Press Release - London Marathon - 8/12/22

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

               Tola withdraws from the 2022 TCS London Marathon

 World champion Tamirat Tola withdraws from this year's TCS London Marathon

Tamirat Tola, the winner of the 2022 World Championships marathon in 
Oregon, has withdrawn from this year's TCS London Marathon on Sunday 2 
October.

The Ethiopian has not fully recovered from his dominant run in Oregon where 
he set a new championship record of 2:05:36 and went one better than the 
silver medal he won at the 2017 World Championships in London.

Tola said: "It is with great regret that I am unable to run this year's TCS 
London Marathon. Unfortunately, since the World Championships I have had 
problems with muscle fatigue and have not yet been able to resume 
training."

Although Tola is unable to run at this year's TCS London Marathon, the 
silver and bronze medallists from the 2022 World Championships, Mosinet 
Geremew (ETH) and Bashir Abdi (BEL), will still be on the Start Line along 
with defending champion Sisay Lemma (ETH) and Kenenisa Bekele (ETH), the 
second fastest marathon runner of all time.

In addition, the Japanese marathon record holder Kengo Suzuki has been 
added to the Start List. Suzuki set his national record of 2:04:56 in Otsu, 
Japan, last February. He placed fourth at both this year's Tokyo Marathon 
and last year's Boston Marathon.

In the elite women's race, Degitu Azimeraw (ETH), the runner-up at last 
year's London Marathon, has withdrawn from this year's event. World record 
holder Brigid Kosgei (KEN) and reigning champion Joyciline Jepkosgei (KEN) 
lead the entries for this year's race alongside Yalemzerf Yehualaw (ETH), 
who is the fastest marathon debutant of all time, and British pair Eilish 
McColgan and Charlotte Purdue.

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