meters at the 2016 Rio Games.
“After I came from track, I achieved a lot in marathon,” said Tola, who shattered a 12-year course record by winning the New York marathon last year.
Abdi, 35, won his second Olympic medal, improving his bronze from the Tokyo Games three years ago.
Tola defeated Abdi again in a major marathon. He defeated him at the 2022 World Championships, where Abdi finished third.
Emile Cairess of Britain finished fourth on Saturday, with enough stamina for a sprint finish after 42 km (26 miles) in the sun.
The two-time reigning champion, Eliud Kipchoge, struggled throughout. He was over eight minutes behind Tola at the 30-kilometer mark and did not finish.
Ugandan Stephen Kiprotich was the latest non-Kenyan to win in the London Games 2012.
The 39-year-old Kipchoge aimed to become the first man to win the race three times. Abebe Bikila of Ethiopia won it consecutively in 1960 and 1964, while Waldemar Cierpinski of East Germany achieved the same in 1976 and 1980.
The men’s Olympic marathon did not occur on the last day, as is customary, and the women will run on Sunday.
The route began at the Hôtel de Ville (City Hall) and continued through several parks and forests. Despite its picturesque appeal, the relatively mountainous road was described as exceedingly tough, with inclines as steep as 13%.
“Going down for me was the most challenging,” Abdi told me. “It was hurting your knees, your back.”
Kipruto found it less stressful, adding, “I did some preparations and so I knew what to expect.”
Under blue skies, runners visited attractions like the Opéra Garnier and the Louvre Museum. Around halfway through, they passed near the majestic grounds of the Palace of Versailles, once the home of French royalty, before doubling back via Meudon woodland into Paris and past the Eiffel Tower.
Tola was out front, with Italian Eyob Faniel and American Conner Mantz near the halfway point, but they were caught as a large group gathered again. Kipchoge was behind by more than a minute and fell behind.
Ethiopian Runner Tamirat Tola Wins Men’s Marathon At Paris Olympics To End Kenya Dominance
After two hours, runners neared the gold-domed Invalides monument, which houses French Emperor Napoleon’s tomb.
Last year, hundreds of dissatisfied French farmers gathered outside the Invalides monument to demand the right to use banned pesticides on sugar beets and other crops.
There were no social tensions this time, simply loud ovations and loving applause as each runner crossed the finish line, with the audience remaining to cheer for the backmarkers.
The legacy of Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum hung over the race. The world record holder would have been a gold medal favorite. He was killed, along with his instructor, Gervais Hakizimana, in a February 11 crash near Kaptagat in western Kenya.
SOURCE | AP
