On Sunday at the 2024 Chicago Marathon, Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich shattered the women’s marathon world record by nearly two minutes, crossing the finish line in an astonishing 2:09:57. This groundbreaking achievement makes her the first woman to break the 2:10 barrier in the marathon, pushing the boundaries of women’s distance running further than ever before.
For Chepngetich, this victory marks her third Chicago Marathon win in the last four years, having previously taken the title in 2021 and 2022.
We’ve said this before but…
Watch it. Drink it in. We swear you’ll never see anything like this again. 😉#AbbottWMM #chicagomarathon2024 pic.twitter.com/rOsqgLyMFy
— Abbott WMMajors (@WMMajors) October 13, 2024
After Friday’s elite press conference, it was clear that both Chepngetich and Ethiopia’s Sutume Kebede were eyeing Tigst Assefa’s world record of 2:11:53. From the outset, the pace exceeded expectations, with Chepngetich hitting the halfway point in 64:16—a time that stands as the fastest half-marathon split ever recorded in a women’s marathon. To put her incredible pace into perspective, she was just 12 seconds off the Kenyan half-marathon record, which she also holds. This time would have been the world record as recently as 2021.
With the assistance of two male pacers until the 38-km mark, Chepngetich maintained a commanding lead, opening up more than a four-minute gap over the rest of the field by 40K. She went on to secure her third Chicago Marathon title in dominant fashion. In 2023, Chepngetich finished second to Olympic champion Sifan Hassan, who set a course record of 2:13:44.
After the race, Chepngetich described the win as a “dream come true” and dedicated the record to the late Kelvin Kiptum. “The weather was perfect, and I’ve been able to prepare for six months,” she said. “I am proud of myself.”
WORLD RECORD ‼️
🇰🇪’s Ruth Chepngetich destroys the marathon world record in Chicago with an incredible 2:09:57 😮💨
That’s almost 2 minutes faster than the previous world record 🤯
She finishes in 10th place overall of the @ChiMarathon 👏 pic.twitter.com/ftM1J0j1F1
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) October 13, 2024
Kebede, the 2024 Tokyo Marathon champion, stayed with Chepngetich until the halfway mark, but dropped back as Chepngetich pushed the relentless pace. Kebede still managed a strong finish, coming in second with a time of 2:17:32, seven and a half minutes behind the new world record holder. Kenya’s Irine Cheptai rounded out the women’s podium in 2:17:51.
Kenya now holds both the men’s and women’s marathon world records. The conditions on race day were ideal for record-breaking, with cool temperatures of 16 C and low winds at the start.
Kenya’s John Korir won the men’s race in a world-leading time of 2:02:43. For more on that story, click here.
Susanna Sullivan top American
Susanna Sullivan, a schoolteacher from northern Virginia, was the fastest American woman in Sunday’s race, finishing in 2:21:56 and seventh in the women’s race. Lindsay Flanagan was the second U.S. woman (2:23:31, ninth) and Emma Bates was third (2:24:00).
Top 10 women
-
- Ruth Chepngetich KEN 2:09:57 WR
- Sutume Asefa Kebede ETH 2:17:32
- Irine Cheptai KEN 2:17:51
- Buze Diriba Kejela ETH 02:20:22
- Joyciline Jepkosgei KEN 02:20:51
- Degitu Azimeraw ETH 02:20:52
- Susanna Sullivan USA 02:21:56
- Ashete Bekere Dido ETH 02:23:10
- Lindsay Flanagan USA 02:23:31
- Stacy Ndiwa KEN 02:23:42
