Swiss wheelchair athletes triumph in London Marathon

Marcel Hug and Catherine Debrunner both won their races by large margins. Keystone

For the second year in a row, Marcel Hug has achieved the so-called marathon double with triumphs in Boston and eight days later in London. The wheelchair athlete from canton Thurgau notched up his fifth win in the British capital.

Hug, who had triumphed a week earlier in Boston with a course record and a large lead, took victory in the London Marathon on Sunday in a time of 1:28:35. This put him 31 seconds ahead of American Daniel Romanchuk, who took second place.

There was also triumph for the Swiss in the women’s race. Catherine Debrunner won in 1:38:55, more than six minutes ahead of Lucerne native, Manuela Schär, who had already taken second place in Boston on the previous Sunday.

It was Debrunner’s second victory in the London Marathon after one in October 2022. Last year, the 29-year-old from canton Thurgau finished third, three seconds behind Madison de Rozario, the winner from Australia.

Alongside the Swiss athletes, Kenyan runners provided the highlights of the London Marathon. In the men’s race, Alexander Mutiso triumphed in 2:04:01, 14 seconds ahead of the 41-year-old three-time Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele from Ethiopia.

Just over half an hour earlier, Kenyan Olympic marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir had set a world record in an all-women’s race in 2:16:16. The 30-year-old beat the record by 45 seconds, which was also set in London, by her compatriot Mary Keitany in 2017.

Adapted from German by DeepL/dkk

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