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10 Storylines to Follow at the Chicago MarathonPublished by
Four Past Champions Converge on Chicago MarathonBy Adam Kopet The Bank of America Chicago Marathon is set for Sunday, Oct. 13. Here are 10 storylines to follow during the race. The past three men's champions set to clash Three of the past four Chicago Marathon champions return for the 2019 edition of the race. Mo Farah, of Great Britain, won in his Chicago debut last year, placing him among the favorites once again. Farah won in the first year race organizers returned to using pacemakers after several years without. He won last year's race in 2:05:11, a European record, which he continues to hold a year later. The 2017 winner, Galen Rupp, also returns, although there remains a lot of unknowns about his form. His last race was the 2018 Chicago Marathon, where he finished fifth in 2:06:21. Shortly after the race, Rupp had surgery for Haglund's deformity relating to heel and Achilles tendon pain he experienced in his Chicago build-up. In the past, Rupp has tested his fitness in the lead-up to a marathon, racing a distance somewhere between 10 miles and a half marathon. He has not done that this year, leaving a big question mark around his fitness. Despite that unknown, Rupp remains on the start list and is scheduled to be part of the pre-race press conference Friday. More will likely be learned then. Rupp entered last year's race banged up. If he is healthy, he could go even faster. His personal best came at the 2018 Prague Marathon, where he won in 2:06:07. He ran 2:09:20 at the 2017 Chicago Marathon, but that was done without pacemakers. Dickson Chumba, of Kenya, won the 2015 Chicago Marathon in 2:09:25. He too did that without pacemakers. He has a 2:04:32 personal best, ranking him third in the field. He has finished on the podium at Abbott World Marathon Majors races nine times. He has competed in Chicago four times, although he did not finish last year's race. Brigid Kosgei looks to maintain world supremacy Brigid Kosgei is the top female marathoner in the world right now. The Kenyan is the defending Chicago Marathon champion and she was recently announced as the Abbott World Marathon Majors Series XII champion, having added this year's London Marathon title to her collection. Her 2:18:20 personal best is easily the best in the field by more than two minutes. Her winning time from last year was 2:18:35. She is the clear favorite for Sunday's race. However, this is the marathon and the unexpected should be expected. Gladys Cherono appeared to be a big favorite at the Berlin Marathon last month. Unfortunately for her, it did not take long for her to fall out of the lead pack. She eventually dropped out. The lesson to take away from Berlin is no matter how much an athlete is the favorite going in, the marathon is unpredictable and almost anything can happen. Alberto Salazar ban looms over elite race Alberto Salazar was banned for four years on Sept. 30. Three athletes in the field have been coached by him, those being Farah, Rupp and Jordan Hasay. Farah left the Nike Oregon Project in 2017, but he won four Olympic titles and six world titles on the track under Salazar. After spending about seven years based in Oregon, Farah and his family returned to the U.K., where he is once again based. However, the fallout from Salazar's ban is still being felt in the U.K., as an official with U.K. Athletics is set to resign after the Chicago Marathon, having vouched for and promoted Salazar in the past. Rupp has been coached by Salazar since he was 15 years old. Some of the accusations against Salazar included Rupp, although none of the charges against Salazar directly involved him. Rupp has denied all doping accusations made against him. The Rupp-Salazar relationship has been much discussed and analyzed over the years. The two share a Catholic faith and Salazar has been like a second father for the majority of Rupp's life. Hasay joined the Nike Oregon Project in 2013. In a recent interview with Runner's World, Hasay says she was aware of the investigation. For her, Salazar was like a close friend that she now misses, being unable to communicate with him because of his ban. Hasay does explain that Salazar's recent coaching of her has been at a distance. She spends most of her training time in California, not in Portland. The added distance changes her relationship with her coach, using him more as an advisor than as a hands-on coach. She will be waiting until after Sunday's race to decide her next coach. Americans no longer pinning hopes on the Olympic standard Earlier this year, the Chicago Marathon stood as a possible last hope for Americans wanting to achieve the Olympic marathon standard. For the men that time is 2:11:30 and the women need to reach 2:29:30. A. top-10 finish at an Abbott