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The Ethiopian finished in a time of two hours, five minutes and 41 seconds in a spectacular final sprint that saw him overtake Kenya’s Vincent Kipchumba and his compatriot Sisay Lemma.
Kipchoge, who failed to win a major marathon when he finished second in Berlin in 2013, struggled in a race he had won four previous times and ultimately placed eighth after falling out of the leading group with just under three miles to go.
He later said that he had suffered a blockage in his right ear in the second half of the race and that he would come back stronger.
The 40th London Marathon, which had moved from its original April date and only organized the elite races due to the coronavirus pandemic, took place on a modified course: 19.6 laps of St James’s Park in the shadow of the Palace Buckingham instead of the usual. route that winds through east and central London.
After Kenenisa Bekele, who was expected to fight for the title, withdrew from the race on Friday with a calf injury, Kipchoge was expected to come to victory.
But the Kenyan lost a beat with two laps to go and the trio of Kitata, Kipchumba and Lemma were shoulder to shoulder down the stretch against 24-year-old Kitata, who finished second behind Kipchoge in 2018 and fourth last year. He kicked out his rivals and crossed the line just one second ahead of Kipchumba and four seconds ahead of Lemma.
In the women’s race, which started at 7:15 am local time, Kosgei was a comfortable winner as she finished more than three minutes behind American Sara Hall in second place.
The Kenyan had run much of the race alongside Ruth Chepngetich, but dropped her compatriot at the 20-mile mark.
Conditions in London meant there was little chance of Kosgei getting anywhere near his record of two hours, 14 minutes and four seconds, something he acknowledged after the race.
“There was some wind and rain the whole way, which made our muscles cool. No one could warm up, so it was difficult to even finish.
“I didn’t have anything planned, but it felt good. I felt like my body wanted to move, but my legs couldn’t move, so I tried my best … If it wasn’t raining and the weather was good, I would.” it will be good to try again in this course. “
Hall enjoyed an impressive run to finish second after making her way across the field before passing world champion Chepngetich in a final sprint. She is the first American woman to finish on the podium in London in 14 years.
“It was a very surreal moment, my husband was freaking out,” Hall said of overtaking Chepngetich late.
“I’m really grateful that he was able to be here, he was telling me how far he was in the last laps from third and then second. I felt amazing there.”
This year’s London Marathon is unlike any that has been seen before.
In addition to the reorganized date, the new course and the cancellation of the massive event, the competitors were left in a biosecurity bubble at a hotel on the outskirts of London.
Situated on 40 acres of land, the athletes-only hotel gave the elites a place to train in preparation for the race when they also conducted a series of tests for Covid-19.
The athletes also received devices to help reinforce social distancing: wearable technology that alerts the individual when they get too close to another person.
