Kenyan Lawrence Cherono wins Amsterdam Marathon
Sunday October 21 2018
Lawrence Cherono gestures as he crosses the finish line to win the Amsterdam Marathon last year. Sports tourism and football talent a source of hope. FILE PHOTO | AFP
Kenya's Lawrence Cherono on Sunday retained his Amsterdam Marathon men's crown in a course record of 2:04:05.
He took 63 seconds off his winning time of 2:05:09 set in 2017.
"The weather was good, the wind slow and we had to run faster than last year. I thank God for giving me this talent and I hope to be here once again next year," Cherono said.
Mule Wasihu clocked 2:04:36 to finish in second place to pip fellow Ethiopian Solomon Deksisa.
Multiple world and Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele did not finish despite a good start.
Tadelech Bekele of Ethiopia retained her women's title after coming home in a time of 2:23:07 ahead of her teammates Shasho Insemu (2:23:13) and Azmera Gebru (2:23:31) in an Ethiopian 1-2-3.