Chicago Marathon 2024: Ruth Chepng'etich and Birhanu Legese on headlining elite field
Wheelchair stars Marcel Hug and Catherine Debrunner look to defend their Chicago Marathon titles after Paris 2024 wins
Athletics
Nearly 50,000 runners are set for the 2024 Chicago Marathon on Sunday (13 October), with Kenya’s Ruth Chepng'etich seeking a third career win in the event, while the sixth-fastest man in history, Ethiopia’s Birhanu Legese, seeks his first title.
“I feel good coming back to this Chicago Marathon. This is my fourth year, so it’s like home [for me],” Chepng’etich told us at the pre-race press conference. “On Sunday, I want to run a beautiful race.”
The Kenyan last won here in 2022. Dutch Olympic champion Sifan Hassan, the Paris 2024 marathon gold medallist, took the win in the women’s event last year, clocking 2:13:44.
Legese hasn’t raced in Chicago since 2018, when he finished a disappointing 10th place.
“I actually prepared really well last time when I ran here six years ago, but in the morning, I didn’t eat a breakfast that agreed with my stomach very well,” explained Legese. “Because of that, it really impacted my race and I felt quite sick throughout.
“So, the biggest lesson I’m taking from that first time is to have a light breakfast,” he continued. “I think I’ll perform much better this time.”
This week, he’s one of the favourites, giving him a golden opportunity to erase the memories of that bad breakfast.
Four-time and reigning Chicago champion in the wheelchair division, Marcel Hug, is back in the Windy City, looking for a fifth title after a busy season that includes gold at the Paralympics in August and the Berlin Marathon two weeks ago.
“I’m still a little bit tired, mentally, since Paris,” admitted Hug. “We get a lot of energy here, which is great motivation, so I’m really looking forward [to the race].”
Asked for the key to another victory, Hug joked it would take beating American Daniel Romanchuk, the Paralympic winner in the men’s 5000m T54.
2023 women’s wheelchair winner Catherine Debrunner, who won five gold medals at Paris 2024, is eager to defend her title in Chicago, though she’s also got something else on her mind after her successful season.
“After Chicago, I’ll take a holiday, and I’m really looking forward to it,” she said. “But I didn’t want to miss Chicago. I really like this marathon. I’m really looking forward to doing one last good race… and making a good end to the season.”
In 2023, Kenya’s Kelvin Kiptum won the men’s race in world record time of 2:00:35. The 24-year-old tragically died in February in a car accident. Kiptum was honoured by event organisers prior to the start of Friday’s press conference.
“It’s at the top,” said Carey Pinkowski, the race director, of Kiptum’s record-setting race. “He put Chicago front and centre again. He re-energised the city, the event, with that historic performance.”