Tigst Assefa of Ethiopia took advantage of the warm weather to pull away late for her first London Marathon title Sunday, setting a record time for a women's-only race in the process.
Assefa made up for second-place finishes in London and at the Paris Olympics last year by pulling away from Joyciline Jepkosgei near the end to finish in 2 hours, 15 minutes, 50 seconds. It was the fastest-ever time in a women's-only marathon but 25 seconds slower than the course record set by Paula Radcliffe in 2003 when it was a mixed race.
The previous women's-only record of 2:16:16 was set last year in London by Peres Jepchirchir. Ruth Chepng'etich of Kenya set the overall women's world record of 2:09:56 at last year's Chicago Marathon.
Kenya's Sabastian Sawe won the men's race in his major marathon debut, finishing in 2:02:27 for his biggest career victory.
The weather in London was a lot warmer this year than in 2024, with temperatures nearing 64 degrees by the time the elite runners were finishing, which Assefa said was to her advantage.
"Last year I did have some problems with the cold. My hamstring tightened up toward the end of the race," Assefa, 28, said through an interpreter. "This year the weather suited me really well, and that's why I'm really pleased with the way the race went.
"I was second here last year, and to win here this year is very special."
Unlike in Paris, Assefa made sure there would be no sprint finish this time as she left Jepkosgei behind with a few kilometers left and ran alone along the Thames and through central London to the finish in front of Buckingham Palace.
Even though she lost the Olympic gold medal in a sprint, Assefa said her move with a few miles left was not planned ahead of time.
"I was really training for all outcomes," she said. "I felt I could win with a sprint, I could also win with a long run from home. The main thing was just to prepare well, and that's what I did."
Jepkosgei, the 2021 London winner, was almost three minutes back in 2:18:44. Olympic champion Sifan Hassan (2:19:00) was third.
"It was a little bit humid," Jepkosgei said. "My body was not responding well. And I said, let's preserve my energy to arrive safely at the finish line."
Hassan took a four-month break after the Olympics and said she still isn't back to her best form. She said she struggled to breathe every time she took a drink during the first half of the race.
"I think I need some competition," Hassan said. "Seven months, no competition, I think my body forgot how to push."
Sawe, 29, made a solo breakaway with about 10 kilometers left and never looked like he was wavering in the sunshine. He pulled away from a leading group of nine runners about 90 minutes into the race, making his move when his rivals slowed down at a drink station, opting not to take any water despite warm temperatures.
"I was well prepared for this race, and that's why it became easy for me to win," Kawe said.
Jacob Kiplimo, the half-marathon world-record holder who was making his marathon debut, was the only runner able to give chase but could never get close to erasing the gap. The Ugandan finished about 70 seconds back in second place. Last year's winner, Alexander Mutiso Munyao, took bronze in 2:04:20 after beating Abdi Nageeye to the podium in a photo finish.
Sawe's only previous marathon win came in Valencia in 2024. He is the fourth Kenyan runner in a row to win the men's race in London.
It was a Swiss double in the wheelchair events, with Marcel Hug racing to his sixth London Marathon title in 1:25:25 and Catherine Debrunner winning her third women's title in four years in 1:34:18, missing her own world record by two seconds.
Behind Debrunner was American Susannah Scaroni in second and Debrunner's compatriot Manuela Schar in third.
Hug finished in 1:25:25, 44 seconds ahead of Tomoki Suzuki. Jetze Plat of the Netherlands was third, while eight-time London Marathon winner David Weir of Britain settled for sixth.
A world-record 56,000 runners were expected to participate in the 26.2-mile race that started at Greenwich Park and snaked along the Thames before finishing on The Mall.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.