Jepchirchir and Assefa remained neck and neck throughout the latter half of the 42.195 km race. In the final stretch, Assefa, the 2025 London Marathon champion, appeared to have the advantage. However, Jepchirchir unleashed a burst of speed in the last 100 m, crossing the finish line first with a time of 2 hours 24 minutes 43 seconds, a mere 2 seconds ahead of her rival.

"I didn't think I would win, but when I was 100 m from the finish line, I started to accelerate. The crowd in the stadium gave me extra energy," Jepchirchir said.

Peres Jepchirchir crosses the finish line in the women's marathon at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, 14/9/2025. Photo: Reuters

Peres Jepchirchir crosses the finish line in the women's marathon at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, 14/9/2025. Photo: Reuters

The Kenyan long-distance running star, Jepchirchir, has won marathons in New York (2021), Boston (2022), and London (2024), along with an Olympic gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Games. She previously held the women-only race record of 2 hours 16 minutes 16 seconds set at the 2024 London Marathon. Assefa broke this record at the 2025 London Marathon with a time of 2 hours 15 minutes 50 seconds.

Jepchirchir also boasts an impressive record in the half marathon, winning world championships in 2016 and 2020. She holds the women-only world record of 1 hour 5 minutes 16 seconds, achieved at the 2020 World Championships in Gdynia, Poland.

For Assefa, this marked another near-miss at a world title, mirroring her loss to Sifan Hassan at the 2024 Paris Olympics. "I predicted the race would come down to a sprint in the last 100 m. The same thing happened in Paris," the Ethiopian runner admitted after receiving the silver medal.

A surprising performance came from 25-year-old Julia Paternain of Uruguay. In only her second marathon, she finished third with a time of 2 hours 27 minutes 23 seconds, securing the first-ever world championship medal for Uruguay in athletics.

Born in Mexico and raised in the UK, Paternain competed for Great Britain before switching her nationality to Uruguay in January 2025. "I grew up in the UK, but my family is from Uruguay. It's a small country with a lot of pride, and I'm happy to bring home a medal," she stated.

American runner Susanna Sullivan led for two-thirds of the race before being overtaken by Jepchirchir and Assefa. She maintained her pace to finish fourth with a time of 2 hours 28 minutes 17 seconds.

To mitigate the intense Tokyo heat, organizers moved the marathon start time 30 minutes earlier. Despite this, the weather conditions still posed a challenge for many competitors. Japan's Kana Kobayashi finished seventh with a time of 2 hours 28 minutes 50 seconds, drawing enthusiastic support from the home crowd.

Compiled by Hong Duy