Kenya's Brigid Kosgei smashes women's marathon world record
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New women's marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei of Kenya poses with the former record holder Paula Radcliffe of Britain after Kosgei completed the 2019 Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 13, 2019. COURTESY: TWITTER/Chicago Marathon

New women's marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei of Kenya poses with the former record holder Paula Radcliffe of Britain after Kosgei completed the 2019 Chicago Marathon on Sunday, October 13, 2019. COURTESY: TWITTER/Chicago Marathon

Kenya’s Brigid Kosgei smashed the women's marathon world record after winning the 2019 women's Chicago Marathon on Sunday in a time of 2:14:04.

Britain's Paula Radcliffe held the world record for the last 16 years after she ran in a time of 2:15:25 at the London Marathon in 2003. The new record is 71 seconds faster than Radcliffe's time.

Kosgei's victory also saw her defend her title which she won in a time of 2:18:35.

The Kenyan finished ahead of Ethiopian duo Ababel Yeshaneh and Gelete Burka who came second and third respectively in times of 2:20:51 and 2:20:55.

25-year-old Kosgei, the reigning London Marathon champion, covered the first 5km in an astonishing 15:28. She would then cross the halfway mark in a time of 1:06:59 meaning she would have finished in 2:14:00, well inside Radcliffe’s record.

Last month, Kosgei set a world best half marathon time to win the Great North Run finishing the race in one hour four minutes 28 seconds.

Kosgei's achievement comes a day after her compatriot Eliud Kipchoge became the first athlete to run a marathon in less than two hours after he completed the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in a time of 1:59:40 in Vienna, Austria.

Meanwhile, Kenya's Lawrence Cherono won the men's marathon in an unofficial time of 2:05.45 beating Ethiopian duo Dejene Debela and Asefa Mengstu.

Source(s): IAAF