I don't think Kiplimo breaks 2 hours either. The odds are long for anyone.
But his half-marathon time last Feb was seriously off the charts, and he has other parallels with Ruth Chepngetich. This certainly makes Chicago a race to follow closely.
The 2025 Chicago Marathon is set to deliver high drama. Can the American men’s record finally be broken? What about the world record or even challenge the sub-2 barrier? Here’s what to watch for.
I don't think Kiplimo breaks 2 hours either. The odds are long for anyone.
But his half-marathon time last Feb was seriously off the charts, and he has other parallels with Ruth Chepngetich. This certainly makes Chicago a race to follow closely.
We're now 10 days out, so we're getting more accurate forecasts. Looks like ~56F/13C at 7am, up to 63F/17 by 10. Maybe a touch warmer than theoretically optimal conditions, but still pretty good, we should see some fast times
I live in the Chicago suburbs. Today it is 85 degrees. The forecast is for temperatures to drop by the middle of next week. Temps at race start should be okay and for the race leaders, but if you’re a 4 hour marathoner it could be a very long day
Id like to throw ben felton in there as a bit of a curveball for the win. Not sure why hes flown under the radar so much??? Probably a racism thing as I know this board always suspects brits of doping. Anyway, I think his recent 30:22 10k i indicates top shape, he certainly has the short distance speed to stay at the front up to 20 miles even at sub 2 pace, its all a strength game from there though. Whether he wins or not it'll be great to see a brit towing the line with an alltimer like kiplimo, should make for a cracking vlog too. He could maybe even attack the sub 2 hour barrier as well! Can't wait to see that handsome sexy face smiling down the selfie stick, striding into history one gut busting step at a time. Inspirational stuff indeed...
This post was edited 3 minutes after it was posted.
We're now 10 days out, so we're getting more accurate forecasts. Looks like ~56F/13C at 7am, up to 63F/17 by 10. Maybe a touch warmer than theoretically optimal conditions, but still pretty good, we should see some fast times
I think Kiplimo has a real shot to go sub 2:01 in Chicago if those temperatures hold true. He ran London Marathon exactly 10 weeks after his WR half of 56:42. I imagine that London wasn't the goal race to start the year, and given he probably needed a week to recover from Barcelona, and a week of taper prior to London. His time of 2:03:37 off of 8 weeks of marathon specific training in less than ideal temperature conditions, we probably didn't see him running at his real potential. Kiplimo has had 24 weeks since London to grow his base and sharpen up for a flat and fast marathon in Chicago. If the lead pack is ready to push hard and split the first half in 1:00:30-1:01:00, we could see something special out of Kiplimo. Sub 2:00 just seems unlikely given the time for the progression needed. Assuming that Kiplimo's potential going into London was 2:01-mid in ideal conditions with a solid marathon specific build, it's not outrageous to assume he could follow Kiptum's progression leading into Chicago. Kiptum went 2:01:53(Debut) > 20 weeks(London) > 2:01:25 > 24 weeks(Chicago) 2:00:35
The credibility of any near two or sub two effort is laughable given the state of the sport and the number of current suspensions of supposedly”world class” athletes. I don’t even really wanna watch anymore because I know it’s farcical. most of these athletes, if not, all are not even aware of the designer drugs and masking agents that they are taking, and they’re just being used as tools in money, making schemes loading the pockets of often racist abusers. It’s possible that the current world record holders brakes conveniently failed when the massive and prolific drug program was about to be revealed. May his soul rest in peace.
It looks like it will be low 60s in the forecast. I think Kiplimo can do it with 50ish weather and another marathon or 2 under his belt. But for now, I think simply winning is the primary goal against such a tough field.
