CHICAGO — With no rabbits to set the pace, Dickson Chumba and Florence Kiplagat won 2015 Chicago Marathon titles on a beautiful morning in the Windy City. The top Americans, Deena Kastor and Luke Puskedra, ran inspiring performances - for very different reasons - to finish seventh and fifth, respectively.

Tactical First Half Sets Dickson Chumba Up For First Ever Chicago Victory; Luke Puskedra Runs 2:10 For Fifth Place

For the first time in several years, the Chicago Marathon elected to drop pace-makers with the hopes of an increase in head-to-head competition instead of the premeditated time trial. While the men opted for a slower more tactical approach, the women were off in sub-2:20 pace from the gun.

In the men’s race, favorites Sammy Kitwara and Chumba led through 5K in 15:31, though it was obvious that nobody wanted to make the pace hot. Looks were exchanged between the group of just around 20 men packed together. Enter marathon newcomer Elkanah Kibet. Tired of the slow pace, Kibet, a former NCAA All American from Auburn University and member of the U.S. Army team, established an 8 second lead by the five mile mark. It grew to 15 seconds before he was swallowed right after the 8 mile mark. (Though the television time was short and sweet, Kibet still managed to finish in seventh in 2:11:31, a fine marathon debut.)

The lead group of 10 men went through the half marathon in 1:05:13, including American Puskedra. With his six-foot-four height frame towering over the rest of the field, Puskedra ran perhaps the smartest race of his life by simply being pulled along by the experienced field. The pack remained together until right before 20 miles, when 2014 runner-up Kitwara, 2014 third-place finisher Chumba and Ethiopian Abera Kuma began to drop the hammer, including a 4:32 mile split to shake things up.

Near the mile 21, Chumba and Kitwara split from Kuma and the memory of last year looked as if it may resurface. While Eliud Kipchoge was victorious in Chicago last fall, Kitwara and Chumba fought in a sprint to the finish for second, with Kitwara edging Chumba at the line. Not this year.

Chumba made sure that that would not be the case. Two became one around the 23rd mile with Chumba charging along the pavement, Kitwara fading in the background. He established a 10 second lead and never looked back. The 2014 Tokyo Marathon winner notched his second major marathon victory by winning in 2:09:25. Kitwara finished second in 2:09:50; Sammy Ngungu edged Girmay Gebru for third, 2:10:06 to 2:10:07.

The performance of the day may have been by the unsponsored Puskedra, who almost quit the sport last fall after a disastrous marathon debut in New York. The former Nike Oregon Project member, whose contract was not renewed at the beginning of 2015, finished fifth in 2:10:24, a five minute improvement from his second go at the distance in June. Puskedra stayed with the lead pack through 20 miles until Kitwara and Chumba ramped up the pace. Instead of panicking, though, Puskedra was able to keep his composure over the final 10K.

RELATED: Luke Puskedra Almost Quit Running, Now Tackles Chicago Marathon



“With there being no pacers I think it was easier to just turn the head off,” Puskedra said. “With 10K to go I was able to just get on the pony and ride. I was all out. I was definitely sprinting. I imagined myself being Usain Bolt but probably looked like Luke Puskedra out there.”

His time of 2:10:24 makes him the third-fastest qualifier for the 2016 Olympic Trials. It is the fastest marathon by an American man, other than Dathan Ritzenhein and Meb Kelfezighi, since 2012. “I really look up to those guys,” Puskedra said. “Just to be mentioned in the same paragraph with those guys is a huge honor.”

Men's Results


WATCH: Deena Kastor and Luke Puskedra After Historic Chicago Marathon Runs PART 1

WATCH: PART 2 Deena Kastor and Luke Puskedra After Historic Chicago Marathon Runs

Half Marathon World Record-Holder Florence Kiplagat Wins Women’s Race By 10 Seconds; Deena Kastor Breaks American Master’s Record 

Even without pacers, the women’s race was a different story. A pack of seven formed almost immediately and crossed the 5K in 16:34. That same pack of seven women, including winner Florence Kiplagat, Yebrgual Melese, Birhane Dibaba, Kayoko Fukushi, Mulu Sebok, Meskerem Assefa and Amane Gobena, kept a consistent 5:31 per mile pace between 5K and 30K. Though they alternated leading, Kiplagat remained at the front of the pack until she made her move.

By 40K, Kiplagat had established a 6 second lead on Melese, and her 65:09 half marathon record speed was evident. Though a sub 2:20 marathon was not in the cards today, she crossed the finish line in 2:23:33. Melese finished runner-up 10 seconds later in 2:33:43; Dibaba third in 2:24:24, Fukushi fourth in 2:24:25 and Seboka fifth in 2:24:40.

The American record-holder Deena Kastor smashed broke another when she finished seventh in 2:27:47, her fastest marathon since 2009. 42-year-old Kastor broke Colleen De Reuck’s American master’s record of 2:28:40 in an inspiring performance leading up to the 2016 Olympic Trials.

Congrats to #TeamASICS @DeenaKastor for setting a new Masters Record of 2:27:47 at the @ChiMarathon! #ChiMarathon pic.twitter.com/TNr9RGbDLT

— ASICS America (@ASICSamerica) October 11, 2015

“I had to be flexible within the race,” Kastor said. With no specific pacer and a very specific time goal, the 2008 Olympic Bronze medalist wanted to keep people around her, but had to play off of those strangers that acted as training partners for 26.2 miles. “As the pack kind of went away from me and I had to make that choice, Do I try to go a little faster? Or stick with it and jeopardize suffering in the later miles?”

Kastor had not broken 2:30 in a marathon since placing fifth in Chicago in 2009, but kept a light racing schedule in 2015 to prepare for Chicago.

“She [Colleen De Reuck] set a benchmark that I chased wildly this summer as I stayed at home in Mammoth and trained with my teammates,” Kastor said.

“I wouldn’t have gotten up early and left Piper [her daughter] at home to get in a second training run and those little choices that I knew I had to make to put myself in position to reach this goal. And today it was just putting my head down and grinding through it.”

Kastor crossed the halfway point in 1:14:03, well ahead of De Reuck’s record. At 25K-40K she was averaging 5:36-5:40 pace and her finishing time indicates a second half negative split effort. It was a historical run for the seasoned marathon veteran.

“I kept thinking to myself all I’m asking is my best in this little chunk of window in this one morning of the entire year. This is my only time to have to do this,” Kastor said.
“We can tend to throw in the towel at many different times throughout a marathon and I wasn’t going to give myself any excuses”

Kastor now has the No. 4 ranked time entering the February Olympic Trials in Los Angeles, but is not committed to the race. Instead, she will focus on preparing her Mammoth Track Club teammates for their go at the Trials.

“I need to have that flame and passion inside burning and if that comes to me in the coming months I will definitely get on that starting line.”

American Sara Hall rounded out the top 10 by finishing in 2:31:14, a 16 minute improvement from her marathon debut in Los Angeles in March. She said after this performance she will be on the starting line at the Olympic Trials this February.

Related: Sara Hall Ready for Marathon Redemption



Women's Results