Luke Kibet wins Singapore Marathon again; sets new course record

Story by Yvonne Yap/Red Sports. Pictures by Lai Jun Wei/Red Sports.

The Padang, Sunday, December 6, 2009 – Defending champion Luke Kibet edged out compatriot Johnstone Chepkwony in an exciting sprint finish, setting a new course record of 2 hours, 11 minutes and 24 seconds at the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon. He shaved 2 minutes and 37 seconds off his previous record in 2008.

Chepkwony came in 8 seconds after Kibet at 2:11:32 while Vincent Krop Nyemw made it an all-Kenyan affair on the podium, coming in third with a time of 2:11:49.

Vincent Krop, better known as a half-marathoner, surpassed expectations by finishing third, and set the pace for the leading pack. He led till the 36km mark, where the pack was whittled down to the Kenyan trio.

With just 3km to go, Kibet and Chepkwony drew from their reserves and surged ahead, counting on their previous experiences to make it a close finish. In 2008, Kibet completed the race more than two minutes ahead of Chepkwony but it was a clearly a different story this year, with the race going down to the wire.

“Competitors – everyone was very strong,” Kibet reflected after his win when asked what was his largest obstacle during the race.

In the women’s event, Albina Mayorova Ivanova of Russia took home the title with a time of 2:32:47. Compatriot Lyubov Morgunova made it a one-two finish, coming in two minutes later at 2:34:47 while Mary Akor Beasley from USA completed the top-three with 2:36:41.

It seemed as if Morgunova had the race in the bag at 30km as she shook off her competitors and ran alone with the pacer. However, Ivanova caught up at 35km and overtook her, clinching the top position for the women’s event.

Ivanova admitted that the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon 2009 was a “very important race” for her career after starting a family. She felt comfortable after the halfway mark and started to make her moves, catching up to the leaders.

In the local categories, top triathlete Mok Ying Ren earned the title of the fastest male Singaporean marathoner with a time of 2:43:42 while Qi Hui picked up the women’s full marathon title in 3:15:25.

Singapore Marathon Full Results (2009)

Full Marathon – Men
1. Luke Kibet, Kenya – 2:11:24
2. Johnstone Chepkwony, Kenya – 2:11:32
3. Vincent Krop, Kenya – 2:11:49

Full Marathon – Women
1. Albina Mayorova, Russia – 2:32:47
2. Lyubov Morgunova, Russia – 2:34:47
3. Mary Akor Beasley, USA – 2:36:41

Full Marathon – Veterans (Men)
1. Sim Jae Duk, Korea – 2:40:11
2. Benedict Tan, Singapore – 3:04:28
3. Simon Andrew, Singapore – 3:05:12

Full Marathon – Veterans (Women)
1. Eliza Mayger, Australia – 3:08:00
2. Itsuko Lenwes, Japan – 3:16:19
3. Yong Lai Chee, Singapore – 3:40:09

Full Marathon – Singapore (Men)
1. Mok Ying Ren – 2:43:42
2. Ashley Liew – 2:51:22
3. Benny Goh – 2:56:44

Full Marathon – Singapore (Women)
1. Qi Hui – 3:15:25
2. Elaine Lim – 3:23:00
3. Tan Lin Wan Aileen – 3:39:16

Half-Marathon – Men
1. Richard Mutua, Kenya – 1:11:22
2. Muniandy Ramadass, Singapore – 1:14:31
3. Sefli Ahar, Brunei – 1:15:06

Half-Marathon – Women
1. Anna Thompson, Australia – 1:17:09
2. Anne-Mari Kyrylainen, Finland – 1:24:11
3. Hayley Barber, Australia – 1:29:29

10km Men (Individual)
1. Clive Alley, Great Britain – 33:24
2. Nabin Kumar Rai, Nepal – 33:53
3. Venugopal Rajendran, Malaysia – 34:37

10km Women (Individual)
1. Hazuki Kamei, Japan – 41:43
2. Renuka Satianathan, Singapore – 42:51
3. Mok Ying Rong, Singapore – 43:34

10km Wheelchair Challenge
1. Jack Lai, Singapore – 17:27
2. Roy Wong, Singapore – 24:53
3. Palanisamy Avaday, Singapore – 27:46

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