Wearing “Sir Mo” on his bib and fluorescent green warmers on his arms, Mo Farah of Great Britain, the quadruple Olympic gold medalist on the track, won the 2018 Chicago Marathon in 2:05:11.

Farah looked like he had been running marathons his whole life, tucking in the back of the lead pack and running relaxed until 18 miles, when only six, and then four, men remained. By 24 miles Farah’s only challenger was Mosinet Geremew of Ethiopia, who has a marathon PR of 2:04:00. Farah kept looking over at his competitor, sizing him up.

With about a quarter mile to go, Farah, 35, made his decisive move, showing the sprint that won him all those gold medals on the track. In winning, he set a European record. Geremew held on for second place in 2:05:24.

Suguru Osako of Japan was third in 2:05:50. Galen Rupp fell behind the leaders at about 20 miles and finished fifth in 2:06:21.



“I was definitely comfortable from mile 24, so I knew from that point I was just kind of pushing a bit, testing the guys out and figuring out who to go with,” Farah said. “And there was only that guy who went with me, and I didn’t know who he was, so at the time I was just like, make sure I have enough left at the finish line. And then I just got away at the end easily. Definitely had another couple of gears.”

Rupp said he found himself struggling at the fluid station around 35 kilometers, but he did his best to keep contact with the surging pack and get closer over the final miles.

Galen Rupp crosses the finish line in fifth place at the 2018 Chicago Marathon. © KEVIN MORRIS

“Obviously my goal was to win, but I ran the best I could today,” Rupp said. “At the end of the day when I got back and look at it, I’m sure there will be some things I can learn from this. I just got to give credit to Mo and all the other guys. They were better today and they ran well.”

He was full of praise for Farah. The two trained together for about five years in Oregon before Farah split from the group in 2017.



Farah takes home $100,000 for the victory.

Sarah Lorge Butler Sarah Lorge Butler is a writer and editor living in Eugene, Oregon, and her stories about the sport, its trends, and fascinating individuals have appeared in Runner’s World since 2005.

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