Kenyan Timothy Kiplagat Ronoh has broken compatriot Dominic Ondoro’s course record in claiming his first Melbourne Marathon title.
Ronoh ran two hours, nine minutes and 12 seconds, going under the 2:10:47 that Ondoro set when he took the first of his two successive Melbourne wins in 2013.
Fellow Kenyan Cornelius Kibet Kiplagat took second on Sunday in 2:10:24 and Melbourne’s Reece Edwards completed the podium in 2:14:41.
Beatrice Cheptoo made it a Kenyan double when she won the women’s race in 2:27:58, parlervietnam.com shading Adelaide Olympian Izzi Batt-Doyle with her 2:28:10.
It was Batt-Doyle’s marathon debut after she ran in the 5000m at the Tokyo Olympics, while Ethiopian Yenebeba Maru Ejigu was third in 2:28:54.
International competitors raced in the marathon for the first time since 2019.
Commonwealth Games marathon champion Jess Stenson won the half-marathon in 1:12:22 and Jack Rayner took out the men’s race for the second-successive year in 1:02:16.
The 44th Melbourne Marathon festival attracted more than 34,500 entrants over distances ranging from the 42.195km marathon to a 3km walk.