Kenyan athlete Hillary Kipchirchir Kimaiyo cruised to victory in the 30th Guadalajara marathon on Sunday, October 19. Meanwhile, the women’s race was won by the Mexican athlete Dulce María Rodríguez de la Cruz. Around 3,500 people participated in the annual event, which took the runners on a 26.2-mile-loop around Guadalajara and Zapopan.
The race got underway outside Guadalajara cathedral under the cover of darkness at 7 a.m. to avoid the high temperatures of the middle of the day. Right from the start, Kipchirchir and his Kenyan compatriot Christophe Kipyego Chipsiya pulled away from the rest of the male elite runners.
The two Africans were neck and neck as the route took them south down Av. Mariano Ortero before veering north along Av. Patria. Hardy locals had arisen early to show their support by cheering the runners as they bounded through the streets of Zapopan, passing the Plaza Cordilleras and the Estadio Tres de Marzo.
Running by the Bosque los Colomos appeared to give Kipchirchir an extra burst of energy, as he began to pull away shortly afterwards around the 18-mile mark. A significant gap opened within a short period of time as Kipyego dropped off the pace and the race was effectively over at that point.
Kipchirchir crossed the line in 2.20.52 with Kipyego following behind around three minutes later, trailed by the Mexican athlete Pedro Espinosa Perez in third spot. It was the Kenyan’s second victory at the Guadalajara marathon, having won the event in 2012. By his standards, this was a relatively leisurely pace, as the 33-year-old athlete has a personal best marathon time of 2.08.24, which he ran in Torreón in 2011.
Speaking with the Reporter shortly after the event, Kipchirchir said it had been difficult because he was forced to set the pace alone throughout the entire race. But he was very pleased to win and appreciative of the support he received along the way. “I have many fans. Every few kilometers from one kilometer to 40 kilometers they were saying ‘go go go’, so I was running with morale,” he said.
In the women’s race, the winning margin was equally comprehensive as Dulce María Rodríguez de la Cruz ran to victory in 2.42.17. Born in Toluca, the 42-year-old athlete has competed for Mexico at three Olympic games and has two gold medals from the Central American and Caribbean Games.
Both Kipchirchir and Rodríguez de la Cruz took home a cash prize of 58,000 pesos in addition to their medals. Smaller cash prizes were also awarded in a number of other categories. The men’s wheelchair race was won by Gonzalo Valdovinos in a time of 1.43.22, and the women’s event in this category was won by local Jalisco athlete Alejandra Abundis in a time of 2.31.50. Meanwhile the winner in the blind and visually impaired category was Juan Manuel García who completed the course in 2.59.32.