How Jamaican legend Shelly-Ann played a part in Ruth Cheng'etich's world record at Chicago Marathon
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Reading Time: 2min | Tue. 15.10.24. | 21:37
Earlier this year, in a discussion with Athletics Weekly, Chepng'etich called sprinting great Shelly Ann Fraser-Pryce her inspiration
Ruth Chepng'etich made history on Sunday at the Chicago Marathon when she reset the world record and became the first woman to dip under the two-hour and ten-minute barrier.
Opening up on the reason why she pushes extra hard, the Kenyan named her daughter, and Jamaican sprinting great Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce as her source of inspiration.
Chepng'etich has long since been one of the most promising runners in the women's marathon pool.
She was crowned World Champion in 2019 and was the gold medalist at the 2021 and 2022 Chicago Marathon. She also has a London Marathon bronze to her name, as well as a runner-up finish in Chicago last year.
Earlier this year, in a discussion with Athletics Weekly, Chepng'etich labelled sprinting great Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce her inspiration.
“Shelly-Ann (Fraser-Pryce), she motivates me, inspires me, to do a lot. Shelly-Ann, I think she started a long time ago, before me, so I'm following (in) her footsteps. Like her, I want to run for long, run smart, and fall and get up.”
She also added that she was motivated by her daughter, who pushed her to work harder.
"I think about my daughter, I am pushing so much because of my daughter. My daughter is motivating me to work harder.
I have to work hard for her to study. Mothers have a lot to do, so it is not easy. Our children are motivating us to work harder. We want to show them the way life goes.”
For Chepng'etich, her run at the Chicago Marathon began at an incredible pace, and Tigst Assefa’s world record of 2:11:53 looked well within striking distance.
The Kenyan lived up to the early hype, finishing her race in a blistering 2:09:56 to become the first woman under the 2:10:00 mark.
Speaking after the race, Chepng'etich said she was proud of herself and dedicated her victory to the late Kelvin Kiptum, who set a men's world record at the Chicago Marathon last year.
“I feel so great, I'm proud of myself. This is my dream that has come true. I've fought a lot, thinking about the world record and I have fulfilled it.
The weather was perfect and I was well prepared. The world record was in my mind. The world record has come back to Kenya, and I dedicate this world record to Kelvin Kiptum.”
Chepng'etich’s Chicago Marathon time is yet to be ratified by World Athletics and will be considered an official world record once confirmed by the association.
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