Kosgei's record smashed as Eliud Kipchoge wins 5th Berlin Marathon

Multiple Olympic champion and world-record holder Eliud Kipchoge won the Berlin Marathon for a record fifth time, crossing the line in 2:02:42 in the German capital on Sunday.

Kipchoge's fifth win takes him past Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie's four victories.

The four-time London Marathon champion won the race by 31 seconds demonstrating how good he was on the course even though he didn’t come close to breaking his record.

Vincent Kipkemboi who was making marathon debut finished second in 2:03:13 with Ethiopian Tadese Takele who was also racing in his first ever marathon taking bronze after stopping the clock in 2:03:24.

The win in the streets of Berlin comes as a perfect consolation for Kipchoge who lost in the last race following surprising sixth-place finish at the Boston Marathon in April.

A record nine men finished inside 2:05 and 15 finished inside 2:06, making it the deepest men's marathon in history.

There were national records for Germany's Amanal Petros (ninth in 2:04:58) and Switzerland's Tadesse Abraham (11th in 2:05:10).

WOMEN RECORD SMASHED
 Ethiopia's Tigist Assefa smashed the women's marathon that was previously held by Brigid Kosgei.

She clocked 2:11:53, taking more than two minutes from the previous mark which stood at 2:14:04.

Kosgei had broken the previous record at the 2019 Chicago Marathon.

Sheila Chepkirui finished behind Assefa, Chepkirui in 2:17:49, while Tanzania’s Magdalena Shauri made a remarkable breakthrough to take third place in 2:18:41, a huge national record.

A record eight women finished inside 2:20.

Leading results

Women

1 Tigst Assefa (ETH) 2:11:53

2 Sheila Chepkirui (KEN) 2:17:49

3 Magdalena Shauri (TAN) 2:18:41

4 Zeineba Yimer (ETH) 2:19:07

5 Senbere Teferi (ETH) 2:19:21

Men

1 Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) 2:02:42

2 Vincent Kipkemoi (KEN) 2:03:13

3 Tadese Takele (ETH) 2:03:24

4 Ronald Korir (KEN) 2:04:22

5 Haftu Teklu (ETH) 2:04:42