2017 Boston Marathon Men's Winner: Geoffrey Kirui
BOSTON (CBS) - Geoffrey Kirui won the men's 2017 Boston Marathon Monday with an official time of 2:09:37.
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His victory completed a Kenyan sweep, as Edna Kiplagat took the women's title in her first Boston Marathon.
"I'm very happy," Kirui told WBZ-TV's David Wade. "As Kenyans, I'm happy to see we have performed well."
It was Kirui's first time running Boston.
Kirui and Galen Rupp of Oregon separated from the lead pack in Newton, but Kirui pulled away and took over the race in mile 23 and never looked back.
Rupp finished second in 2:09:58. It was his first Boston Marathon and just his third marathon overall.
"It was an experience unlike anything I've ever had before," Rupp told Wade. "I kept hearing how special of a race this was, and it definitely lived up to and exceeded expectations."
He said he's wanted to run the Boston Marathon since high school--and he even has a Boston terrier named Bosco.
Rupp said he'd like to come back to Boston.
"I tried my best, it's been really up and down," he said. "Two weeks ago, I wasn't even sure if I could run here, so just to be able to finish second, I'm really happy with it."
Suguru Osaki of Japan finished third in 2:10:28.
2014 champion Meb Keflezighi, the last American to win Boston, finished 13th in 2:17:00. It was his last competitive Boston Marathon.
Crowds cheered as he crossed the finish line.
"I enjoyed the crowd, it was an amazing crowd," he told WBZ-TV's Steve Burton. "They were chanting 'USA, USA!' and 'Go Meb!' and 'You're our hero,' and 'Boston Strong, Meb Strong!'"
He will retire from racing after running the New York Marathon in November.
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