Kalalei wins Athens Marathon amid Kenyan sweep of top 5
Samuel Kalalei won the Athens Marathon-The Authentic on Sunday, beating Milton Rotich by just over two minutes in a Kenyan sweep of the top five.
Kalalei broke away from the pre-race favorite Rotich after the 35-kilometer mark to win the hilly course in 2 hours, 12 minutes and 17 seconds.
Rotich placed second in 2:14:18 and Jonathan Kiptoo was third in 2:16:08.
The women's race was much tighter, with 18-year-old Ethiopian Bedaru Badane winning in 2:34:18, beating Kenya's Alice Kibor Jepkemboi by four seconds. Last year's winner, Nancy Arusei of Kenya, was third in 2:34:51.
A record 18,500 runners from 100 countries started the race Sunday morning.
[AP]