Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa and Kenya’s Rita Jeptoo won the men and women title respectively in the 117th edition of Boston Marathon Boston, continuing African runners’ dominance in the sport. This is Jeptoo’s second Boston victory.
Interestingly Kenya’s Micah Kogo finished second in the men’s event and Ethiopia’s Meseret Hailu was 33 seconds behind Jeptoo finishing a distant second.
This African glory, especially of Ethiopia and Kenya, was totally overshadowed by the tragedy that followed the historic sport events. Hundreds of runners who had expected to leave Boston on Tuesday morning with a sense of triumph after a night of celebration left instead with heavy hearts following the blasts that left at least three people dead. The bombings also sent 176 people to hospitals, including 17 who were critically injured.
Among the dead was an 8-year-old boy, Martin Richard. President Barack Obama has assured the American people that he will get to the bottom of this. We hope those involved in this criminal act will be caught soon and will be made to feel “the full weight of justice.” — S.H. Moulana, Riyadh
Boston bombings
