Kenya’s Peres Jepchirchir pips Ethiopia’s Tigst Asset to gold in WCA Women’s marathon in Tokyo

The 2025 World Athletics Championships got underway in Tokyo on Saturday and Sunday morning saw the final of the Women’s Marathon. 

The race kicked off 30 minutes early in a bid to beat the heat but the morning was still a humid 28 degrees. 

Ethiopia’s three runners led the pack as it headed out of the stadium for a grueling 41 km circuit around the Japanese capital. 

More than two hours and twenty minutes later, Ethiopia’s Tigst Asset and Kenya’s Peres Jepchirchir re-entered the National Stadium neck-and-neck, both picking up the pace as the finish line came into view. 

World record holder Asset initially took the lead in the 100 metre sprint but Jepchirchir found a last reserve of energy that saw her sail past her rival to the finish with a time of 2:24:43 – 2 seconds ahead of Asset. 

It was déjà vu for both women. Jepchirchir took gold in the same stadium at the delayed Olympics in 2021. 

Asset also narrowly missed out on first place at last year’s Olympics in Paris. 

Uruguay’s Julia Paternain came third with a time of 2:27:23.