Maiyo bemoans hard course at inaugural Mwale Medical and Technology City Marathon

Eliud Maiyo, the winner of the inaugural Mwale Medical and Technology City Marathon has revealed that despite winning the marathon, the course put his skills to the test.

Maiyo carried the day in the men's category while Irene Cherop outclassed a strong contingent to win the ladies' category.

He clocked 2:24:20 ahead of Dennis Kiprotich (2:24:29), Moses Kigen (2:27:21), Duncan Manyara (2:28:00), and Henry Kosgei (2:30:10).

Cherop timed 2:46:23 to beat Viola Chemos to second in 2:49:23 as Rael Kiara (2:53:47), Sally Jepkosgei (2:55.:13) and Joy Lemuma (2:56:48) completed the top five slots.

Speaking after the win, Maiyo was proud of himself for overcoming the challenging course. He further revealed that that was the hardest course he has encountered in his running career.

“I have never run on such a hard and harsh course. It is full of hills and slopes but my training came in handy. Mixing rough roads and tarmac is very challenging. One is soft while the other is hard," he said.

Cherop on the other hand was glad that the course did not pose a challenge. She was fresh from winning the Mt. Rwenzori Marathon and pointed out that the weather was similar to that of her training area in Iten, Elgeyo Marakwet County. She trains during mid-morning hours.

“I train around 11 am and that marched with today’s weather,” she offered.

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At the same time, Viola Chepng'eno who won the 21km race revealed that she eyes the Valencia 10km race slated for Spain on January 14.

She will be looking to extend her winning streak in the 10km race. She finished third at the Brasov 10km, where Agnes Ngetich set the unratified 10km world women-only record.

Chepng'eno crossed the mark in 1:12:54 ahead of Christine Njoki in 1:13:31 and Glorious Jepkirui in 1:14:02.

“I came here without proper half marathon preparations since I am more of a 10km runner. This win has motivated me to try my luck in the bigger half-marathons soon. The winning shows that I can run a half marathon very well. I also want to represent the country at next year’s World Cross Country Championships,” she disclosed.

More than 50 medals and cash prizes were awarded in five race categories that were held during the event. The event attracted global elite athletes in the categories of 42 km, 21 km, 10km, 5km, and 1600 meters.

The marathon, which was the first to be held in the 14 County Lake Region Economic Bloc (LREB) that comprises 16 million Kenyans was to raise funds to support low-income families to afford healthcare premiums of Social Health Insurance Fund (SHIF)/NHIF.

The Marathon will be held annually and is aiming to be the first label marathon in the history of Kenya and surpass the elite platinum label marathons like Boston and New York by 2026