The 30-year-old, who has moved up to the marathon following a track career which brought him global gold in Paris in 2003, was taking on the three fastest men of all time over 26.2 miles, but looked relaxed as his rivals faded before he crossed the line in two hours four minutes 42 seconds.

He had built a big enough lead to allow him to celebrate as he came down The Mall, pointing to the crowds lining the road as he came home five seconds ahead of Kipsang.

Kimetto was third, finishing some way back in 2hrs 5mins 50secs, to complete a Kenyan clean sweep.

This race featured perhaps the toughest fields ever assembled and, after a blistering early pace, it turned into a four-way shoot-out between four Kenyans, with Stanley Biwott also in the mix until the closing stages.

Racing under overcast skies, Kipchoge and Kipsang were the ones to make a move, pulling clear around the 24-mile mark and opening up an unassailable gap.

The pair were neck and neck down the Embankment, but at the finish it was the former track man who had the strength as he added the London title to the marathons in Rotterdam and Chicago he won last year.

Kipchoge said: “It was a tough race. My training paid off and it went to plan. The crowd were wonderful and lifted me for my sprint finish.”

Ethiopia's Tigist Tufa ended Kenya's domination of the women's race with a shock victory.

2015 women’s champion Tigist Tufa: “I was planning to win. This is a very big race a great place to run” #LondonMarathon

— TCS London Marathon (@LondonMarathon) April 26, 2015

The 28-year-old, who was only the ninth-fastest in the field, seized a cagey race by the scruff of the neck in the closing stages to pull clear of the field and was able to wave to the crowds as she won by 18 seconds from Mary Keitany.

It was the biggest win of her career and ended four years of domination by Kenya’s women in the capital.

She crossed the line in 2:23:22 to become the first Ethiopian women’s champion since Derartu Tulu in 2001.

Another Ethiopian, Tirfi Tsegaye, came home in third place.

Wonderful to see the love out on London's streets for this lady today #ThankYouPaula #LondonMarathon pic.twitter.com/UKPU4TE4OK

— TCS London Marathon (@LondonMarathon) April 26, 2015

As well as Paula Radcliffe’s farewell, the race had been billed as a four-way fight between a quartet of Kenyans: defending champion Edna Kiplagat, two-time former champion Keitany, half-marathon world record holder Florence Kiplagat and Priscah Jeptoo, the winner in 2013.

Tufa had barely been mentioned in the build-up, but, beneath overcast skies in the capital, the slow pace played into her hands and she produced a 25th mile of 5:07 to break her rivals.

From that point on there was only one winner.

She said: “The weather was very difficult for me and I found it a very slow race until the end and I was pushed.

“I’ve always dreamed about winning the London Marathon and I can’t say how happy I am that this has come true.”

Scott Overall and Sonia Samuels were the highest placed British men’s and women’s finishers in 13th and 16th respectively.

David Weir’s bid for a record seventh wheelchair crown ended in disappointment as he was pipped to the line by American Joshua George.

The six-time Paralympic gold medallist looked on course for victory when his great rival, Switzerland’s Marcel Hug, was forced out of the race by a puncture, but George had the edge in a sprint finish to win by a second.

Second place did earn the Briton another global medal, with this year’s London Marathon doubling as the IPC World Championship race.

While the men’s wheelchair race went down to the wire, the women’s was a procession for the dominant American Tatyana McFadden, who was in a class of her own as she claimed her third straight title.