Chicago listens to LetsRun? Chicago adds 4 sub 2:07 guys to take on Galen Rupp

I've updated the chart that compares Chicago to the recent WMMs in terms of PRs.https://twitter.com/letsrundotcom/status/910555473333686274Today's full press release appears below.

rojo wrote:

Your welcome world. Chicago has added some much needed depth to its 2017 field.

Maybe, but....if you look at elite fields for Chicago for the last few years, it changes after the first press release announcing who is running. Some years, it changes a lot.

Ahem, how are guys who have run 6 to 3-1/2 minutes faster than Rupp taking him on? It is the other way around. In his three prior marathons Rupp was spent the last few miles; he kept looking for the finish at the trials, he hung on in Rio, and he hung on in Boston. I would expect the same, the main difference is that Rupp will likely have to run 3 minutes faster to win. But a 2:09 seems likely to be good enough to be top three--no pacers ... unless some of these new guys are secret pacers hired by Nike to break wind for Rupp ... seems like.

You're welcome world. Chicago has added some much needed depth to its 2017 field.

The following men have been added.

Name / Country / PB / Yr

Stanley Biwott (KEN) - 2:03:51 (London, 2016)

Feyisa Lilesa (ETH) - 2:04:52 (Chicago, 2012)

Ezekiel Chebii (KEN) - 2:06:07 (Amsterdam, 2016)

Bernard Kipyego (KEN)- 2:06:19 (Amsterdam, 2015)

PRs are nice and it's good that there are 4 more bodies. The question now is what type of form are they in. Let's take a look.

While Biwott ran 2:03 in London last year, he hasn't finished a marathon since. He was a DNF at the Olympics, then withdrew before London this year with a 'persistent hamstring injury.' He has one race result this year - a 4th place 65:54 finish in a half marathon at altitude in Bogota on July 30th (race was won by Lilelsa in 64:30).

As for Lilesa, after beating Rupp for silver in Rio, he was only 12th in London in 2:14:12. However, after winning in Bogota, he also was third at Great North Run on September 10 in 61:32. He seems to be in good shape as in that race, David Monti reports "his shoe was stepped on at the start, knocking it off, and he had to go back through the masses, find his shoe, put it on, then weave through the masses to get back upt to the front. "

The 26-year old Chebii adds some depth. He's never run a major before but has been 2nd in Amsterdam. His 2:06:07 pb last year in Amsterdam only got him 5th. Since then, this year, he was the winner at Lake Biwa in 2:09:06. Most recently, he was only 11th in Lille on September 2nd in 62;%1.

The 31-year old Kipyego, who won Amsterdam in 2014 and 2015, returns to Chicago where he was third in 2011 (2:06:29) and 6th in 2012 (2:06:40). Earlier this year, he was 6th in Tokyo in 2:08:10. In 2016, he ran 2:07:33 in Tokyo (2nd) and 2:06:45 in Amsterdam (8th).

The women's field has added the following:

Brigid Kosgei (KEN) 2:24:54 (Lisbon, 2016)

Maegan Krifchin (USA) 2:33:30 (Hamburg, 2015)

Without pacers this race will likely be won in 2:07:xx, maybe 2:06 if someone really takes off. I think Rupp is capable of running 2:07. Should be interesting.......

Don't know much about history wrote:

rojo wrote:

Your welcome world. Chicago has added some much needed depth to its 2017 field.

Maybe, but....if you look at elite fields for Chicago for the last few years, it changes after the first press release announcing who is running. Some years, it changes a lot.

Whoa, be careful, you might hurt that snowflake Rojo's feelings by pointing out that nobody at the Chicago Marathon pays any attention to him/this website. Fields get updated all the time.

Not taken on wrote:

Ahem, how are guys who have run 6 to 3-1/2 minutes faster than Rupp taking him on? It is the other way around.

Most of the sub 2:07 guys on this list have not been in top form recently. Plus this will likely be a tactical (or at least semi-tactical) race, which Rupp has excelled at.

It should be a great race. Biwott is a 28-low guy.

https://www.iaaf.org/athletes/kenya/stanley-kipleting-biwott-228253

snow blow wrote:

Not taken on wrote:

Ahem, how are guys who have run 6 to 3-1/2 minutes faster than Rupp taking him on? It is the other way around.

Most of the sub 2:07 guys on this list have not been in top form recently. Plus this will likely be a tactical (or at least semi-tactical) race, which Rupp has excelled at.

Well, Rupp is in 2:10 shape based on his most recent performance, and on his past performances.

No one wants to see a bunch of sub-2:07 guys go through the half in 65-66 minutes.

Is Stanley Biwott still pacing the first 30K in Berlin, or was that just a rumor?

Grammar Skool Trolls wrote:

snow blow wrote:

Most of the sub 2:07 guys on this list have not been in top form recently. Plus this will likely be a tactical (or at least semi-tactical) race, which Rupp has excelled at.

Well, Rupp is in 2:10 shape based on his most recent performance, and on his past performances.

Then it bodes well for him that last year's race was won in 2:11.

The women's field is a got damn joke, even with Kipligat in it.

Dibaba is a 2:17 marathoner and the greatest female track distance runner of all time. So you got one 2:19 marathoner to challenge her, and everyone else is around 2:22 to 2:24. LOL

She will just probably chill and sit on Kipligat for about 19 miles, then treat it like a 10000m race and blaze on out at tempo pace.

snow blow wrote:

Grammar Skool Trolls wrote:

Well, Rupp is in 2:10 shape based on his most recent performance, and on his past performances.

Then it bodes well for him that last year's race was won in 2:11.

Good point here. I may be jumping the gun on one of these guys actually running 2:07. Rupp knows how to race and hasn't had a bad marathon yet - I'd say he'll at least be in the mix.

NERunner053 wrote:

Whoa, be careful, you might hurt that snowflake Rojo's feelings by pointing out that nobody at the Chicago Marathon pays any attention to him/this website. Fields get updated all the time.

I put that "Chicago listens to LetsRun" in the title just to annoy my detractors.

Do I think I'm the reason for the additions? No. We knew Lelisa was coming . Maybe I had a role in them adding one or two of the final guys.

Do I think they read LetsRun? I'd sure hope so. Another prominent WMM race director used to give us a bit of a hard time if we didn't rank their race highly. Meb's brother also always talks to me about our previews.

Where else is the race even discussed?

If I was spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a road race, I'd certainly want to know what the fans thought about it.

rojo wrote:

If I was spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on a road race, I'd certainly want to know what the fans thought about it.

+1

They have almost no reason to pay foreign talent to show up if not for fans like us. These races would be wise to advertise heavily with LRC.

Not taken on wrote:

Ahem, how are guys who have run 6 to 3-1/2 minutes faster than Rupp taking him on? It is the other way around. In his three prior marathons Rupp was spent the last few miles; he kept looking for the finish at the trials, he hung on in Rio, and he hung on in Boston. I would expect the same, the main difference is that Rupp will likely have to run 3 minutes faster to win. But a 2:09 seems likely to be good enough to be top three--no pacers ... unless some of these new guys are secret pacers hired by Nike to break wind for Rupp ... seems like.

It's amazing you could assert so many points and manage to be wrong on literally all of them. Olympic bronze medal with consistently solid marathons makes him the favorite. Unless Lilesa is finally back to full fitness.

Rupp may run 2:09 but Culpepper ran 2:09 on that course once and finished about a mile behind the winner. Yawn.

Utah Girl Chronicles wrote:

No one wants to see a bunch of sub-2:07 guys go through the half in 65-66 minutes.

I do if it's competitive.

Plus- lets see how the weather affects [pace] strategy.