Eliud Kipchoge won the Melbourne Marathon in two hours, nine minutes and 10 seconds, breaking the race record by two seconds and earning his first marathon victory in three years. Australia's Thomas Do Canto finished second in 2:10:35, and former Australian professional cyclist Jimmy Whelan came fifth.
The Race and the Record
Kipchoge, 41, made his Melbourne Marathon debut on Sunday, finishing at the Melbourne Cricket Ground before thousands of fans. He said he still had what it takes to compete with younger runners. “I believe that my body is still peaking – still able to compete with the next generation. The oldest athlete is still competing but I am happy to run with the gen Zs.”
Whelan kept pace with the two-time Olympic champion and former world record-holder until about 30 kilometres. Then Kipchoge picked up the pace and pulled ahead, staying in front to the finish. “I [increased] the pace after 30km, to see whether I can run well and beat the [race record]. My plan went well,” he said.
The record fell by two seconds. Kipchoge said he could have finished a few seconds faster, but waved to the crowd during the half-lap inside the MCG. He celebrated for well over half an hour with fans along the ground’s boundary fence. “The crowd is so wonderful – I've never seen a crowd like this. Melbourne is really, really a sporting city,” he said.
A World Tour and Other Results
Melbourne was the third leg of Kipchoge's world tour. He planned to run a marathon on each continent, including Antarctica, while doing community work in Melbourne and talking about the city’s sporting heritage.
“The experience is awesome – the culture of Melbourne is wonderful,” Kipchoge said. Recalling the previous four days, he said: “I've seen myself, sport can do wonder. It was four-in-one – with the tennis, finishing at the cricket, the Olympics were here in 1956, running on the Formula One track.” He said he'd return the following year to watch tennis and Formula One and see people playing cricket. “This is the best track ever.”
New Zealand's Camille French won the women's marathon in 2:28:25. Australia's Sinead Diver finished next in 2:28.49. Australian Seth O'Donnell and New Zealander Georgie Gregec took the half-marathon titles.
Kipchoge had raced in Australia before, finishing ninth in the 2025 Sydney Marathon. His Melbourne victory marked his first marathon win in three years, as well as his first appearance in the Melbourne race.
Incident Near the Route
Earlier Sunday, a car hit a woman near Flinders Street station, about 200 metres from the marathon route. The collision happened at about 10.45am. Reports said nearby police officers drew their weapons after the car, seen driving erratically, struck the woman, made a U-turn and drove away.
The woman went to Royal Melbourne Hospital. Her condition wasn't known. The incident happened near the course while the marathon was underway, separate from the finish at the MCG.