Kenya’s Vincent Kipchumba is the winner of the 44th edition of the Amsterdam Marathon in 2:05:09.
Despite almost ideal running weather — around 11 degrees and hardly any wind — he stayed outside the course record set by Kenyan Lawrence Cherono last year at 2.04.06.
It took a long time for the race to ignite. Up to 5km from the finish, the leading group still consisted of eight athletes, neatly divided between four Kenyans and four Ethiopians. When Kenya’s Elisha Rotich accelerated after 38m, the group thinned out quickly and only Kipchumba and Ethiopians Solomon Deksisa and Betesfa Getahun could join.
Kipchumba then called for a decisive demonstration when entering the Vondelpark and just before entering the Olympic Stadium. Deksisa arrived second in 2:05:16, Rotich third in 2:05:18.
Kipchumba was not one of the top favourites, but 29-year-old was someone to keep an eye on, having won the Vienna Marathon in 2:06:56 earlier this year.
The battle for the victory took place far ahead of Abdi Nageeye, the best marathon runner in the Netherlands. He could not live up to the high expectations of lowering his Dutch record. The Somali-born runner had difficulty keeping up with the fast pace after 10km and gradually let go off the leading group. He finally came in ninth in 2:07:39, well above his 2:06:17, which he ran in Rotterdam this spring.
Ethiopia’s Degitu Azimeraw considerably improved the women’s record with a debut win in 2:19:26, well below the 2:21:09 that her compatriot Meseret Hailu ran in 2012.
Compatriots Tigist Girma (2:19:52), Azmera Gebru (2:20:48) and Besu Sado (2:21:03) took the second, thrid and fourth places respectively.
