In his first visit to Australia, Kenya’s Timothy Kattam emerged as the men’s champion at the 2024 Gold Coast Marathon. Reflecting on his victory, Kattam said, “This is my first time in Australia. I'm so grateful for today's race. It was fantastic.
Timothy Kattam and Yuki Nakamura triumph at 2024 Gold Coast Marathon
From Left, Australia's Lisa Weightman, Jessica Trengove, Namibia's Helalia Johannes and Kenya's Sheila Jerotich compete in the Women's Marathon race at the Commonwealth Games
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I liked the course. Everything worked well. I think I am very happy today.” Kattam completed the marathon in 2:08:52, narrowly defeating Ethiopia’s Belay Tilahun, who finished second at 2:08:58. Japan's Kiyoshi Koga secured third place with a time of 2:09:22.
In the women's category, Yuki Nakamura of Japan not only won but also shattered the race record with a remarkable time of 2:24:22. Speaking about her performance, Nakamura said, "One of my goals was to finish under 2 hours 26 minutes, so I achieved that. And on top of that, I got the race record and won, so I feel really happy." This victory marks Nakamura’s second career marathon and the third fastest women’s marathon time ever recorded on Australian soil. The previous top times were set at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games by Japan’s Naoko Takahashi (2:23:14) and Romania’s Lidia Simon (2:23:22).
Ethiopia's Kumeshi Sichala finished second in the women's race with a time of 2:25:25, followed by Kenya's Visiline Jepkesho in third at 2:26:17.
The 2024 Gold Coast Marathon highlighted the exceptional talents of both Kattam and Nakamura, making it a memorable event for all participants and spectators.