Africa-Press – Kenya. The 2019 Toronto Marathon champion, Magdalyne Masai, will be eager to get her season back on track on April 12 at the Paris Marathon after a disappointing start to the year. Masai, 32, opened her campaign at the Barcelona Half Marathon on February 15, where she fell short of the podium, finishing fifth in 1:07:42.
That race was dominated by compatriot Loice Chemnung, who stormed to victory in 1:04:01, ahead of American Weini Kelati (1:06:04), while Ethiopia’s Diniya Abaraya completed the podium in 1:06:28.
Paris now presents a fresh battleground for Masai, who will be making her maiden appearance in the French capital armed with a rich and battle-tested road resume.
The seasoned distance runner donned national colours at the World Athletics Championships last year but endured a frustrating outing, failing to finish the marathon.
She has also previously represented the country at the African Games, where she clocked 9:56.76 to finish fourth in the 3,000m steeplechase. Masai’s marathon credentials are also formidable, including victories from Toronto 2019 (2:22:16), Vienna 2023 (2:24:12) and Lanzhou 2024 (2:24:46).
She has also consistently knocked on the door of major podiums, finishing runner-up at Frankfurt in 2024 (2:18:58) and 2025 (2:20:23), as well as Seville (2:22:51) in 2024 and Hamburg (2:26:02) in 2019.
In Paris, Masai will be joined by compatriot Sharon Chelimo, another proven performer on her day. Chelimo is yet to open her 2026 campaign, but she arrives in Paris with a point to prove after a mixed run of results last season.
She kicked off 2025 in style, storming to victory at the Barcelona Marathon in 2:19:33, outkicking Ethiopia’s Yebrgual Melese (2:20:47) and compatriot Linet Masai (2:21:01) in a high-quality contest.
Chelimo then returned to the podium with a third-place finish at the Frankfurt Marathon, clocking 2:20:29 behind Ethiopia’s Buze Diriba (2:19:34) and Magdalyne Masai (2:20:23).
However, her season ended on a flat note in Singapore, where she faded to sixth place in 2:43:16. In the men’s race, Kenya’s charge will be led by Hillary Kipkoech, a rising name still finding his rhythm over the full marathon distance.
The 27-year-old made his debut at the Valencia Marathon, finishing eighth in 2:04:45. He followed that with a seventh-place finish at the London Marathon (2:06:05) before placing 18th on his return to Valencia (2:08:13), as he continues to navigate the demands of the 42km.
Despite his relative inexperience over the marathon, Kipkoech boasts a sharp half-marathon résumé, highlighted by victories in Madrid 2023 (59:56), Sapporo 2021 (1:00:46) and Gifu 2024 (1:01:26), evidence of his raw speed and endurance blend. In Paris, however, he will face a stern examination from Ethiopia’s Kinde Atanaw, the 2019 Valencia Marathon champion.
