Kenya's Geoffrey Mutai has won the 2011 Boston Marathon, crossing the finish line in 2:03:02, shattering the course record which was just set last year by countryman Robert Kiprono Cheruiyot, who did it in 2:05:52. Mutai's effort Monday morning was actually the fastest marathon ever run (whether or not it counts as a world record is a subject of debate, since Boston is a downhill course).
The previous fastest marathon time the 2:03:59 run by Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie at Berlin in 2008.
Fellow Kenyan Moses Musop, who ran stride-for-stride with Mutai down the stretch, finished second with a time that also broke the marathon record, which gives an idea of how fast the 2011 Boston Marathon was. Gebregziabher Gebremariam, the winner of last year's New York City Marathon, finished third.
Ryan Hall, who led early on and for much of the race on Monday, ended up coming in fourth place, with a time of 2:04:58, a new record for an American runner.
"I participated in a historic race today. That race will go down as one of the greatest marathons maybe ever run, and certainly in the Boston Marathon."