Ethiopian Birhanu Legese cruised to victory at the Tokyo marathon on Sunday, winning in a time of two hours, four minutes and 48 seconds in miserable conditions to claim his first major title.
Africa News | The 24-year-old was part of a small leading group for the first 30 kilometres before pulling away easily from runnerup Kenyan Bedan Karoki (2:06:48) and strolling to victory. Karoki’s compatriot Dickson Chumba, twice a winner in Tokyo, was third.
The 27-year-old, touted as Japan’s best hope of delivering Olympic marathon gold when Tokyo hosts the Games in 2020, was distraught as he limped from the route.
Ethiopian Ruti Aga won the women’s race in a time of 2:20:40, edging out compatriot Helen Tola by 21 seconds. Ethiopians have now won the women’s marathon in Tokyo in six of the last eight editions.
