Megertu Alemu and John Korir will lead the Bank of America Chicago Marathon elite fields when they return to the World Athletics Platinum Label Road race on Sunday (12).
Kenya’s Korir, whose 2:02:44 victory last year was the second fastest time in the race’s history, showed his Chicago triumph was no fluke with a convincing win at the Boston Marathon earlier this year. The Kenyan hopes to run sub-2:01, a feat only accomplished officially by the late Kelvin Kiptum when he set the world record of 2:00:35 in Chicago in 2023.
“I am confident that I will be able to retain my title at the 2025 Bank of America Chicago Marathon this October,” said Korir, the eighth fastest man in history. “My training is going well, and I am focused on achieving another personal best.”
Korir will be joined by five other men who have broken 2:04. Kenya’s Timothy Kiplagat, second at last year’s Tokyo Marathon, is the second-fastest man in the field with a personal best of 2:02:55. Fellow Kenyans Amos Kipruto, who was third in Chicago last year, and Cybrian Kotut, who finished third in Boston, will all be vying for the podium, as will two-time Olympic marathon medallist Bashir Abdi of Belgium.
Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo, the world record-holder in the half marathon, will be contesting his second marathon to date after a runner-up finish in London in 2:03:37 earlier this year.
Two-time New York champion Geoffrey Kamworor of Kenya makes his Chicago debut after missing his PB by just 10 seconds when running 2:04:33 to win the Rotterdam Marathon in April.
Conner Mantz leads the US contingent. After running 2:05:08 earlier this year in Boston, where the course isn’t record eligible, Mantz will take aim at the US (2:05:38) and North American (2:05:36) records. Canada’s Rory Linkletter will also be targeting the latter mark. USA’s 2017 Chicago champion Galen Rupp is also in the field.
A new champion will be crowned in the women’s race, but several athletes will be returning to Chicago looking to improve on their previous outings.
Ethiopia’s Valencia Marathon champion Alemu is one of those. She finished third in Chicago in 2023, her second Marathon Majors podium finish that year, following her runner-up placing in London. She went on to place fourth in London last year, clocking a PB of 2:16:34, then came close to that in Valencia with her 2:16:49 triumph.
She’ll be joined by fellow Ethiopian Hawi Feysa, the Frankfurt Marathon champion who finished third in Tokyo earlier this year in a PB of 2:17:00.
Other contenders include their Ethiopian compatriots Bedatu Hirpa, Haven Hailu Desse and marathon debutante Ejgayehu Taye, the 2023 world 10,000m bronze medallist.
Joining the four sub-2:20 runners Alemu, Feysa, Hirpa and Desse are Kenya’s Mary Ngugi-Cooper, who has a PB of 2:20:22 from 2022, plus Great Britain’s Calli Hauger-Thackery and USA’s Natosha Rogers.
(World Athletics)
