Kipchoge clocks 2:01:09 for world record in Berlin Marathon

By CIARÁN FAHEY
AP Sports Writer

BERLIN (AP) — Two-time Olympic champion Eliud Kipchoge has bettered his own world record in the Berlin Marathon. The Kenyan runner clocked 2:01:09 to shave 30 seconds off his previous best-mark of 2:01:39 set at the same course in 2018. Ethiopia’s Tigist Assefa unexpectedly won the women’s race in a course record of 2:15:37 – 18 minutes faster than she had ever run before. It was the third fastest time ever. Conditions in the German capital were ideal for fast racing. Some 45,527 runners from 157 nations were registered to take part in the first Berlin Marathon without restrictions since the coronavirus pandemic began.