Course records broken in Tokyo

Both men’s and women’s course records were broken in the Tokyo Marathon over the weekend.

Trifi Tsegaye shaved down the course record of 2:25:12 by nearly three minutes, running 2:22:23. She bested Ethiopian compatriot Berhane Dibaba by seven seconds.

The race saw four women dip under the previous course record. The four are now ranked second through fifth in the world for 2014 with spring marathon season approaching.

“After 35K, I was determined to win the race,” said Tsegaye about her race. “My future goal includes victory at the major marathon as well as a faster time.”

The men’s race saw a similar story unfold.

Kenya’s Dickson Chumba ran 2:05:42, besting Dennis Kimetto’s course record from one year ago by about a minute. Kimetto also holds the title of running the fastest marathon debut ever and won Chicago in the fall of 2013 with a  2:03:45 course record, so breaking his record seems promising for the Kenyan.

“I am very happy. I hope to come back next year to run the Tokyo Marathon again,” Chumba told reporters after the race. “I didn’t have the confidence to run a faster time today, and I did not realise the time would be this fast until the very end.”

Tokyo is the first of six world marathon majors, being added in 2013 to the grouping that also includes Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York.