Jemima Sumgong made marathon history in Rio de Janeiro today as she became the first Kenyan woman ever to win an Olympic marathon title with her second victory in Series X of the Abbott World Marathon Majors. Sumgong became the first woman to have AbbottWMM victories at both London and the Olympics marathon.
Sumgong recovered from a fall to win the Virgin Money London Marathon in April, and this morning overcame punishing heat and the determined opposition of Bahrain's Eunice Kirwa and Ethiopia's world champion Mare Dibaba to take Olympic gold in 2:24:04 after an attritional race around the Rio seafront.
With two victories behind her, Sumgong now has a 25-point lead at the top of the Series X leaderboard with a maximum 50 points from two races.
