Switzerland’s Catherine Debrunner is dominant as she wins her London Marathon wheelchair debut
Debrunner, who was competing in only her second-ever marathon, crossed the world-famous Finish Line on The Mall in 1:38:24 to secure victory by almost four minutes.
And Debrunner was delighted with her impressive performance, which also saw her set a new course record.
“The feeling is unbelievable and so incredible,” she said. “I’m so proud I did it all by myself. It was so tough, it’s a crazy route. But it’s been a great adventure and experience.”
Defending champion Manuela Schär (SUI) was forced to withdraw due to illness before the start of the race, while Paralympic champion Madison de Rozario (AUS) also was unable to make the Start Line.
And Debrunner, who has made the step up from initially racing over just 400 metres, immediately wanted to make the most of her opportunity.
“I spoke with Susannah [Scaroni] when we knew both Manuela and Madison had withdrawn and we agreed to work together,” said Debrunner. “I noticed on the downhill I had a chance and I decided to go myself.”
But Debrunner surprised even herself with the victory.
“I trained for three months with my coach in Holland and I saw a big progression during that time but I never expected to win today,” she said. “I like this distance because it’s extremely tough mentally and I love it already.”
Debrunner also won in Berlin last weekend in her first-ever marathon, and her success in London followed Marcel Hug’s victory in the men’s race to make it a Swiss-sweep of the titles.
There was a frantic finish behind Debrunner, with the next five athletes separated by just seven seconds.
But it was Susannah Scaroni who fought hard to secure second place in 1:42:21. And the American was quick to praise the support coming her way.
“This is my first appearance in three years and London is just as I remember it,” she said. “It’s a hard course, but the crowd were fantastic and today we had great weather. The gap accrued between me and Catherine at 5K and I just had to hang in there.
“I think this London Marathon is amazing. From the moment you land you are looked after and feel part of an amazing event.
“It’s incredible to be a wheelchair racer at this time. The impact of the additional prize money is significant and means we can focus on being athletes.”
The 2022 TCS London Marathon wheelchair races are the richest in history, with the winners of each race receiving £29,300.
But Scaroni was unhappy that Schär and de Rozario were unable to take part: “I felt very sorry for Manuela and Madison,” said Scaroni. “Manuela is my idol and for her not to be there was disappointing.”
However, it was a memorable race for Eden Rainbow-Cooper, as the 21-year-old Brit dug deep to take third place in 1:47:27.
“It was a tough race but getting experience at this level is what I need,” she said. “I have not raced against a lot of these women, so having this experience will be beneficial to my future races.
“I’m really grateful to the Weir Archer Academy as David [Weir] has really supported me in my marathon racing and I would recommend that any wheelchair athletes who are interested in marathons get involved – details of how to do that are available in the usual social media outlets.”