FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
World-record holder Kosgei ready to set more milestones
Can anyone stop Brigid Kosgei? The 2019 Virgin Money London Marathon
champion took women's endurance running to a new level at the Chicago
Marathon last October, setting a remarkable new sporting milestone when she
obliterated the world marathon record - held by Paula Radcliffe for 16
years - by a staggering 81 seconds.
It was a performance for the ages that altered everything for her. "It
changed my career," explained Kosgei on Thursday, as she addressed a
virtual press conference before applying the finishing touches to her
preparations to defend her London title on Sunday 4 October. "It made me
more encouraged to do a lot of training and focus so that I could try to
break that record again."
Which brings us to the unique rescheduled Virgin Money London Marathon
elite races this weekend, which will be staged on a 'biosecure' looped
course around St James's Park. International athletics has had a long,
troubled year to negotiate before getting close to learning just what
26-year-old Kosgei is capable of next. It could be something special.
But although Kosgei has said she believes she can lower her record of 2
hours, 14 minutes, 4 seconds to 2:10, she's not about to make any more
predictions. The Covid-19 pandemic, naturally, had disrupted her training
plans and changed expectations.
Her world record, or at least Mary Keitany's women's only race landmark of
2:17:01, might have been a target in the spring, but the new-look race has
left her sounding cautious, however straightforward she makes training
'just' 190km a week sound.
"For two months now, I've been training with a little group after they
announced the London Marathon would be held. But going back some months, I
was training alone. It's affected most of us in Kenya," Kosgei said.
"Due to this pandemic, I cannot say I'll run this way or that way, because
coronavirus means we did not do enough training, like last year. So I want
to try my best only on Sunday."
Kosgei's best, her opponents have increasingly found, has proved far too
good over the past two years. She's begun to look as dominant as her
compatriot Eliud Kipchoge, with magisterial victories in her last three
marathons - the last two Chicago races and her emphatic 2019 London win.
"We will try," she said, when pressed on the prospect of another super-fast
time, but was quick to dismiss the idea that her hi-tech running shoes were
responsible for such feats.
"The shoes cannot run," she said with conviction. "It's the person who
runs."
Kosgei did not have to look very far on Thursday to be reminded of the need
for a cautious approach. For the record-breaker was sitting just a few
socially distanced metres away from one of a host of formidable rivals
ready to make Sunday's race another classic.
Kosgei and her fellow 26-year-old Kenyan Ruth Chepngetich explained they
don't know each other very well but they both know this is not a one-woman
show.
Sunday's cooler climes will doubtless feel very different to the stifling
30-degree heat and high humidity of Doha, where Chepngetich won the world
marathon title. The 2:17:08 marathoner got round in 2:32:43 on that most
trying of early-hour runs, which demonstrated perfectly why she has the
battling spirit to match her dazzling talent.
"I'm happy to be in London. I'm ready to compete on Sunday. I've trained
well, I'm feeling good and I'm ready for the run," she explained, sounding
particularly pleased to be running on the sort of looped course that Doha
also offered. Kosgei, on the other hand, admitted that she thought she
would find running the laps "difficult".
And it's not just a two-horse race - the duo's distinguished compatriot and
an unquestioned all-time great, 2018 London champion Vivian Cheruiyot has a
CV that demands respect. Although she hasn't won a marathon since that 2018
win (she was second here last year) and has just turned 37.
The Kenyan challenge will be bolstered further by Frankfurt Marathon
champion Valary Jemeli, who's a 2:19:19 performer, but all four will be as
wary as ever about the threat posed by their Ethiopian neighbours, headed
by 32-year-old Berlin Marathon champion Ashete Bekere and one of the
sport's rising stars, 22-year-old Alemu Megertu, a winner in Rome last
year.
Ethiopian hopes would have been even higher if the exciting young talent
Degitu Azimeraw had not had to remain at home after testing positive for
Covid-19. Her absence is a poignant reminder of why this race has to be
confined to a biosecure bubble without the usual cheering throng lining the
streets.
Yet Chepngetich best explained why she feels this year's London Marathon
will remain a triumph, with its 45,000 'virtual' runners still giving it a
unique feel in the background.
"It will not change things too much because people will be cheering us on
TV," said the world champion. "We will all be there in spirit."
- 2020 Virgin Money London Marathon elite women's field
###
|
