Debrunner dominates to seal victory

This article was corrected to reflect the current stae of play at the top of the women's leaderboard.

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Catherine Debrunner dismantled her own course record to win the 2024 Bank of America Chicago Marathon.

Her victory also puts her within touching distance of a second straight Abbott World Marathon Majors series title with one race to spare.

The Swiss star, hot off a victory at the BMW BERLIN-MARATHON, dominated the women’s wheelchair race to win in 1:36:12, slicing more than two and a half minutes off of her previous record time, clocked in 2023.

Debrunner hit the accelerator pedal as soon as she could, and by 10km was almost 30 seconds clear.

She won by nearly three minutes over compatriot Manuela Schär, and also took the eight bonus points for the quickest time through the race’s flying 400 section.

Tatyana McFadden completed the podium in a race she has enjoyed much success in during her long career.

Debrunner is not slated to race in New York in the season finale andnow has a 14-point lead in the series XVI standings that Schär must win in New York to overhaul.

In a Paralympic year, wheelchair athletes' five best scores from the season count towards their final total, giving Schär the chance to regain the lead if she can triumph in the Big Apple.

In the men’s competition, Marcel Hug is almost of sight after a tit-for-tat battle with Daniel Romanchuk and Tomoki Suzuki.

The trio exchanged the lead repeatedly during a race that Hug could not bend to his will in his usual fashion.

Despite numerous attempts to accelerate clear of his opponents, it was not until the final climb up Mount Roosevelt that Hug was able to find the strength to create space between himself and American Romanchuk, leaving him clear to turn onto Columbus Drive and power home for another victory.

Hug will arrive in New York with one hand on the series title unless he fails to score and Romanchuk can win, which would tie them at 141 each.

As things stand, Switzerland remains odds-on to retain its status as home to the world’s fastest wheelchair racers on the planet.