Winning a marathon can take a long time, even years, as it’s a sport that’s both extremely hard and humbling. But apparently, not for Hellen Obiri, who managed to win not just one but two marathons after just a year of starting.
Obiri’s sacrifices
However, for Obiri to get where she is right now, at the helm of the women’s marathon, she had to sacrifice the one thing that she treasured the most: time with her family.
Last year, Obiri decided to move to US to train under retired American athlete Dathan Ritzenhein. And although her body and mind had been in US soil, training day in and day out for the marathons, her heart stayed with her family, husband Tom and daughter Tania, back in Kenya.
In an interview with BBC Sports Africa, she admitted that it was a difficult challenge for her to be away from her family. She even recounted the time when her daughter had pleaded with her to come home, which had prompted her to think, “Why am I here and my baby’s crying there?”
“It was a challenge because you don’t have family in the US,” Obiri said.
Obiri’s first two marathons
Obiri’s journey, like that of so many other athletes, was paved with difficulties and shortcomings.
But this didn’t last long, as Obiri was a quick learner. In her first marathon last November, Obiri only finished sixth.
In her next marathon, the Boston Marathon which was held in April 2023, Obiri had become familiar with the sport a little too fast, which was, of course, a good thing. And now that her family has moved in with her in the US, this gave her all the boost she needed to win the race.
And she did just that. She won the race with a record of 2:21.38, an impressive feat considering that it was only her second time.
Obiri’s third marathon
Just over a year later, Obiri etched her name into the annals of marathon history. Not only did she take first place in an astonishing time of 2.27:23, but she became the first woman to win both the Boston Marathon and the New York Marathon in the same year since 1989, as per Olympics.com.
The World Athletics also posted a snippet of the moment she broke the tape at the end of the finish line, captioning it with, “Kenya’s@hellen_obiri storms to the @nycmarathon victory after a spine-tingling sprint 🔥That’s her second @WMMajors victory of the year as she already won the @bostonmarathon in April 🥵.
🇰🇪’s @hellen_obiri storms to the @nycmarathon victory after a spine-tingling sprint 🔥
That’s her second @WMMajors victory of the year as she already won the @bostonmarathon in April 🥵
— World Athletics (@WorldAthletics) November 5, 2023
NYC Marathon Women’s Results, as reported by LetsRun:
1. Helen Obiri (2:27:23)
2. Letesenbet Gidey (2:27:29)
3. Sharon Lokedi (2:27:33)
4. Brigid Kosgei (2:27:45)
5. Mary Ngugi (2:27:53)
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Cover Photo: YouTube