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Women’s marathon record holder Ruth Chepng’etich of Kenya with her 2:09:56 will race the Lisbon Half Marathon on March 9. She will use this race to assess her fitness ahead of her much anticipated London Marathon on April 27.
The 2025 London Marathon may be the deepest in marathon history. Also, toeing the line will be former world record holder Tigst Assefa of Ethiopia.
Her competitors in London also include: The defending champion Peres Jepchirchir, Olympic marathon champion Sifan Hassan, and 2019 New York champion Joyciline Jepkosgei. Jepkosgei has run as fast as 2:16:24 and won London in 2021.
In October of 2024 Chepn’getich shocked the global running community when she ran the world record time of 2:09:56.
Where Assefa’s personal best of 2:11:53 in Berlin in 2023 was shocking, Chepn’getich’s marathon was met with disbelief.
The current women’s half-marathon world record is held by fellow Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey at 62:52. Chepn’getich should be able to take a clean minute off that time. That is, if she is fresh for the race. Her personal best is a comparably slow 65:58 from the 2024 Buenos Aires Half Marathon.
The London Marathon record is 2:15:25 from the 2003 running by Paula Radcliffe of England. The Lisbon Half Marathon record is 65:30, set by Ethiopian Almaz Ayana in 2023.
