Boston Marathon sweep for Kenya, but not favorite Kipchoge

BOSTON: Defending Boston Marathon champion Evans Chebet wasn’t focused on beating Eliud Kipchoge, the world record holder considered the greatest marathoner of all time.

Conquering the course was the goal.

Chebet won the world’s oldest and most prestigious marathon on Monday for the second year in a row, leaving Kipchoge behind at Heartbreak Hill to spoil the two-time Olympic gold medalist’s much-anticipated debut and win in 2 hours, 5 minutes, 54 seconds.

Gabriel Geay of Tanzania won a footrace for second, finishing 10 seconds behind the winner and two seconds ahead of Kenyan Benson Kipruto. Kipchoge finished sixth — just his third major marathon loss to go with 12 victories.

“When we race, we don’t race against an individual,” said Kipruto, the 2021 winner and Chebet’s training partner. “When we woke up this morning, we were going for a race, not for an individual. ... And that’s what happened.”

Hellen Obiri, a two-time Olympic silver medalist in the 5,000 meters, won the women’s race in 2:21:38 to complete the Kenyan sweep. Amane Beriso of Ethiopia was second, 12 seconds back, followed seven seconds later by Israeli Lonah Salpeter.

“I tried to be patient and wait for the right time to happen,” said Obiri, who finished sixth last fall in New York in her marathon debut. “Today was my time.”

It was the third straight Kenyan sweep. Obiri is the 15th Kenyan to win the distaff division since 1966. Chebet is the 25th Kenyan men’s champion and fourth in a row; he is the first man to defend his Boston title since Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot won three in a row from 2006-08.

Chebet’s time was the sixth-fastest in course history. Kipchoge finished in 2:09:23 — the slowest marathon of his career.

“In a marathon anything