Sifan Hassan outpaced back-to-back defending champion Ruth Chepngetich to win the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, Oct. 8. Her time of 2:13:44 beats the course record and one-time world record of 2:14.04, set in 2019 by Brigid Kosgei.
Hassan, of the Netherlands, would be the new world record holder were it not for Tigist Assefa’s stunning 2:11.53 set in Berlin two weeks ago.
The win is only Hassan’s second-ever marathon; the thirty-year-old made her debut this April winning the London Marathon with a stunning comeback after hip pain saw her trailing the frontrunners and twice forced her to stop and stretch.
Previously a middle-distance runner, Hassan is the reigning Olympic champion in the 5000 and 10000 metres, and also won bronze in the 1500 metres in Tokyo. She also held the world mile record from 2019 until July of this year, when Faith Kipyegon broke it by nearly five seconds with a time of 4:07.64.
“Just so grateful, I’m so happy!” said Hassan after the race, “but the last five kilometers I was telling myself, never run a marathon again, it was so painful!”
“[But] I just love it. The pain and the time, you’re going to hurt, but the way you finish, you want to do it again…it is so amazing, I can’t describe how I feel!”