PIROSCHKA VAN DE WOUWGetty Images
Three months before the Tokyo Olympic Games, Eliud Kipchoge returned to his winning ways when he ran 2:04:30
to win Sunday’s
The world record-holder competed in the elite-only race with 70 runners aiming to secure an Olympic qualifying time after the majority of races were canceled or postponed due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The NN Mission Marathon was originally scheduled for April 11 in Hamburg, Germany, but the race was postponed to April 18 and relocated to a closed looped course at Twente Airport because of rising COVID-19 cases in Hamburg.
The 2016 Olympic Marathon champion ran with fellow Kenyan Jonathan Korir and a pacemaker until about 30K before he made a move that put him clear of the rest of the field. He finished more than two minutes ahead of Korir (2:06:40) and third-place finisher Goitom Kifle (2:08:07) of Eritrea.