April 30, (THEWILL) – The inaugural Abuja International Marathon held on Saturday, in the country’s capital city, with Kenya’s Emmanuel Naibet and Bahrain’s Ruth Jebet, taking the men’s and women’s categories.
Despite the challenges faced in organising the event, the weather was perfect for the historic event. Added to the fanfare was Naibet’s winning time of 2:13:45, which is the best ever recorded in any first edition of marathon races in Nigeria, making it an even more memorable day for the Kenyan runner.
“It was a great race for me though a bit challenging with some hilly parts on the routes, but overall I am happy to win this race and add it to my achievements,” Naibet said after the race. Incidentally, the Kenyan also won the 2021 edition of the Access Bank Lagos City Marathon.
Benard Sang and Ezekiel Koech finished in second and third place, completing a clean sweep for Kenya in the men’s category. Meanwhile, Ruth Jebet from Bahrain won the women’s category with a time of 2:36:08, beating Kenya’s Mercy Kwambai into second place.
“I can never forget the Abuja International Marathon, it is my first full marathon and I won it, I hope to be back next year to defend my title,” enthused the Bahraini, who had never competed in a full marathon before. The 10km and 5km races also saw intense competition from fun runners and students from around Abuja.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
