by Clay Shaw and Karen Mitchell

Boston, Massachusetts, April 17, 2023—Don’t bet against Evans Chebet! It’s not often that a defending champ is not the big pre-race story. Chebet, the 2022 Boston and New York City Marathon champion, was somewhat overlooked due to the presence of World Record holder Eliud Kipchoge. But with patience and confidence he won again, in 2:05:54.

After the race he said, “I’m happy because I know this race. Because I won it last year and this year. So maybe next year I’ll come back again and win it, too.” Asked if he had thought he could beat Kipchoge he said: “Eliud was not so much of a threat because the bottom line was that we [Chebet and his training partner Benson Kipruto] trained well. Our confidence in the quality of our training made us feel good about taking on this race.”

Gabriel Geay of Tanzania moved up from fourth in 2022 to second in 2023, finishing in 2:06:04. Chebet’s training partner and 2021 Boston Marathon champion Benson Kipruto was third in 2:06:06.

Albert Korir of Kenya, the 2021 NYC Marathon champion, was fourth in 2:08:01. Zouhair Talbi of Morocco, who ran for Oklahoma City University, was fifth in his marathon debut in 2:08:35. World record holder Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya was sixth in 2:09:23. Kipchoge had a rare (for him) unequal split, over five minutes slower during the second half.

Scott Fauble of Flagstaff, AZ, was first USA finisher and seventh overall in 2:09:44. Fauble, who knows the Boston course well, ran strong throughout and passed Utah’s Conner Mantz in the final mile. Matthew McDonald of Cambridge, MA finished tenth in 2:10:17 and was second American. Mantz was eleventh in only his second marathon, in 2:10:25. Twenty-eight men broke 2:19 in the extremely deep field. Fernando Cabada of Aurora, CO was top master in 2:23:01. Anthony Bruns of Denver was second in 2:23:39.

After her marathon debut in New York in November, Hellen Obiri of Kenya learned patience. Obiri ran with a large pack that went out quite slowly. Maegan Krifchin in her “cheetah outfit” led at 5K in 17:48. A large pack went through the half way split in 1:11:29. The top five would all record faster second halves, with a strong sense of patience and pace. With a mile to go Obiri had waited long enough, and sprinted away from a trio of competitors. She zipped around the last mile in 5:00, earning a 12-second victory in 2:21:38.

After the race, Obiri was asked whether she was surprised by her victory. She answered: “I was feeling like my body was ready and everything was ready. And I said to myself, I can’t do it in front. If I can just wait . . . wait . . . because my coach told me that the marathon is about patience. So, I tried to be patient until the right time.”

Asked about her patience vs. Kipchoge in the men’s race: “When it comes to running a marathon, anything can happen. It’s a long, long way and it was a strong field, and anyone was there to win. You come to the race prepared to race. Everyone comes to the race prepared to win, not just Eliud.”

Amane Beriso of Ethiopia, who won Valencia and an Ethiopian national record in 2:14:58, was second in 2:21:50. Lonah Salpeter of Israel was third in 2:21:57. Ababel Yeshaneh of Ethiopia, who took a tumble in the final miles, got up and finished fourth in 2:22:00.

Emma Bates of Boulder, CO was fifth and top American, running her best marathon ever, in 2:22:10. (Only Shalane Flanagan 2:22:04 in 2014, has run faster in Boston among American women.)

Talking to the media after the race, Bates was asked about training on a replica course. She said, “Yeah, so me and my four teammates ran the same course out in Boulder, so we were able to really simulate the downhills, and I think that’s what helped me the most, the downhills, just to be able to make sure that the quads would be able to take that beating and then be able to hit the uphill like we did.”

On placing herself in the first pack: “Yeah, that wasn’t the plan at all; my coach really wanted me to focus on that second pack and to let the top girls battle it out, and then pounce in the end. But I just felt so good the whole time and I got to Mile 20 and was still in the lead, and I was looking at my coach who was at Mile 20 and I was just like ‘I don’t know, I guess I’m in the front,’ and he was like ‘just go for it, just go for it,’ and so instincts just kind of kicked in and that’s where I was. It just felt right today.”

American Aliphine Tuliamuk of Flagstaff, AZ, was second American and eleventh overall, and had a personal best of 2:24:37. Nell Rojas of Boulder, CO was third American in 2:24:51 and also had a personal best. Sara Hall of Flagstaff, AZ turned 40 on Saturday and gave herself a birthday present of top master and fourth American, in 2:25:48.

The women’s elite field was huge and ran extremely strong, with the top twenty women running sub 2:29.

Marcel Hug of Switzerland simply lived up to his “Silver Bullet” nickname and set a Boston Marathon record of 1:17:06. It’s a world record, but not, as the Boston course is ineligible due to its net downhill course.

Asked about his victory, Hug said: “I’m just so happy with the race today. It was difficult in these conditions, especially with the rain, but I’m happy I was prepared for rain. Everything went perfect.”

On keeping up his pace: “I just tried to go fast from the beginning with the first downhill. After the downhills I was alone and tried to keep my pace as good as possible and go as fast as possible. It’s incredible in these conditions, with headwinds, crosswinds and rain, to do a time like this. For me it’s incredible.”

Susannah Scaroni of Urbana, IL won her first Boston Marathon in her ninth finish. Her time was a scorching 1:41:45, despite having to stop to fix her wheel in Natick. After the race she talked to the media.

On having to fix her wheel in Natick: “This course is pretty bumpy . . . especially, well mostly all of it . . . and my right wheel came loose. I had a kit with me, so I pulled over and tightened it as quickly as I could and got back into the race. I just hoped I could maybe maintain a gap, but that’s exactly what happened. I’m so happy it didn’t get loose again.”

