Jepchirchir turns focus to Valencia after Tokyo heroics

Kenya’s Peres Jepchirchir has been named as one of the headline names for this year’s Valencia Trinidad Alfonso Zurich Marathon scheduled for Sunday, 7 December.

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The announcement comes less than a month after the 32-year-old sprinted to the finish line to claim gold at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.

Jepchirchir, who also is an Olympic champion from the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games, will be joined by fellow Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei in a star field that also contains Ethiopia’s Amane Beriso.

Beriso, 33, will prove to be Jepchirchir’s main rival, as she is the fastest in the women’s group with a personal best time of 2:14.58, which she set in the Spanish city in 2022.

Two-time major marathon winner Jepkosgei, on the other hand, will be making her first return to Valencia in five years, having clocked 2:18.40 to finish second behind Jepchirchir in 2020.

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A second group of runners will consist of international names from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and France, who will also generate a lot of interest.

In the men’s side, Kenya will see two new debutants seek to make their mark on the fast course.

The first-timers will be Vinicent Nyageo and Patrick Mosin, will join four more Kenyans on the start list including: Edward Cheserek, Hillary Kipkoech, Benard Biwott, and Enock Onchari.

The big names in the men’s field will be Ethiopia’s Sisay Lemma, who won the marathon title in 2023, and Hailemariam Kiros, winner of this year’s Sydney Marathon.

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“Valencia is once again the destination for the most ambitious debutants,” Marc Roig, Elite Field Coordinator for the Valencia Marathon said.

“The victories of Kelvin Kiptum and Sebastian Sawe in previous years have clearly helped to build awareness of the advantages our marathon offers for debutants.”