World Marathon Major race, like Chicago, would also give the standard. The October date and the fast nature fo the course, made the Chicago Marathon an ideal place to achieve the standard in advance of the Olympic Trials marathon on Feb. 29. Now, however, the standard is no longer an issue. The IAAF granted the U.S. Olympic Trials marathon gold label status. Athletes who finish top-five at a gold label marathon automatically get the Olympic standard. That means the urgency to run fast and place high is not longer there. Because of that change, some American athletes have not pushed as hard this fall and have opted not to race in Chicago. Athletes who might have normally trained through a small injury now have the luxury of backing off and turning their attention toward the Olympic Trials. Despite the announcement, there is still a strong American contingent competing in Chicago. Breakthrough possibilities Many of the athletes who have maintained their intentions to race the Chicago Marathon are athletes looking for a breakthrough. Hasay and Rupp have already run fast in their careers and have different goals than many other Americans in the field. Scott Smith leads the non-Rupp list of American men, having run 2:12:21 in his career. He finished sixth at the 2018 Boston Marathon. However, there are more than 20 men looking to make the leap from an. Olympic Trials marathon qualifier to a contender and the Chicago Marathon looks to be a great opportunity to do just that. There is a group of American woman also looking to make the leap from qualifier to contender. Taylor Ward has run 2:32:42 and will certainly like to run under 2:30 for the first time. Diverse elite field gives global feel Athletes from East Africa tend to dominate road racing around the world. Kenya and Ethiopia are frequent contributors to the top global lists. The Chicago Marathon invited several top-East Africans, including Lawrence Cherono of Kenya, this year's Boston Marathon champion, and Ethiopia's Asefa Mengstu. Both men have run 2:04:06 in their careers. However, in addition to inviting top-East Africans, race organizers invited a diverse group of international athletes. This is especially evident in the women's race where women from Mexico, Australia, Ireland and Peru are set to compete. The men's race features a large Japanese contingent of athletes who did not qualify for the recent Marathon Grand Championship, the Japanese version of an Olympic trials race. Cool and dry weather expected The current weather report for Sunday is a cooler than average race, with a low of 38 degrees and a high of 55 degrees. That should make for great marathon racing temperatures. The rain that is expected Friday should be long gone by Sunday. The question mark for Sunday, especially in the morning, is the wind. Current predictions predict a blustery day with winds around 17 miles per hour during the race. Even. with pacemakers, that could make fast times difficult. Hasay plays down American record goal Immediately following the Boston Marathon, Hasay brought up her goal of breaking the American record in Chicago. That record belongs to Deena Kastor and her time of 2:19:36 from the 2006 London Marathon. Admittedly, Hasay began to walk back the remarks she made shortly after Boston, but the goal is clearly still there. In her Runner's World interview, she said she would chase the record if it were achievable in the later stages of the race. Even if Hasay were to chase the American record, it would still require her to improve her personal best by at least 81 seconds. That is a lot, especially if it is windy. Records likely just out of reach The Chicago Marathon course records stand at 2:03:45 for the men and 2:17:18 for the women. It is theoretically possible for those records to go down Sunday. With pacemakers, it would not be too big of a stretch given the talent at the front of the field. However, given current wind forecasts and the likelihood the main contenders will be focused on racing each other instead of the clock, it seems unlikely the race records will be broken this year. The Chicago Marathon has hosted world record performances four times in the past, twice for the men and twice for the women. However, that last world record performance came in 2002. None of those records are still on the books. There is a course record bonus of $75,000, which would be in addition to the winning award of $100,000. Chicago Marathon History The current Chicago Marathon made its debut in 1977, making this the 43rd running of the Chicago Marathon. In that time, the race has expanded from just over 4,000 participants to a cap at 45,000 participants. However, the first ever Chicago Marathon goes back to 1905. That of course, was before the marathon distance was finalized at 26.2 miles.
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