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at 2012 Bank of America Chicago Marathon
Kenyan Women Look to End 10-Year Winless Streak in Chicago
CHICAGO – The Bank of America Chicago Marathon today announced that two
of the fastest female marathon runners in the world will compete in the
October 7 race, as sub-2:20 performers Lucy Kabuu and Florence Kiplagat,
both of Kenya, will match strides on Chicago’s flat and fast course.
Kabuu currently has the No. 3-ranked performance of the year and No. 14
all-time after her 2:19:34 at the Dubai Marathon in January; while
Kiplagat is ranked No. 18 all-time after winning the 2011 BMW Berlin
Marathon in 2:19:44.
“Lucy and Florence are two of the most exciting athletes in the sport,”
said Executive Race Director Carey Pinkowski. “They are both relatively
new to the marathon, which, combined with what they have accomplished on
the track and in cross country, promises a very bright future ahead.
The Bank of America Chicago Marathon is a course that will suit them
well and I think these two athletes will push each other to even greater
heights.”
Kabuu is a two-time Olympian with top 10 finishes in the 10,000 meters
at the 2004 and 2008 Games. After breaking from competition in 2009 and
2010 to recover from injury and start a family, she turned her attention
to the roads and found immediate success. Dubai was her first marathon,
and her debut ranks as the second fastest all-time (behind marathon
world record-holder Paula Radcliffe). In April, she placed fifth at the
2012 Virgin London Marathon, narrowly missing out on making her third
Olympic team.
Kiplagat is Kenya’s 10,000 meter record-holder (30:11.53) and has won
two gold medals on the world stage-the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country
title (long course) and the 2010 IAAF World Half Marathon title. After
she was unable to finish the 2011 Boston Marathon, Kiplagat conquered
the marathon distance in Berlin, besting stalwarts Paula Radcliffe of
Great Britain and Irina Mikitenko of Germany for the win. Her bid to
make her first Olympics fell agonizingly short; with the top three
finishers qualifying for the Kenyan team, she placed fourth in her
country’s marathon trials (2012 London Marathon) and 10,000 meter
trials.
It was also announced that Kenya’s Caroline Rotich, the fourth place
finisher from the 2011 Boston Marathon with a personal best of 2:24:26,
will compete in her first Bank of America Chicago Marathon.
Incredibly, it has been 10 years since a Kenyan woman broke the finish
tape in Chicago-that being Catherine Ndereba in 2001 in a then-world
record of 2:18:47. In fact, since Ndereba’s runner-up performance the
following year, a Kenyan woman has not finished among Chicago’s top
three, and only Joyce Chepchumba (fourth, 2004) has finished among the
top five. This trio of Kenyan athletes will look to put an end to the
winless streak at the 2012 event.
About the 2012 Bank of America Chicago Marathon
Celebrating its 35th year and a member of the World Marathon Majors, the
Bank of America Chicago Marathon annually attracts 45,000 participants,
including a world-class elite runner and wheelchair field, and an
estimated 1.7 million spectators. As a result of its national and
international draw, each year, the iconic race assists in raising
millions of dollars for a variety of charitable causes while generating
$170 million in economic impact to its host city according to a report
by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Regional Economics
Applications Laboratory (R.E.A.L.). The 2012 Bank of America Chicago
Marathon will start and finish in Chicago’s Grant Park beginning at 7:30
a.m. on Sunday, October 7. In advance of the race, a two-day Health
& Fitness Expo will be held at McCormick Place Convention Center on
Friday, October 5, and Saturday, October 6.
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