The boys’s and ladies’s marathons promise to be two of probably the most thrilling occasions of the Paris 2024 Video games, notably given the difficult nature of the course, and the race’s historic significance. After back-to-back gold medal performances in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, Kenya’s Eliud Kipchoge goals to turn into the primary runner to win three consecutive marathon gold medals. Nonetheless, his path to victory is not going to be simple, and four-time Olympic champion Mo Farah doesn’t like his probabilities.
🔮 We requested two Olympic legends for some @Paris2024 predictions.
Will they be proper? Give us your Olympic predictions within the feedback under. 👇#Olympics | #Paris2024 | @socceraid | @usainbolt | @Mo_Farah pic.twitter.com/vqV4tIpEse
— The Olympic Video games (@Olympics) July 25, 2024
In an interview with Olympics.com, Farah weighed in on the chances of Kipchoge profitable a 3rd Olympic marathon. “I believe he may get a medal, however I believe it’s going to be a brand new man from Kenya or Ethiopia who wins the race,” mentioned Farah. “I believe the marathon goes to be powerful, actually.”
Farah has some expertise defending Olympic titles, profitable back-to-back gold medals within the 5,000m and 10,000m in London 2012 and Rio 2016. He later transitioned to the marathon, however didn’t qualify for the Tokyo Olympics, finally calling it a profession in September 2023.
Though Kipchoge’s marathon dominance over his profession makes him a favorite (he has gained 16 of his 20 races), the 39-year-old has proven indicators of slowing down over the previous two years, shedding two of his final three marathons.
As Farah recommended, the depth and expertise of the present East African athletes make the Paris 2024 marathon discipline top-of-the-line in historical past. Kipchoge will face sturdy competitors from his Kenyan compatriots, together with three-time marathon main winner Benson Kipruto and reigning London Marathon champion Alexander Munyao. The Ethiopian crew options the legendary Kenenisa Bekele, possible in his remaining Olympic marathon, in addition to Deresa Geleta and 2022 world champion Tamirat Tola.
Kipruto holds the quickest time on the planet this yr (2:02:16), whereas Kipchoge is ranked 54th (he ran 2:06:50 on the 2024 Tokyo Marathon, the place he completed tenth; it’s the one marathon he has raced in 2024).
The course will likely be difficult for all opponents, together with the Canadian marathon trio of Cam Levins, Rory Linkletter and Malindi Elmore. It options 483m of elevation acquire, making it unlikely that any information will likely be damaged. There are two important climbs, with gradients of 13.5 per cent, on the 20 km and 27 km marks.
The boys’s marathon will happen on the final day of Paris 2024, Aug. 10. The route is an out-and-back loop to the Palace of Versailles, ending in entrance of the Esplanade des Invalides, 4 kilometres southwest of the Paris Metropolis Corridor beginning line. This route is a tribute to the Girls’s March on Versailles, one of many earliest and most vital occasions of the French Revolution.
