•Masai faces top quality field in Amsterdam.
•Elisha Rotich and Vincent Kipchumba spearhead chase in men's category.
Image: FILE
Former 10,000m world champion Linet Masai will be aiming to win the Amsterdam Marathon tomorrow.
Masai set a personal best of 2:23:46 to finish fifth last year. Following a 1:07:44 run at the Great North Run, she returns to Amsterdam this year with one eye on the course record of 2:21:09, set by Meseret Hailu Debele in 2012.
In the men's category, Elisha Rotich and Vincent Kipchumba head to Amsterdam off the back of PBs earlier this year. Rotich ran 2:06:12 in Seoul, while Kipchumba won in Vienna in 2:06:56.
Elsewhere, Eric Kiptanui will spearhead Kenya's charge at the New Delhi Half marathon tomorrow. Kiptanui is the fastest in the field having notched up two impressive half marathon victories in 2018, including a 58:42 PB in Berlin.
In the women's category Caroline Kipkirui, who set a personal best of 1:05:07 at the 2018 Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon, is the fastest in the field. Ethiopia’s Zeineba Yimer, who finished third in Delhi last year, also returns.
In Lisbon Kenya’s 2016 world half marathon champion and former world record-holder, Peres Jepchirchir leads the women’s field for the half marathon. The 26-year-old, who had a baby at the end of 2017, has returned to action this year with a best of 1:07:36, two-and-a-half minutes shy of her lifetime best.
Others in the field include Kenya’s Vivian Kiplagat, 10km world leader Dorcas Kimeli, Monica Jepkoech, Ethiopia’s Waganesh Amare, South Africa’s Glenrose Xaba and Portuguese duo Jessica Augusto and Catarina Ribeiro.
With a PB of 58:48, Kenya’s Jorum Okombo is the fastest in the men’s half marathon field and has the ability to challenge the course record of 1:00:13, but he heads to Lisbon with a season’s best of 1:02:31 so might not be at his absolute best.