Sisay Lemma, Joyciline Jepkosgei capture London Marathon titles

Sisay Lemma of Ethiopia won the men's London Marathon for the first time on Sunday and Joyciline Jepkosgei of Kenya was victorious on her debut in the women's race.

The 30-year-old Lemma, who was third in London last year, completed the 42.2-kilometre route in two hours, four minutes and one second. He was 27 seconds ahead of Vincent Kipchuma of Kenya, while Mosinet Geremew of Ethiopia was third.

Canada's Tristan Woodfine finished in 2:23:35, good for a 19th-place finish.

Jepkosgei opted to race in London over the defence of her New York title next month. It paid off after winning in 2:17:43. Degitu Azimeraw of Ethiopia was second with compatriot Ashete Bekere third.

There were Swiss winners of the wheelchair races with Marcel Hug claiming his third men's title in London, while Manuela Schär triumphed for the second time in the women's race.

Canada's Brent Lakatos finished fourth in the men's wheelchair race in 1:31:34.

It was the first full-scale staging of the London Marathon in more than two years due to the pandemic, with around 40,000 runners joining some of the world's best on the route from Blackheath in southeast London to The Mall in front of Buckingham Palace in the centre of the city.