By 
Joshua Cheptegei took part in his second marathon two years after that disappointing debut on the roads in Valencia.
A ninth place finish at the Tokyo Marathon on Sunday, with a time of 2:05:59 was such an improvement from the 2:08:59 he ran in spain where he limped into 37th place.
Ethiopia’s Tadese Takele claimed victory with a time of 2:03:23, followed by fellow Ethiopian Deresa Geleta in second place and Kenya’s Vincent Kipkemoi Ngetich in third.
Despite his impressive track career, which includes winning the gold medal in both the 5,000m at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and the 10,000m in Paris last year, the 28-year-old is still yet to stamp his mark across the roads.
There has been talk of him struggling with Tokyo’s temperatures but Cheptegei isn’t making any excuses. “I’m so grateful today that I came to Tokyo, regardless, I’m not complaining.”
“There are some good positives to take home and prepare for another step forward. I’m really satisfied with the result and it can be a build-up for next season.”
Despite not getting a podium finish, Cheptegei has finished below the 2:06:30 mark which means he had secure qualification and will return to the Japanese city of Tokyo in September for this year’s World Athletics Championships marathon.
