Sharon Cherop

SHARON CHEROP
KENYA

BIRTHDATE:
16 March 1984

PERSONAL BEST:
2:22:43 (Toronto, 2010); 2:22:42w (Boston, 2011)

WORLD MARATHON MAJOR HIGHLIGHTS:

16Aug12 Boston Marathon 1st 2:31:50
27Aug11 IAAF World Championships 3rd 2:29:14
18Apr11 Boston Marathon 3rd 2:22:42w

ADDITIONAL CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:

26Sep10 Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon 1st 2:22:43
25Apr10 Hamburg Marathon 1st 2:28:38
25Oct09 Nairobi Marathon 3rd 2:33:53
26Apr08 Country Music Marathon 4th 2:39:52
07Oct07 St. Paul Minneapolis 3rd 2:38:45

CAREER NOTES:

Sharon Cherop finally stood at the top step of the podium at the 2012 Boston Marathon. With burst of speed coming off of Hereford Street she disposed of her final rival, Jemima Sumgong, and won by two seconds in 2:31:50 under extremely hot conditions.

For much of the 2011 Boston Marathon, Cherop was one of the last three contenders. She only fell back in the final miles and still finished just six seconds behind the winner and four out of second place. Her third place time of 2:22:42 was one second better than her PR.

Cherop again finished third at the IAAF World Championships at Daegu in August again breaking 2:30.

Cherop claimed her stature as one of the top marathoners in the world in 2010 with a huge win in Toronto. There she edged out Tirfi Tsegaye by one second to improve her personal best by almost six minutes. Her Toronto win was the fastest ever run in Canada and beat the former record established by Lidia Simon at the World Championships in Edmonton.

Cherop also had a pivotal moment in her career when she finished third in the 5,000m at the World Junior Championships.

PERSONAL NOTES:

Cherop currently runs for the Kenyan Armed Forces and says she will work in the army after her professional running career slows down. She is married to Matthew Kibowen Kosgei, who is a 2:10:57 marathoner, and the couple has a 2-year old daughter named Natalia. Cherop said when she is not training she enjoys reading novels and swimming.