Kenyans Kipsang, Keitany win NYC Marathon

Kenyans Wilson Kipsang and Mary Keitany surged at the finish to win Sunday’s New York City Marathon, holding off rivals over the closing strides in Central Park for narrow triumphs. Kipsang, making his New York debut, held off Lelisa Desisa, the 2013 Boston Marathon winner, to win in an official time of two hours 10 minutes and 55 seconds, defeating the Ethiopian by 11 seconds with Ethiopia’s Gebre Gebremariam third in 2:12:13. In the last half mile in Central Park, Desisa snuck ahead of Kipsang, who turned on a final burst to claim a victory in the 26.2-mile race that was worth $600,000 to the Kenyan. Keitany, competing in her first marathon since finishing fourth at the 2012 London Olympics while one month pregnant with her second child, won in 2:25:07 with compatriot Jemima Sumgong three seconds back and Portugal’s Sara Moreira third in 2:26:00.

I saved some energy for that final sprint. I knew in the final 100 meters he couldn’t beat me.

Wilson Kipsang

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