Eliud Kipchoge's seven-year marathon reign ends as Shura Kitata wins in London

Kenyan finishes lowly eighth in first defeat since Berlin 2013

Shura Kitata of Ethiopia crosses the line in first place ahead of Vincent Kipchumba of Kenya in the Elite Men’s race during the 2020 London Marathon around St. James's Park on Sunday. Getty

Shura Kitata of Ethiopia, left, won the elite men's race at the London Marathon. EPA

Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge, centre, looks down after crossing the line in eighth place and behind Ethiopia's Shura Kitata, left, who won the London Marathon. AP

Ethiopia's Shura Kitata poses at the finish line. AFP

Kenya's Eliud Kipchoge after finishing the elite men's race. Reuters

Britain's Sophie, Countess of Wessex and Patron of Mencap, joins Tomas Cardillo-Zallo, a member of Mencap's Learning Disability Running team, with his mum Sue acting as his guide runner, for the first 1.5 miles of his virtual London Marathon. Reuters

Austria's Peter Herzog reacts after completing the men's elite race at the London Marathon. PA

Ethiopia's Shura Kitata, centre, celebrates winning the men's elite race alongside second placed Kenya's Vincent Kipchumba, right, and third placed Ethiopia's Sisay Lemma. PA

World record holder Eliud Kipchoge's reign as the king of the London Marathon came to an end on Sunday as Shura Kitata emerged from the rain to become the new champion.

In a major upset Kipchoge, who had won all of his previous four London Marathons and had not lost over the distance in seven years, dropped off the pace around the 22-mile mark.

The 35-year-old Kenyan world record holder had no answer as a seven-strong lead group edged away from him, and he ended up finishing down in eighth.

Instead it was Ethiopian Kitata who snatched the title in two hours, five minutes and 41 seconds, pipping Kenya's Vincent Kipchumba on the line after a thrilling sprint finish.

A faster race was predicted due to the nature of the course – 19.7 laps of St James's Park rather than the traditional street route – but rain and chilly temperatures put paid to that.

With Kipchoge's rival Kenenisa Bekele, the second fastest marathon runner in history, missing through injury the stage looked set for a fifth victory for the Kenyan superstar.

But despite the slow pace he came up short and Kitata took full advantage, as Kipchoge was beaten for the first time since he came second in Berlin in 2013.

The coronavirus-hit marathon was limited to elite runners and with no crowds.