• Evans Keitany clocked 1:01:10 to win last year’s race ahead of Bernard Kimeli (1:01:12) and Karoki (1:01:20).
•At the Buenos Aires Marathon, Karoki stormed to victory in 59:05 leading Ethiopia’s Seifu Tura (59:17) and Paul Lonyangata (59:49).
Image: ERICK BARASA
2019 Buenos Aires Half Marathon champion Bedan Karoki and Malaga Half Marathon champion Loice Chemnung are set to headline a powerful Kenyan assault at the Tokyo Legacy Half Marathon on October 20.
Now in its second edition, the Tokyo Legacy Half Marathon was established by the Tokyo Marathon Foundation, with the race starting and finishing at the iconic Japan National Stadium—home to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“The Tokyo Marathon Foundation held the first Tokyo Legacy Half Marathon in 2022 at the Japan National Stadium, a key symbol of the Olympics and Paralympics," said race director Yasuhiro Oshima.
Karoki, who placed third in last year’s event, will be looking to secure overall victory this year. Evans Keitany clocked 1:01:10 to win last year’s race ahead of Bernard Kimeli (1:01:12) and Karoki (1:01:20).
Karoki, 34, boasts a stellar half marathon record, including wins at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in 2018 (58:42) and 2017 (59:10).
At the Buenos Aires Marathon, Karoki stormed to victory in 59:05 leading Ethiopia’s Seifu Tura (59:17) and Paul Lonyangata (59:49).
He also holds major accolades on the track, including a silver medal from the 2011 African Games, where he clocked 28:19.22 to win silver in the 10,000m behind Ethiopia’s Ibrahim Jeilan (28:18.22) and ahead of Azmeraw Bekele (28:19.32).
Karoki also won silver at the 2015 World Cross Country Championships in China, clocking 35:00 behind Geoffrey Kamworor (34:52).
At the 2016 World Half Marathon Championships in Britain, Karoki clinched silver in 59:36 trailing Kamworor (59:10).
He finished fourth in the 10,000m at the 2017 London World Championships, clocking 26:52.12 to trail Britain’s Mo Farah (26:49.51), Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei (26:49.94) and Paul Tanui (26:50.60).
Karoki will face stiff competition from defending champion Keitany and last year’s runner-up Kimeli
Under his belt, Kimeli holds victories from the 2019 Prague Half Marathon (59:07) and the 2017 Prague 10km road race (27:10).
He is a runner-up from the 2020 Valencia 10km road race (27:12) and a third-place finisher from the 2022 Prague Half Marathon (59:59).
Also in the mix are Cleophas Kandie, Andrew Lorot and 19-year-old Dennis Kipkurui.
On the women's side, Loice Chemnung is the favourite for the title. She’s had a breakout year, winning the Malaga Half Marathon in 1:05:58 and the Port Gentil 10km in 30:40, in addition to her runner-up finish at the Paris 10km (29:57).
Her main challenger is Mongolia’s Khishigsaikhan Galbadrakh, who is the Taipei Marathon runner-up.