Chicago Marathon’s 2001 Race Produced a Men’s Upset and a Women’s World Record

The Chicago Marathon on Oct.

7, 2001, produced two surprising results.

In the men’s race, Kenyan pacesetter Ben Kimondiu finished ahead of Paul Tergat, a five-time world cross-country champion and two-time Olympic silver medallist.

Kimondiu had never run a marathon faster than 2:15 before the race.

The planned pacemakers went far ahead of the leading contenders, then slowed and waited for the main group to catch up.

Tergat later said the pace kept changing, making the race tiring.

In the women’s race, defending champion Catherine Ndereba won in 2:18:47 and broke Naoko Takahashi’s world record, set one week earlier, by nearly a minute.

The race’s unusual pacing and record-breaking women’s performance made it a memorable edition of the Chicago Marathon.