London Marathon 2019: Eliud Kipchoge, Brigid Kosgei Win Men's, Women's Races

Alastair Grant/Associated Press

Eliud Kipchoge successfully defended his men's London Marathon title on Sunday, winning the 2019 edition to become the first man to taste victory in the British capital on four separate occasions.

Kipchoge sat at the front of the leading group for the bulk of the race before dropping his competition and finishing solo. His time of 2:02:37 obliterated the course record and was the second-fastest in marathon history.

Brigid Kosgei dominated the women's race, finishing ahead of last year's winner, Vivian Cheruiyot.

Below are the top finishers for the men's and women's elite race (times courtesy of the event's official website).

Men's

1: Eliud Kipchoge (2:02:37)

2: Mosinet Geremew (+00:18)

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3: Mule Wasihun (+00:39)

Women's

1: Brigid Kosgei (2:18:20)

2: Vivian Cheruiyot (+01:54)

3: Roza Dereje (+02:31)

All eyes were on two runners in the men's race, as big things were expected of Kipchoge and local favourite Mo Farah.

The fans in London were pulling for Farah, but he lost track of the leading group just past the halfway point:

Britain's top long-distance runner opted to stick to his own pace, perhaps hoping to catch some of the leaders later on, but he soon lost sight of the leading group on the twisty parts of the course.

Ethiopia's Geremew, Wasihun and Tola Shura Kitata were still hanging around defending champion Kipchoge entering the final four or so miles, but the latter soon cracked.

Wasihun was the next to drop, and Geremew also started to show signs of wear:

With a little more than a mile left, he was on his own and pushed his advantage to a solo win. Farah recovered to finish in fifth place.

Kosgei was the clear standout in the women's race, making the difference in the final seven miles after a slow start to the race.

The pacemakers dropped off early in the race, and fans tuning in were surprised to see Irish-born Sinead Diver, running for Australia, leading:

Kosgei soon took the lead and twice sped up, dropping her rivals.

Defending champion Cheruiyot was able to bridge the gap the first time, but she couldn't repeat that effort after a blistering stretch from the eventual winner:

Her finishing time of 2:18:20 was nearly two minutes faster than that of Cheruiyot, courtesy of a phenomenal final stretch.

Britain's Charlotte Purdue impressively took 10th place, a spot that should count as an Olympic qualifier for Tokyo 2020, according to BBC Sport's Mike Henson and Mantej Mann. In the men's race, Callum Hawkins also took 10th place.