On the race: “So I carry an allen key for situations like that, pulled over, tightened it as quickly as I could and just got back to as fast a pace as I could, similar to Marcel.”

How it feels to get a victory: ” . . . the Boylston crowds were amazing . . . I love being here and I always try to go as fast as I can, so I’m just really happy after this.”

26,598 finished the 127th running of the Boston Marathon. It was 49 degrees with damp conditions, wet roads, and on and off downpours. Your photographers didn’t care (actually not us, but the cameras) for the downpours, but it was so much better than 2018.

Full Results

Top Women

1. 2:21:38 Hellen Obiri, 33, Kenya
2. 2:21:50 Amane Beriso, 31, Ethiopia
3. 2:21:57 Lonah Salpeter, 34, Israel
4. 2:22:00 Ababel Yeshaneh, 31, Ethiopia
5. 2:22:10 Emma Bates, 30, Boulder, CO
6. 2:23:25 Nazret Weldu, 33, Eritrea
7. 2:24:12 Angela Tanui, 30, Kenya
8. 2:24:30 Hiwot Gebremaryam, 27, Ethiopia
9. 2:24:33 Mary Ngugi, 34, Kenya
10. 2:24:34 Gotytom Gebreslase, 28, Ethopia
11. 2:24:37 Aliphine Tuliamuk, 34, Flagstaff, AZ
12. 2:24:44 Joyciline Jepkosgei, 29, Kenya
13. 2:24:49 Viola Cheptoo, 34, Kenya
14. 2:24:51 Nell Rojas, 35, Boulder, CO
15. 2:24:58 Nienke Brinkman, 29, Netherlands
16. 2:25:07 Celestine Chepchirchir, 27, Kenya
17. 2:25:48 Sara Hall, 40, Flagstaff, AZ
18. 2:27:18 Desiree Linden, 39, Charlevoix, MI
19. 2:28:12 Vibian Chepkirui 28, Kenya
20. 2:28:45 Annie Frisbie, 26, Hopkins, MN
21. 2:30:14 Atsede Baysa, 36, Ethiopia
22. 2:30:52 Anna Rohrer, 26, Carmel, IN
23. 2:31:08 Sydney Devore, 31, Ferndale, MI
24. 2:31:19 Maggie Montoya, 27, Boulder, CO
25. 2:31:32 Anne-Marie Blaney, 29, Rochester ills, MI
26. 2:32:46 Maegan Krifchin, 35, Marietta, GA
27. 2:33:53 Dakotah Lindwurm, 27, St Francis, MN
28. 2:33:57 Erka Kemp, 28, Allston, MA
29. 2:34:30 Savanah Berry, 27, Orem, UT
30. 2:34:35 Laura Thweatt, 34, Superior, CO

Top Men

1. 2:05:54 Evans Chebet, 34, Kenya
2. 2:06:04 Gabriel Geay, 26, Tanzania
3. 2:06:06 Benson Kipruto, 32, Kenya
4. 2:08:01 Albert Korir, 29, Kenya
5. 2:08:35 Zouhair Talbi, 28, Morocco
6. 2:09:23 Eliud Kipchoge, 38, Kenya
7. 2:09:44 Scott Fauble, 31, Flagstaff, AZ
8. 2:09:46 Hassan Chahdi, 33, France
9. 2:10:04 John Korir, 26, Kenya
10. 2:10:17 Matthew McDonald, 29. Cambridge, MA
11. 2:10:25 Conner Mantz, 26, Provo, UT
12. 2:10:33 CJ Albertson, 29, Fresno, CA
13. 2:10:52 Nico Montanez, 29, Mammoth Lakes, CA
14. 2:11:26 Shura Kitata, 26, Ethiopia
15. 2:11:50 Andualem Belay, 31, Ethiopia
16. 2:12:22 Hendrick Pfeiffer, 30, Germany
17. 2:13:27 JP Flavin, 24, Rochester Hills, MI
18. 2:13:57 Turner Wiley, 30, Issaquah, WA
19. 2:14:08 Isaac Mpofu, 34, Zimbawbe
20. 2:14:13 Chad Hall, 34, San Diego, CA
21. 2:14:27 Colin Mickow, 33, Oswego, IL
22. 2:14:37 Mark Korir, 34, Kenya
23. 2:16:06 Ben True, 37, West Lebanon, NH
24. 2:16:25 Connor Weaver, 27, Lewisville, TX
25. 2:17:05 Jonas Hampton, 34, Newtonville, MA
26. 2:17:55 Ian Butler, 31, Lakewood, CO
27. 2:18:04 Edward Mulder, 30, Boston, MA
28. 2:18:23 Joseph Whelan, 32, Webster, NY
29. 2:20:08 Zachary Ornelas, 31, Ann Arbor, MI
30. 2:20:20 Sam Chelanga, 38, Colorado Springs, CO

Top Wheelchair Women

1. 1:41:45 Susannah Scaroni, 31, Urbana, IL
2. 1:46:55 Madison De Rozario, 29, Australia
3. 1:47:04 Wakako Tsuchida, 48, Japan

Top Wheelchair Men

1. 1:17:06 Marcel Hug, 37, Switzerland
2. 1:27:45 Daniel Romanchuk, 24, Mt Airy, MD
3. 1:28:35 Jetze Plat, 31, Netherlands

Categories: Race Coverage

Tags: 2023, Boston Marathon, Boston Marathon 2023, featured