AFRIKA DOMINATES

Boston Marathon results: Kenya's Benson Kipruto, Diana Kipyogei win 2021 race


By Steve Buckley and The Athletic Staff
October 11, 2021


Kenya's Benson Kipruto and Diana Kipyogei swept the men's and women's races at the long-awaited 125th Boston Marathon on Monday morning as the event returned for the first time since April 2019.

Kipruto won in 2:09:51, 46 seconds ahead of second-place finisher Lemi Berhanu of Ethiopia. Kipyogei won in 2:24:45, 24 seconds ahead of Kenya's Edna Kiplagat.

Marcel Hug of Switzerland finished in first place in the men’s wheelchair division with an unofficial time of 1:18:11. But even though “The Swiss Silver Bullet” easily beat second-place finisher Daniel Romanchuk of the United States by nearly seven minutes, there was still some last-minute drama.

Racing to break his own course record for the Boston Marathon, which he set in 2017 with a time of 1:18:04, Hug missed a late turn as he neared the finish line. Hug was on pace to set a new record — and win a $50,000 bonus — before missing the turn.

Just 24 hours earlier, Hug and Romanchuk competed in the Chicago Marathon, with Romanchuk finishing first with a time of 1:29.06.

Switzerland's Manuela Schär won the women's wheelchair race with an unofficial time of 1:35:21, her third Boston Marathon victory after winning in 2017 and 2019. Five-time winner Tatyana McFadden finished second, one day after winning the Chicago Marathon.

The 2020 marathon was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year's race was moved from its traditional April date to October.

Shalane Flanagan, an Olympic silver medalist and New York City Marathon winner, ran in Boston a day after racing in the Chicago Marathon. With her fourth marathon in three weeks, Flanagan moved closer to running all six of the world's major marathons in the span of six weeks — Berlin, London, Chicago, Boston, Tokyo and New York. The Tokyo Marathon is virtual this year after the in-person event was canceled. The New York City Marathon is on Nov. 7.

(Photo: Jessica Rinaldi / The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

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Were there any surprises among the race winners?
How was this year's race different?
What went wrong for Hug at the end?
What happened to American C.J. Albertson, an early leader?