Men's Chicago Marathon: Amos Kipruto Seizes Control at Halfway and Never Looks Back

• Amos Kipruto wins in 2:01:09 — the fastest men's time at Chicago since Kelvin Kiptum's course record of 2:00:35 in 2023, and a commanding 1:47 margin over runner-up Tadese Bikila (2:02:56).
• Bikila's 5K→10K surge was the fastest men's split on that segment, but he couldn't hold off Kipruto's mid-race dominance; Milkesa Mengesha's 10K→15K — also the fastest men's split on that leg — vaulted him briefly to the lead before he settled into 3rd at 2:03:46.
• Boki Diriba and Daniel Mateiko both finished in 2:05:01 — Diriba (5th) edging Mateiko (6th) by the finest of margins, with Diriba owning the fastest men's split from 25.2 miles to the finish.
• Galen Rupp, 11th in 2:06:55, returned to the Chicago podium neighborhood five years after finishing 2nd here in 2021 — a reminder of his remarkable longevity at the top of American marathon running.

The men's race played out as a tactical chess match through the first half, with the lead changing hands across multiple contenders before Amos Kipruto made his decisive move. Running out of Kpasabet, Kipruto entered the first checkpoint in 2nd, slipped briefly to 3rd, then surged to the front by the 20K mark — a position he never relinquished. His 15K→20K split was the fastest of any man in the field on that segment, and at a 4:37/mi average, he sustained a pace that left the rest of the field with nothing to answer.

Behind Kipruto, the race for the podium was a story of bold early moves and late resilience. Milkesa Mengesha (West Chester) made the most dramatic tactical gamble: he sat 5th at the gun, rocketed to the lead by 10K on the back of the race's fastest 10K→15K split, then gradually ceded ground, ultimately holding on for 3rd in 2:03:46. Jacob Kiplimo — the defending champion who won here in 2025 in 2:02:23 — ran a steadier race in 2nd through much of the middle miles but faded to 4th in 2:04:18, unable to repeat his title defense. Tadese Bikila, meanwhile, climbed patiently from 4th to 2nd, finishing in 2:02:56 for the runner-up spot.

The depth of this men's field across 29,339 finishers was striking. Clayton Young (7th, 2:05:23), Charles Hicks (8th, 2:05:35), and Akira Akasaki (9th, 2:05:47) all broke 2:06 in a tightly packed chase pack, while Vincent Mauri (10th, 2:06:45) and Galen Rupp (11th, 2:06:55) rounded out a top ten that speaks to the caliber assembled on the Grant Park start line. From Kipruto's front-running masterclass to the sprint that separated Diriba from Mateiko at the line, this was a men's race that delivered at every mile.