The 43rd London Marathon is scheduled for April 23, 2023, with a number of elite distance runners registering to compete in the annual London marathon. The elite men’s race is expected to feature four of the five fastest long-distance runners in the world.
The race organizers confirmed the participation of over ten elite athletes of both sexes in tomorrow’s competition. Among them are Kenenisa Bekele, Berhanu Legesse, Mosnet Geremew, Berhanu Legesse, and Kelvin Kiptum. Kenenisa, who has won multiple Olympic medals, and Kiptum, who in his first marathon ran the fastest time in history at the Valencia Marathon, are expected to dominate the competition.
Amos Kipruto, the winner of the London Marathon in 2022, will also compete in this year’s event, hoping for a second consecutive victory. Tamrat Tola, the gold medalist at the 2022 World Athletics Championship marathon, and Leul Gebre Selassie, the runner-up at the 2022 London Marathon, are among the top elite athletes participating in the race.
Geoffrey Kamworor, a two-time winner of the New York City Marathon, is among the highly regarded athletes, while Mo Farah will make his final appearance in London.
The women’s race also features an abundance of elite long-distance athletes, featuring five runners with a personal best time of less than 2:18 and 10 runners with a personal best time of less than 2:19.
Yalemzerf Yehualaw, Almaz Ayana, and Genzebe Dibaba have been confirmed to lead Ethiopia in the London marathon. The competition features world record holder Brigid Kosgei of Kenya and 2020 Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir.
Yalemzerf won the London marathon in 2022 and currently holds the world record for the 10-kilometer road race. She achieved second place on the world’s all-time half marathon list and 10th on the world’s all-time marathon list. Her personal best at the Hamburg marathon was 2:17:23.
Almaz Ayana, the 2016 Olympic gold medallist and 10-kilometer world record holder, is currently focusing on road races. In spite of being unable to compete for the past few years due to injury, she ran the fastest marathon debut in Amsterdam in October of last year. She is one of many Ethiopians participating in the London marathon.
The renowned middle-distance runner Genzebe Dibaba has begun to compete in road races. The holder of the 1500-meter world record with a time of 3:50:07 and the 2015 1500-meter world champion, Genzebe, placed second behind Ayana, who ran 2:18:05 in her debut marathon in Amsterdam.
Sifan Hassan, who won the 5000- and 10,000-meter races at the 2016 Olympics, is also vying for a podium finish. She is scheduled to compete in her first marathon after announcing her intention to run the distance for the first time. Sutume Kebede, a veteran marathoner, and Alemu Megartu are also listed as contenders with the best personal times.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s race will be the first since 2019 to be held in the spring, after the previous three races were held in the fall. The winner of the elite competition will receive USD 55,000, and the top 10 finishers will receive prizes, according to the organizer.
