Kipchoge man to beat as Tokyo Marathon gets Majors underway

Marathon world record holder and two-time Olympic gold medalist Eliud Kipchoge begins his ambitious goal of winning all World Marathon Majors in Japan on Sunday 6 March as he races in the Tokyo Marathon. 

Kipchoge, one of seven sub-2:05 men in action will be looking for a strong start to his racing year as he makes his debut in the Tokyo Marathon, racing in the same country where he won his second Olympics gold last year.

It will be the 37-year-old’s third time racing in Japan; his first being at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, where he claimed 5000m silver. Then came his Olympics winning race last year, a feat that made him only the third man to defend the Games' marathon title.

While Kipchoge goes into the race the most decorated marathoner and the fastest going by his world record time of 2:01.39, several men are out to deny him victory on his Tokyo debut.

Ethiopia’s Shura Kitata headlines that list that also has world silver medalist Mosinet Geremew, who sits fourth on the world marathon all-time list with the 2:02:55 he ran in London in 2019. Kenya’s Amos Kipruto, who won world bronze in 2019 and has a best of 2:03:30 from 2020 is also in the list.

Also in the sub-2:05 list are Ethiopia’s Olympic and world medalist Tamirat Tola, who claimed 10,000m bronze in Rio in 2016 and marathon silver in London in 2017, plus Kenya’s Jonathan Korir and Japanese record-holder Kengo Suzuki, who ran 2:04:56 to win the Lake Biwa Marathon last year.