Running: Korir kicks to win Boston Marathon

BOSTON – Trailing the leaders by 200 yards when the Boston Marathon slogged through Heartbreak Hill, Wesley Korir passed them one by one until he took the lead on his way out of Kenmore Square.

That’s when leg cramps forced him to slow down and relinquish the lead.

“It’s hot out there, in case you didn’t know,” he told reporters after enduring temperatures in the mid-80s to win the 116th Boston Marathon on Monday. “I knew it was going to be hot, and one important thing that I had to take care of today ... was really hydrate as much as possible. I guess my biology degree kicked in a little bit.”

Singing religious songs as he trudged along the scorching pavement, the native Kenyan – a permanent resident of the United States – retook the lead from Levy Matebo in the final mile to finish in 84.8-degree temperatures with a time of 2 hours, 12 minutes, 40 seconds.

Sharon Cherop won the women’s race to complete the Kenyan sweep, outkicking Jemima Jelagat Sumgong to win by 2 seconds in 2:31:50. The women’s winner was decided by a sprint down Boylston Street for the fifth consecutive race – all of them decided by 3 seconds or less.

Winning times
Men – Wesley Korir, 2:12:40
Women – Sharon Cherop, 2:31:50

• More marathon madness: SVM assistant sports editor Christopher Heimerman’s first 26.2-miler, the Wisconsin Marathon, is May 5 in Kenosha, Wis. Find out how the dry run went on Sunday in the latest installment of his blog, “The Sole Goal,” here: http://www.saukvalley.com/blogs/thesolegoal/