Newly crowned Kosice Marathon champion Moses Kemei says his record-breaking run in Slovakia has lit a fire within him to chase even greater glory on the global road racing circuit.
On Sunday, Kemei led a Kenyan podium sweep in the men’s race, storming to victory in a new course record time of 2:06:47.
He was followed by Timothy Kattam in 2:07:33 and Silas Sugut, who clocked 2:08:22 to complete a dominant Kenyan podium.
Kemei was thrilled with his record-breaking run, which further lowered his Marathon personal best. "I feel good because of my performance today.
This was a very nice course and I thank the organisers for inviting me to race here," Kemei said post-race. The 32-year-old improved his previous best of 2:06:48, set during an eighth-place finish at the Barcelona Marathon earlier this year.
In that race, Ethiopia’s Tesfaye Deriba (2:04:13) had taken top honours ahead of Kenyans Cornelius Kiplagat (2:04:54) and Enock Onchari (2:05:20).
Despite running much of the latter stages of Sunday’s race solo, Kemei remained composed and relentless. “It was difficult, but I managed to control my pace and kept pushing myself all the way,” he explained.
Kemei believes his performance in Slovakia will serve as a powerful springboard for his ambitions going forward. “It’s an incredible performance from me, and it motivates me to keep improving,” he said. Kemei’s marathon journey has been a tale of steady growth.
He made his debut in 2021 at the Istanbul Marathon, clocking 2:10:28 to finish fourth behind Uganda’s Victor Kiplangat (2:10:18), Kenya’s Robert Kipkemboi (2:10:23) and Uganda’s Solomon Mutai (2:10:25).
He repeated that fourth-place finish in Istanbul a year later, posting 2:11:55, before running 2:09:26 for yet another fourth-place finish at the 2023 Enschede Marathon.
His first podium came in Yingkou, China, in May 2024, where he finished third in 2:11:43 behind Ethiopia’s Birhanu Nebebew (2:11:38) and Solomon Suter (2:11:38).
Kemei’s breakthrough moment arrived a few months later at the Dublin Marathon in October 2024, where he powered to his first victory, clocking 2:08:47 to outkick Ethiopia’s Abebaw Desalew (2:09:24) and Ireland’s Hiko Haso (2:09:42).
While his marathon career has been one of gradual progression, Kemei boasts an impressive record over the half-marathon.
He won Udine Half Marathon titles in 2018 (1:01:14) and 2019 (1:00:48), and dominated the Verona Half Marathon in both 2018 (1:01:35) and 2019 (1:03:14).
In the women’s race in Kosice, Ethiopia’s Balemelay Kebebe reigned supreme in 2:21:59, edging compatriot Kasanesh Baze (2:22:07), while Kenya’s Leah Cheruto secure third place in 2:24:34.
In other Sunday races John Mwangangi clocked 2:17:28 to lead a Kenyan podium sweep at the Kuala Lumpur Marathon with Kiprotich Kirui (2:17:45) and Vincent Kiprono (2:18:06) in second and third place.
The women's race saw Truphena Chepchirchir reign supreme in 2:41:36 with Ethiopia's Almaz Fekade (2:41:50 and Joyline Chemutai (2:42:34) rounding off the podium.
