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Edna Kiplagat, the two-time world champion and mother of two, at age 42, is seeking the win at the 2022 Boston Marathon on Monday.
“If everything goes well as per my training and my body responds well, I’m hoping to be on the podium (in Boston) or do even better,” Kiplagat said in an exclusive interview with Olympics.com from her training base in Longmont, Colorado, USA.
Boston always provides a very competitive field. She will be up against Tokyo Olympic champion and defending Boston champion Peres Jepchirchir.
As Olympics.com wrote, “she is coached by husband and former runner Gilbert Koech, while her two children, Carlos (17), and Wendy (13), are already mastering distance running in school.
Congratulations to Wendy Cheruiyot, daughter of @KiplagatEdna and @GCkoech, on her stellar third place finish in today’s national cross-country championships for 13-14 year old girls in Charlotte, NC. #thefuturessobrightigottawearshades pic.twitter.com/cGCmLMfLql
— Boulder Wave (@BoulderWave) December 4, 2021
Kiplagat’s personal best is 10 years old from London 2012. There she ran 2:19:50, before supershoes. She has won the Abbott Marathon Majors races Boston in 2017, New York in 2010 and London 2014. Kiplagat finished second in Chicago, and London three times. She is a two-time World Athletics Championships marathon gold medallist 2013 and 2011 and earned a silver medal in London 2012.
Two years ago Jepchirchir set her personal best at 2:17:16 in Valencia, Spain. She is a World Half Marathon champion and women’s-only half marathon world record holder at 65:16 with a best of 65:06.
Top seven women sub-2:21
| WOMEN | PERSONAL BEST | COUNTRY |
| Peres Jepchirchir | 2:17:16 (Valencia, 2020) | Kenya |
| Joyciline Jepkosgei | 2:17:43 (London, 2021) | Kenya |
| Degitu Azimeraw | 2:17:58 (London, 2021) | Ethiopia |
| Edna Kiplagat | 2:19:50 (London, 2012) | Kenya |
| Etagegn Woldu | 2:20:16 (Valencia, 2021) | Ethiopia |
| Maurine Chepkemoi | 2:20:18 (Amsterdam, 2021) | Kenya |
| Ababel Yeshaneh | 2:20:51 (Chicago, 2019) | Ethiopia |
Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Molly Seidel is in the race. The American came out of nowhere (well, 2:25-range) to place third in Sapporo last summer.
Charlotte Purdue from Great Britain will be looking for redemption after being left off of the Olympic team despite being the third fastest British marathon runner of all time.
Canadians Malindi Elmore and Natasha Wodak who finished ninth and 13th in Sapporo, respectively are toeing the line. They hold the two fastest Canadian times in history.
Top men under 2:05
| MEN | PERSONAL BEST | COUNTRY |
| Birhanu Legese | 2:02:48 (Berlin, 2019) | Ethiopia |
| Evans Chebet | 2:03:00 (Valencia, 2020) | Kenya |
| Lawrence Cherono | 2:03:04 (Valencia, 2020) | Kenya |
| Sisay Lemma | 2:03:36 (Berlin, 2019) | Ethiopia |
| Kinde Atanaw | 2:03:51 (Valencia, 2019) | Ethiopia |
| Lemi Berhanu | 2:04:33 (Dubai, 2016) | Ethiopia |
| Lelisa Desisa | 2:04:45 (Dubai, 2013) | Ethiopia |
| Gabriel Geay | 2:04:55 (Milan, 2021) | Tanzania |
Canadian Trevor Hofbauer is looking for redemption. He holds the second-fastest marathon in Canadian history behind only Cameron Levins. They have run Toronto in 2:09:51 and 2:09:25, respectively.
Hofbauer is there to race, sans watch, mano-a-mano, and place as high as possible.
American Scott Fauble is looking for a little redemption as well. The 2:09:09 Boston 2019 runner owns a 2:09:42 best from Chandler, AZ from 2020. The 30-year-old missed the Olympic Team by finishing 12th at the US Olympic Trials. He clocked a 2:12:39 finish time.
See the entire elite pro field for the Boston Marathon here>>
