Kipruto runs 2:01:09 to win Chicago Marathon; Debrunner breaks wheelchair world record

Kenya's Amos Kipruto won the Chicago Marathon on Sunday, 11 October 2026 in 2 hours 1 minute 9 seconds, a personal best by 30 seconds and the second-fastest winning time in the race's history. In the women's race, Ethiopia's Hawi Feysa retained her title in a personal best of 2:13:33, holding off Kenya's Sharon Lokedi. The biggest record of the day came in the wheelchair race, where Switzerland's Catherine Debrunner broke her own women's wheelchair marathon world record by a full minute, finishing in 1:33:16, while Marcel Hug won the men's wheelchair race in a course record.

Chicago is one of the six World Marathon Majors and has one of the fastest courses in the world: flat, with cool autumn weather. Kipruto had never run this fast before; his previous best was 30 seconds slower. A 2:01:09 puts him in the small group of men who have broken 2:02, and it confirms that the depth of East African marathon running keeps rising. Behind him, two Ethiopians ran under 2:04, while the defending champion could not stay with the pace.

Feysa's win makes her one of the few women to defend a Chicago title, and she did it with a personal best in a close race. Her duel with Lokedi showed how competitive the women's field has become, with three women under 2:15.

Debrunner's run is the standout performance of the day. Breaking a world record by a full minute is unusual at this level, and it extends a period of dominance for the Swiss athlete in long-distance wheelchair racing. Hug, her teammate, also improved on his own course record. Their results show how far wheelchair racing has advanced with better equipment, training and professional support.

For Indian readers, the race is a benchmark for what the world's best now run, and a reminder of how fast the elite end of the sport is moving. Big-city marathons such as Chicago, Mumbai and Delhi are also where amateur running culture grows, and many Indian recreational runners follow the World Marathon Majors closely.

Short-term: Kipruto and Feysa move to the front of the selection conversation for their national teams and for next season's major marathons, and Debrunner's new record raises the bar for women's wheelchair racing.

Long-term: Fast times at Chicago continue to push the depth of elite marathon running, and the race's reputation as a record course will keep attracting top fields and amateur runners from around the world, including India.

Who is affected: Elite marathoners and their federations, wheelchair racers, race organisers and sponsors, and amateur runners who follow the World Marathon Majors.

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