Joyciline Jepkosgei (born 8 December 1993)[1] is a Kenyan female long-distance runner who competes over distances from 10,000 metres to the marathon. She is the former half marathon world record holder in contests with mixed-gender fields with her personal best of 64:51 minutes, and additionally the former world record holder in the 10 km with 29:43 minutes.[a][2] She was a bronze medallist over 10,000 m at the African Championships in Athletics in 2016. Jepkosgei ran a world record for the half marathon of 1:04:52 at the Prague Half Marathon in April 2017, becoming the first woman ever to break 65 minutes. She also unofficially broke the IAAF-ratified records for 10 km, 15 km and 20 km along the way, breaking a total of four world records in a single event.[3] She became the first Kenyan ever to break six world records in six months.[4]
Career
Jepkosgei emerged as a professional level runner at the 2015 Nairobi Half Marathon, where she finished fifth in 1:14:06 minutes.[5] She knocked her best down to 1:09:09 minutes at the following year's First Lady's Half Marathon in the Kenyan capital, placing second to Valentine Kipketer.[6] She improved two seconds further in winning the Karlovy Vary Half Marathon,[7] which placed her in the top 35 runners that year.[8]
She competed in her first top level half marathon at the start of 2017 and took nearly three minutes off her personal best, crossing the line in 66:08 minutes to take third at the RAK Half Marathon. This made her the seventh fastest runner ever at that point. The winner, Peres Jepchirchir, broke the world record and Jepkosgei ran the fastest ever time for her placing, as did runner-up Mary Keitany. Both Jepchirchir and Keitany had won world titles for the half marathon distance, thus establishing Jepkosgei among the world's best.[11][12] A month and a half later she returned to the distance and proved herself the fastest ever, winning the Prague Half Marathon.
During that race she broke four world records en route, recording 30:05 at 10K, 45:37 at 15K and 61:25 at 20K.
In September 2017, with the aid of a male pacer, she further improved her own 10K world record to 29:43,[13] just ahead of Fancy Chemutai (30:06), and Violah Jepchumba (30:25), at the Prague Grand Prix, thus becoming the first woman ever to run the distance under 30 minutes.
In November 2019, Jepkosgei won the New York City Marathon in her official debut at the distance with a time of 2:22:38, the second fastest time on the course for women.[14]
Jepkosgei won the 2021 London Marathon after taking the lead 22 miles (35 km) into the race and becoming the seventh fastest female marathoner in history with 2:17:43.[16][17]
The next year, the 28-year-old came seventh at the 2022 Boston Marathon in April in a time of 2:24:43. At the 2022 London Marathon in October, Jepkosgei placed second behind only Yalemzerf Yehualaw, clocking 2:18:07 and missing her personal best by 24 seconds.[1][18]
Personal life
Jepkosgei was coached by her husband, Nicholas Koech, until 2019 and has a son, Brandon, born in 2011.[19]
^Results / world records for women are broken into mixed-gender and women-only records, because in a mixed-gender race a female may benefit from a male pacer.
^"Women's Half Marathon"(PDF). 2020 World Athletics Half Marathon Championships. Archived(PDF) from the original on 17 October 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
