Ruth Chepngetich of Kenya set a new world record in the women’s marathon at the 2024 edition of the Chicago Marathon held on October 13, 2024.

She finished in two hours, nine minutes and 56 seconds.

Ruth lowered the world record by nearly two minutes from the previous mark of 2:11:53 set by Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa at Berlin Marathon in 2023. Her timing at the Chicago Marathon on Sunday was also a huge improvement in her personal best, which stood at 2:14:18 previously.

In the men’s race, Kenyan runner John Korir was the winner with timing of 2:02:44.

Ruth later said she was dedicating her world record win to her compatriot Kelvin Kiptum who holds the world record for the men’s marathon. He had set the record at the 2023 edition of the Chicago Marathon. Kelvin and his coach Gervais Hakizimana died in a car accident in February 2024.

(The author, Latha Venkatraman, is an independent journalist based in Mumbai)