April was a difficult month for Peres Jepchirchir. <\/p>\n
The Kenyan was forced to withdraw from the London Marathon, weeks before the race, with an ankle injury. She then learnt that Tigst Assefa, silver medallist at the Paris Olympics, had broken the women\u2019s-only world record, which Jepchirchir had owned since the 2024 London Marathon. <\/p>\n
Warrior\u2019s mindset<\/b><\/p>\n
Jepchirchir, however, is that rare elite athlete \u2014 one who rarely encounters failure but always bounces back from setbacks in style. She was unbeaten in the marathon from December 2019 to March 2023. Her reign included Olympic gold in Sapporo\u2019s oppressive heat in 2021, a triumph at the famed five-borough New York Marathon months later and a stunning conquest of the Boston Marathon\u2019s challenging hills in 2022. A hip injury derailed her run of momentum, and she subsequently suffered her first-ever defeat in an international marathon in London. <\/p>\n
Jepchirchir\u2019s response came in her next marathon. She set the women\u2019s-only mark \u2014 no male pace-setters \u2014 at last year\u2019s running of the iconic London race, her third World Marathon Major title. She then had to deal with heartbreak at Paris 2024, where she was bidding to become the only woman to defend her marathon gold. This April\u2019s London Marathon was meant to be her riposte. But while her comeback was delayed, it could not be denied. <\/p>\n
The 31-year-old arrived in Tokyo, determined to make her maiden World Championships her own. She watched compatriot Beatrice Chebet claim the 10,000m gold and prayed she could create her own moment, too. Then, in stiflingly hot conditions, she was locked in a one-on-one contest with Assefa, the Ethiopian who had taken her record. This was personal.<\/p>\n
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