Hassan and Kiros smash course records to win Sydney Marathon

Sydney: Untouchable Olympic champion Sifan Hassan shattered the course record on Sunday to surge home first in a historic Sydney Marathon, with Hailemaryam Kiros matching her feat in the men’s race. Run for the first time as one of the elite World Marathon Majors, Hassan was utterly dominant, clocking a blistering 2hrs 18min 22sec ahead of Kenya’s former world record holder Brigid Kosgei (2:18.56). Ethiopia’s Workenesh Edesa Gurmesa, who came third, won the race last year in a then-record time, but Dutch multi-distance superstar Hassan obliterated it by more than three minutes. Hassan, who will skip September’s World Athletics Championships in Tokyo after opting to prioritise Sydney, admitted she almost misjudged her race. The women’s race narrowed down to just five leaders early on before Hassan opened a commanding 40-second gap as she came through 35km before holding on to sprint home. Agencies

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