Kenya's Peres Jepchirchir sets world mark in half marathon

The 26-year-old Jepchirchir broke away from a small field of runners after about 20 minutes and was cruising at the 16.5-lap course in the Czech capital's Letna Park on Saturday morning. The previous record of 1:06:11 was set by Netsanet Gudeta of Ethiopia in 2018 at the world half marathon championships in Valencia, Spain.

Peres Jepchirchir of Kenya set a world record in the women's-only race in the half marathon, clocking 1 hour, 5 minutes and 34 seconds. The 26-year-old Jepchirchir broke away from a small field of runners after about 20 minutes and was cruising at the 16.5-lap course in the Czech capital's Letna Park on Saturday morning.

The previous record of 1:06:11 was set by Netsanet Gudeta of Ethiopia in 2018 at the world half marathon championships in Valencia, Spain. "I was thinking to run maybe 1:04:50, but I'm so happy," Jepchirchir said.