Kenya’s Evans Chebet and Peres Jepchirchir Win 126th Boston Marathon

Kenya's Evans Chebet and Peres Jepchirchir have won the 126th Boston Marathon held on Monday.

Chebet bagged the men’s crown in two hours, six minutes, and 51 seconds, holding off two past Boston Marathon champions Lawrence Cherono and Benson Kipruto, both Kenyans.

Cherono, who won the race in 2019, finished second in 2:07:21 while Kipruto, who won the marathon last year, came in third with a time of 2:07:27. Kenyan runners finished 1-2-3 in the men’s pro division.

"I'm extremely proud. I knew I had it in my legs to win," Chebet, 33, said through a translator.

Reigning Olympic champion Jepchirchir of Kenya won the women’s race with an unofficial time of 2:21:02.

The 28-year-old Kenyan becomes the first athlete to ever win an Olympic marathon gold medal, the New York Marathon, and the Boston Marathon.

Jepchirchir, last year's New York Marathon champion, won her Boston debut by edging Ababel Yeshaneh of Ethiopia (2:21:01) and Kenya's Mary Ngugi (2:21:32).

“It means a lot to me to win Boston. I believe in myself more. I still have more victories to come,” Jepchirchir said in a television interview.

The 26.2-mile race returned to its traditional date on the third Monday of April after being canceled in 2020 and contested in October last year due to the Covid-19 pandemic. At least 30,000 competitors participated, with Covid-19 vaccinations required for entry into the event.