The elite women's race at the New York City Marathon set for Sunday, 1 November sees the last two winners, Hellen Obiri and Sheila Chepkirui face each other once again.The two Kenyan stars have traded places at the top of the podium over the past two years, developing an intense rivalry on the challenging course.Download our MozzartSport App For More NewsObiri, who is aiming to join Paula Radcliffe as a three-time New York champion, won in 2023 and then beat Chepkirui at last year's edition, on her way to setting a new course record of 2:19:51, shattering the previous mark by 2 minutes and 40 seconds.On her part, Chepkirui placed third last November, where she had set out to become a back-to-back champion, having gotten the better of Obiri in 2024 with 2:24:35, beating her compatriot by 14 seconds.Former Olympic champion Asbel Kiprop announces plans to manufacture running shoesObiri carries a 2:15:53 personal best (PB) from her second place finish at the 2026 London Marathon, while Chepkirui's best mark of 2:17:29 dates back to 2022 when she finished third at the Valencia Marathon. This year, she ran a 2:21:54 marathon to win Nagoya Women's Marathon on 8 March."Last year’s TCS New York City Marathon was a dream come true, from breaking the course record and capturing my second title to celebrating with the incredible fans who line every mile of the course,” said Obiri. “New York always brings out the best in me, and I’m excited to return and feel the energy of each borough during such a historic year.”##NAJAVA_MECA_10067437##Their rivalry gets that much more attention with the withdrawal of 2024 Olympic marathon champion Sifan Hassan who says an illness slowed down her training, forcing her to withdraw.Another late scratch was announced recently from Ethiopia’s Gotytom Gebreslase, who had the third-fastest PB in the field at 2:18:11, and has not raced since last year in New York where she failed to finish, so this would have been her 2026 debut.BREAKING: Bayern Munich to face Dutch giants in official opening of Raila Odinga Stadium
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