Defending champion Hellen Obiri of Kenya turned a controlled tactical race into a wild sprint to the finish in the women’s professional race during Monday’s 128th running of the BAA Boston Marathon.
Obiri broke the tape in 2:22:37 to become the sixth woman to win consecutive races and first since four-time Boston winner Catherine Ndereba of Kenya did it in 2004 and 2005.
“I was happy to defend my title and it was not an easy thing because I had strong ladies challenging there with me,” said Obiri. “I am the best coming to the one (last) mile so I tried to give everything, give my energy because anyone can win this.
“I tried to push in the final leg. When I crossed the finish line it was amazing to me, it was a memorable moment for me.”
Obiri’s compatriot, Sharon Lokedi put in a game effort down the stretch and took second place in 2:22:45. Edna Kiplagat, 44, completed the Kenya sweep taking third in 2:23:41. She was also credited with finishing first in the Masters category. Kiplagat, the 2017 champion, competed in her seventh Boston Marathon.
“I would like to congratulate Hellen for defending her title and Sharon for coming second,” said Kiplagat. “It was an amazing race today and coming third was good for me. I am very happy because the field was so competitive.”
Obiri hopes her Boston victory will realize her ambition to represent Kenya in the marathon at the Summer Olympic Games in Paris. Obiri also lobbied from her bully pulpit at the winner’s podium to have Lokedi accompany her on the Athletics Kenya team.
“For me, I can say like in Kenya we don’t know yet and Sharon was there with me,” said Obiri. “For me I do hope I will be on the team with Sharon and the Paris course is even tougher than Boston. I think Kenya should consider Sharon and I for the team.”
Emma Bates of Boulder, Colo., who set the pace through the first two-thirds of the race, was the top American finisher for the second year in a row with a time of 2:27:14. Bates placed fifth last season with a time of 2:22:10.
“I thought last year was crazy wild but this year surpassed that,” said Bates. “It was a nice day for the spectators but not so nice for the runners.”
Bates stuck with the race strategy that served her well in last year’s race by seizing the lead on the downhill from Hopkinton Center. The lead pack of over 20 runners regained contact with Bates before 2-mile marker as the women’s race evolved early into a group effort.
With such a large tight knot of runners, the race took on a more tactical aspect as the field made its way onto the Framingham Flats. Bates and compatriot Sara Hall of Flagstaff, Ariz., were side-by-side at the front of the pack and they enjoyed a boost of energy from the sidelines as they cruised past Wellesley College.
“I ended up leading most of the race and that wasn’t in the cards,” said Bates. “My coach had told me to go out and run your own race and just treat it as a long run with a little more pizzazz. But I found myself in the lead over and over again and when I would surge the rest of the pack would surge.”
Ethiopian favorite Tadu Teshome made a brief surge to the front on the flat stretch through Wellesley Center, but the pack remained larger than normal for that stage of the race. The field was spread out across the road on the decent into Lower Falls and slowly began to thin out on the swing onto Commonwealth Ave. at the Firehouse Turn.
Bates made a push on the backside of Heartbreak Hill and opened a small lead on the large pack onto the final 10K stretch of the race. But the Kenyan troika of Obiri, Lokedi and Kiplagat seized total control on the Brookline Ave. stretch through Coolidge Corner.
Obiri and Lokedi were stride-for-stride in the race to Kenmore Square as the boisterous crowd lent its support to this epic battle of wills. Obiri let her track background takeover with a surge as they passed Fenway Park and Lokedi had no response.
“I was fun to compete with everyone in the field and Boston is not easy,” said Lokedi. “I am glad that we started well and finished well and getting a last push from Edna and Hellen was good.”
Eden Rainbow-Cooper, a 22-year-old upstart from Great Britain wearing bib No. 107, staged a competitive run in the wheelchair race with a winning time of 1:35:11, well ahead of her personal best 1:47:27. The victory was Rainbow-Cooper’s first Abbott Marathon Majors win. She also became the first wheelchair racer from England to win at Boston.
“My first marathon was just over two years ago so to have that much progression in a short amount of time is beyond my wildest dreams,” said Rainbow-Cooper.
