Edna Kiplagat of Kenya won her second straight world championship title in the women’s marathon on Saturday, making a late surge to pull past Valeria Straneo of Italy.
Kiplagat won in 2 hours, 25 minutes, 44 seconds. Kayoko Fukushi of Japan took bronze, two full minutes behind.
Racing on a flat course along the Moscow River, Straneo took a quick lead while Kiplagat stayed well back in the field during the early stretches. But she joined the front pack at about the 14th kilometer and stayed there as the pack dwindled in the 30 degree C (86 degree F) heat.
Fukushi dropped back at the 29th kilometer, leaving only Kiplagat and Meselech Melkamu of Ethiopia with Straneo.
Near the course’s final wide turn outside the Kremlin walls, Melkamu also fell back and eventually started walking, allowing Fukushi to move up to an unchallenged third.
Kiplagat pulled nearly abreast of Straneo several times, but waited until the 40th kilometer to make her big move. She smoothly passed Straneo and easily pulled ahead for the final stretch through a wooded park and into Luzhniki Stadium.
Straeno finished nearly 15 seconds off the pace.
