PARIS, France, Aug 5 – Alexander Mutiso Munyao clocked 2 hours 4 minutes, one second to win the 44th edition of the London Marathon, his first major marathon and fourth career.
From the competitive field that was assembled in the English capital, Mutiso’s success was unexpected. However, for those who have been closely monitoring the 27-year-old’s development, the news was well-timed.
Mutiso’s rise in the long distance has been steady signified by his consistent time improvement, and as he tackles his fifth marathon, he is confident of an Olympic medal in Paris.
He will team up with two-time Olympics marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge and Tokyo Marathon champion Benson Kipruto in the men’s team.
Mutiso will be donning the National colors for the second time since 2013 when he bagged a 3000m Bronze medal at the World Under -18 championships in Ukraine.
“Discipline in training and being focused is what has kept me going and I’m so happy with my progress so far. After winning in the London Marathon which was my first major, I have seen there is nothing impossible and I have to go for nothing but the best with God’s guidance,” said Mutiso, who trains in Ngong town in the outskirts of Kenya’s Capital, Nairobi.
Mutiso may be making his major championships debut as a senior but he is feels safe lining up alongside an athlete who is not new to high pressure events.
“I’m delighted to compete with my mentor Eliud Kipchoge who is going for the third title because he is the one we look up to and I believe as we compete in Paris, we shall run as team Kenya and deliver good results,” added the 27-year-old.
Mutiso has good memories from his London Marathon race that cemented his place in the marathon team.
“When I went for London Marathon, I was well prepared and I didn’t fear my competitors and as the race went on, they started falling behind one by one because I had patience and after 32km, I was left with Kenenisa Bekele whom I later dropped,” said Mutiso who paced Bekele in Berlin Marathon in 2011.
Makau made his marathon debut in 2022 at the Valencia marathon where he was third in a race won by Kelvin Kiptum clocking 2:03:29 before heading to the prague Marathon in Czech Republic in 2023 where he bagged the win timing 2:05:09.
This gave him an opportunity to be invited once again at the Valencia Marathon in 2023 where he again impressed, running his personal best of 2:03:11 coming second behind Ethiopia’s Sisay Lemma who ran a course record of 2:01:48.
He believes the future is bright beyond the Olympic games.