Kenyan wins London Marathon on debut
Wilson Kipsang of Kenya later won the Virgin London Marathon at his first attempt.
Kipsang made it a Kenyan double with victory in an unofficial time of 2:04.44, just four seconds outside the course record set last year by Emmanuel Mutai.
Kipsang pulled away in the closing stages to win by more than two minutes, with compatriot Martin Lel finishing second after edging out Ethiopia’s Tsegaye Kebede in a sprint finish.
Lee Merrien was the first British man across the line in 17th, but his time of 2:13.41 was outside the Olympic ’A’ standard of 2:12.00.
Scott Overall, who is the only British man selected for the Olympics after finishing fifth in Berlin last year, was acting as a pacemaker for his compatriots but dropped out after 15 kilometres with a minor hamstring strain.
