NAIROBI, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Former New York Marathon champion Stanley Biwott has shaken off a persistent hamstring injury and will be among the elite runners gunning for the Chicago Marathon title on Oct. 8.
Biwott, 31, was forced to withdraw from London Marathon in April through injury and has had four months to go through rehabilitation and is optimistic he will have what it takes to claim the title in Chicago next month.
"The hamstring injury is gone and now the focus is on winning in Chicago. It is good they have given me an opportunity to test myself and I will take it with passion to prove myself as one of the best athletes in marathon," he said on Thursday from Eldoret.
In 2016, Biwott finished second at the London Marathon in a personal best of 2:03:51.
That time makes him one of fewer than 10 men to have run a sub-2:04 marathon on a record-eligible course. In fact he is the seventh fastest man, though that might change with the Berlin Marathon on Sunday.
"I had good plans for 2017. I thought I had the injury under control but the problem got worse. I pledged to return strong and here I am. Let see what Chicago course can provide," he said.
Fast time will be part of his strategy but he ruled out going for the world record, which now stands at 2:02.57 by compatriot Dennis Kimetto.
