The Bank of America Chicago Marathon returned to its fastest self, with Jacob Kiplimo surging for the men’s title in 2:02:23—one of the quickest performances in event history—and Ethiopia’s Hawi Feysa winning the women’s race in 2:14:56, a personal-best breakthrough. Switzerland’s Marcel Hug and the United States’ Susannah Scaroni captured the wheelchair crowns, adding to decorated résumés.
Chicago’s architecture remains a collaborator: broad streets, steady pacing lines, and October predictability. The race also functioned as a showcase of depth: Amos Kipruto finished second, and the women’s podium (Megertu Alemu, Magdalena Shauri) confirmed East Africa’s ongoing stranglehold on global marathoning. Notable on a national scale, Mantz broke Khalid Khannouchi’s long-standing U.S. record. Attendance surged past 50,000 finishers and an estimated 1.5 million spectators.
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For Chicago, the performance arc since 2023 has turned the event into a place where world records are not outliers but live possibilities. Kiplimo, better known for cross country and the half, weaponized that speed over 42.195 kilometers, bending the final 12K solo. If the fall majors are a dialogue, Berlin introduced the thesis; Chicago delivered the rebuttal.
Sources: Reuters; NBC Chicago; Olympics.com (Berlin context).