Meet Brigid Kosgei — Runner Who Shattered Women's World Record At Chicago Marathon
For her efforts, she was paid $175,000.
Getty History was made twice this past weekend by professional runners. On Saturday, Eliud Kipchoge broke the two-hour barrier in the marathon in Vienna. He ran 26.2 miles in 1:59:40. That's blazing fast. That's 26.2 miles at a pace of 4:33 per mile. (Not without controversy, though.) Then, on Sunday, runner Brigid Kosgei went out and set another impressive record at the Chicago Marathon. Kosgei finished the course in 2:14:04. That is both a 5:03 per mile pace and it is more than a minute faster than the all-time record for a women's marathon. In 2013, Paula Radcliffe ran the London Marathon in 2:15:25. Kosgei also broke the course record that Radcliffe set in the 2002 Chicago marathon. Who is Brigid Kosgei?
1. She's a repeat Chicago Marathon winner
Brigid Kosgei is a 25-year-old Kenyan runner who won the 2018 and 2019 Chicago Marathons. She took second place at the 2017 Chicago Marathon. She also won the 2019 London Marathon. She has finished in the top two in eight of her nine marathons. She took second at the 2016 Lisbon Marathon and the 2018 London Marathon. She also won the 2017 Honolulu Marathon.
2. Four minutes faster than her previous PR
Kosgei's previous personal record time was 2:18:20. She set that record earlier this year at the London Marathon. She was greeted at the finish line by Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot, the men's winner Lawrence Cherono and Paula Radcliffe — the woman whose course record she broke. "When I was going I feel my body is moving, moving, moving and so I tried to go," Kosgei said.
3. She made a last-minute shoe change
Reportedly, Kosgei, who runs for Nike, made a last-minute shoe change to run in the very same model of Nike that Eliud Kipchoge wore in his sub-two-hour marathon the day before. She ran the Chicago Marathon in the Nike ZoomX Vaporfly Next. The shoe was designed to improve running economy by at least four percent. It certainly worked for Kosgei and Kipchoge.
4. She truly smoked the field of runners
Kosgei's 2:14:04 was far and away the fastest time for the women's field at the Chicago Marathon this year. The second place finisher, Ethiopia's Ababel Yeshanah, finished nearly seven minutes after Kosgei with a finish time of 2:20:51.
5. How'd she do compared to the men's winner?
The top four male finishers were all faster than Kosgei, though that does not underscore her achievement. Lawrence Cherono won the men's division of the Chicago Marathon with a time of 2:05:45, just one second faster than the second finisher, Debela Dejene. Third was captured by Asefa Mengstu with a finish time of 2:05:48. The 2018 Chicago Marathon winner Mo Farah finished four minutes behind the leaders with 2:09:58. Only 22 men finished the marathon faster than Brigid Kosgei.
6. Brigid's payday
For winning the Chicago Marathon, Kosgei received a $100,000 payday. She also received an additional $75,000 for setting the course record.
Amy Lamare is a Los Angeles based writer and editor covering entertainment, pop culture, beauty, fashion, fitness, technology, and the intersection of technology, business, and philanthropy. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook.