BOSTON CALLING: Rotich and honourable Korir prepare to get down to business in America

Wesley Korir of Kenya smiles after crossing the finish line to win the men's division of the 2012 Boston Marathon in Boston (R) Caroline Rotich, of Kenya, wins the women's division of the Boston Marathon, Monday, April 20, 2015, in Boston

Caroline Rotich and Ethiopia’s Lelisa Desisa will defend their titles at the 120th BAA Boston Marathon this evening, one of the world’s most venerated road races.

Although the point-to-point race from the distant western suburb of Hopkinton in Boston’s Back Bay is known more for its challenging profile than its fast times, Boston has been a prestigious international title since long before the professional era.

Launched in 1897 on a course planned specifically in imitation of the classic Marathon-to-Athens course at the first modern Olympics, the race was one of the most competitive in the world in the days before international air travel.

More recently, winning in Boston launched the careers of athletes like Bill Rodgers, Joan Benoit Samuelson, Uta Pippig and Robert Cheruiyot.

If the weather is warm, Wesley Korir, the 2012 winner and MP for Cherangany, might have an edge having won in 2012 in hot conditions.

To win, the world’s fastest legislator will need a race which lets him use his tactical intelligence as much as his speed.

Along with the two former champions, Boston brings five more men with sub-2:05 PBs to the narrow starting line in Hopkinton. Sammy Kitwara ran 2:04:28 at the 2014 Chicago Marathon, making him the fastest in the field by a bare four seconds over Tsegaye Mekonnen, whose 2:04:32 came in Dubai the same year.

Kitwara, who has finished second twice at the Chicago Marathon, joins Yemane Tsegay, second last year in Boston, as contenders looking for their first big wins. Kitwara is the younger of the two, with only seven previous marathon finishes under his belt. Tsegay, who also collected silver at the World Championships marathon in Beijing last summer, has wins in Ottawa, Daegu, Eindhoven, Taipei, and Otsu (Lake Biwa) on his resume, but nothing as big as Boston yet.

Among the women, picking a favorite might be as challenging as arriving in Newton ready to climb. Defending champion Caroline Rotich is back and not to be ignored, but her 2015 victory was not the kind of dominant performance that intimidates the competition.

Outside victories in Prague and Las Vegas, Rotich’s best performances have been fourth-place finishes in Boston, Chicago, Tokyo, and Yokohama.

The next most familiar name on the entry list is that of Tiki Gelana, the Olympic champion, Olympic record-holder and Ethiopian record-holder.

Gelana earned all of those accolades in 2012, however, and since then her best result has been a third-place finish in Tokyo in 2015 as she tries to recover the thread of brilliance she followed in the last Olympic year.