Bernard Biwott ran a brilliantly executed tactical race at the Frankfurt Marathon to clinch victory in a time of 2:05:54 ahead of Ethiopia’s Gossa Challa.
The Kenyan started strongly, being among the 17 runners in the leading group, as he maintained his pace gracefully.
By the 5k split with a time of 14:50, the group was still on course to run towards a finishing time slightly over 2:05:00 which was 31, seconds shy of the targeted sub 2:05.
On the15km mark, the pacesetters surged slightly ahead with just one athlete, Ethiopia’s Gossa Challa, behind them while the the chasing pack trailed by a couple of seconds still being in the thick of it.
Nearing the 20km mark, Kenya’s Elisha Rotich dropped out of the leading group trailing by a couple of metres, leaving Biwott to lead the Kenyan charge.
The Kenyan bid his time brilliantly, settling comfortably behind Challa half-way through, as seven Ethiopians and three Kenyans made up the leading group.
By the 30km mark, the main contenders left in the leading group were still patient, with no major move made yet as Biwott continued to stride gracefully.
As the pacesetters exited the course past the 30km mark, Biwott made his move, taking the lead with only Challa able to follow him, running right behind the debutant.
Leave a Reply