Nairobi — Amos Kipruto perfectly timed his finishing kick as he put up a brilliant run in the final five kilometres to win his first ever London Marathon title, clinching the crown in a time of 2:04:39.
Kipruto had quietly sat in between the leading pack and waited for the opportune time to strike, and once he noticed that the rest of the athletes were struggling, he shot to the lead.
He had a 17 second lead with two kilometres to run, and he never seemed to tire, with glory in sight.
Ethiopia’s Leul Gebresilase was second in 2:05:12 while Belgium’s Abdi Bashir was third in 2:015:19.
Track legend Kenenisa Bekele who was charging for a possible assault at the title could not sustain the tempo as he was dropped out just before the 35km mark.
As the only Kenyan in the race, Kipruto had little help, but that did not deter him, as he bossed the race.
He had come second in his first marathon of the year in Tokyo, and the 2019 World Championships bronze medalist upgraded the silver to gold in the British capital.
