The Kenyan pair of Lawrence Cherono and Nancy Jelagat was elated with their respective wins at the 2021 Valencia Marathon on Sunday.
Cherono, the 2019 Boston Marathon champion, bounced back impressively from a disappointing outing at the Tokyo Olympics to clock 2:05:11 and improve on his second-place finish last year.
Ethiopian Chalu Deso (2:05:15) and another Kenyan, Philemon Kacheran (2:05:18) finished second and third respectively whereas former world half marathon record holder Geoffrey Kamworor came fourth in a personal best time of 2:05:22.
Cherono admitted he would have done better were it not for the windy conditions.
"I am very pleased to have won today. The weather conditions made it impossible to run faster but regardless, it was a wonderful run and I hope to improve on my time in the next race," Cherono said.
Even as he remains modest about his win, Cherono's race seemed an ode to the City of Arts and Sciences as he exhibited tact and resilience to take the honours.
The 2019 Chicago Marathon champion was part of the leading pack, which included countryman Nobert Kigen, Tanzanian Gabriel Geay and the Ethiopian trio of Deso, Herpasa Negasa and Kinde Atanaw.
After lagging behind in the chase pack comprising Kamworor, German Amanal Petros, Spaniard Hamid Ben Daoud and Norwegian Sondre Moen, Kacheran caught up with the leading pack at the 40km mark and briefly grabbed the lead from Deso and Cherono who had been exchanging it until then.
However, with 2km remaining, Cherono produced a burst of speed to disentangle himself from the pair and cross the finish line first.
In the women's race, Jelagat clocked a personal best of 2:19:31 and etched her name in Valencia folklore as the only one among the female competitors to clock a sub-2:20 finish.
Ethiopian pair of Etagegne Woldu (2:20:16) and Beyenu Degefa (2:23:04) finished second and third respectively.
"Winning and improving on my PB by a whole 14 minutes is more than I could've imagined. It feels happier considering this is my first time competing in Valencia," Jelagat, who holds a PB of 1:05:21 from the Berlin Half Marathon, said.
Elsewhere, Michael Githae wrote his name into history books as the last winner of the 75th edition of the Fukuoka International Marathon.
The Suzuki runner timed 2:07:51 to cross the finish line ahead of Japan's Kyohei Hosoya (2:08:16) and another Kenyan, James Gitahi (2:08:25).
One of the oldest marathons on earth, the over 60-year old Fukuoka Marathon has been scrapped over what organisers say are financial challenges and the inability to attract sponsors.
The 2008 Olympic marathon champion Samuel Wanjiru made his debut in the marathon, clinching the men's title.
