Defending champion Vibian Chepkirui made another big step at the Vienna City Marathon, to win her second race at the classic distance with a great course record of 2:20:59 followed by Ruth Chebitok who clocked 2:21:03 with Sheila Jerotich coming in third with 2:23:01 to seal a 1,2,3 Kenyan finish.
Chepkirui surprised last year in the Austrian capital when she won her debut at the classic distance.
Cosmas Muteti, who finished fifth in last year’s Berlin Marathon, clocked 2: 06.53 to win the men’s title leading his compatriot Leonard Langat, who came second in 2:06.59, in a one-two finish.
The 30-year-old Muteti was one of the pre-race favourites and prevailed against his compatriot Langat and Oqbe Kibrom (2:07:25) from Eritrea.
Organisers of the 39th edition of the Vienna City Marathon registered more than 31,000 entries including events at shorter distances. Around 8,000 of them were marathon runners.
The Vienna City Marathon which is among a number of top road races that experienced an unusually high number of late cancellations is Austria’s biggest running event and a World Athletics Label Road Race.
