Men's Race

2015 Birell Prague Grand Prix champion Daniel Chebii will defend his title against former marathon world record holder Patrick Makau and a slew of other talented athletes in Prague on September 10.

Chebii, and Makau are two of the five men in the field who have broken 28 minutes for 10,000 meters.  The other three sub-28:00 men in the field are Kenyans Richard Mengich, Stephen Omiso, and Evans Kigen Kirui.  Daniel Wanjiru has never broken 28:00, but he's no stranger to the streets of Prague--he's won the Sportisimo Prague Half Marathon twice.

These 10K speedsters are joined by one of the fastest half marathoners in history. Only three men have ever run 13.1 miles faster than the 58:44 that Solomon Yego did in March in Rome. Yego's time is the fastest in the world on a record-legal course since 2011.

Chebii, Makau, Mengich, Wanjiru, and Yego are five of the seven sub-one-hour half-marathoners in the field. Kenneth Keter and Geofrey Kusuro have both dipped under the venerated hour barrier. Keter famously did so this spring at the Venloop Half Marathon in the Netherlands, where he started as a pacemaker and then never dropped out.

They'll be aiming for Geoffrey Ronoh's course record of 27:28. If Chebii wins it, it'll be his third Prague Grand Prix title in the last four years.

Chebii isn't just the defending Prague Grand Prix champ--he is also a former winner and race record holder (59:49) of RunCzech's Mattoni České Budějovice Half Marathon In 2012

Three men in the field are on the RunCzech Racing Team: Keter, Abraham Kipyatich, and the 18 year old Mathew Kimeli. 

Seven men broke 28:00 in last year's race, led by Chebii's 27:42. The race is one of just four IAAF Gold Label 10Ks in the world each year. Some of the requirements to be named Gold Label are an elite international field, equal prize money for men and women, and robust drug testing.

Women's Race

Violah Jepchumba returns to the roads of the city where she became an all-timer. In April, the Kenyan won the Sportismo Prague Half Marathon in 1:05:51, making her the third fastest half marathoner ever.  Carlo Capalbo, the President of the Organizing Committee of RunCzech races stated, "We are very pleased to be able to welcome Violah back to Prague where she confirmed her arrival in April as one of the finest half-marathoners in history".  Jepchumba's 10K best is actually from that race, when she came through 10K is a blistering 30:29--well ahead of world record pace.  That time is 27 seconds faster than anyone else in the field has ever run for 10K. The second fastest women in the field is Gladys Cherono, who is also the fifth fastest half marathoner in history at 1:06:07. 

Between Jepchumba, Cherono, and Paskalia Chepkorir Kipkoech--all three Kenyan women have broken 31 minutes--the course record of 30:55 seems in jeopardy. The world lead on the roads is also Jepchumba's 30:29 from the Prague Half in April.

In addition to Jepchumba, Cherono, and Kipkoech, two other women in the field have broken 70 minutes in the half marathon: Kenyan Joyciline Jepkosgei, and Ethiopian Muliye Dekebo.

Perhaps the Ethiopian, Dekebo or Horie of Japan represent the best chance of a non-Kenyan finishing on the podium, but since the event switched from 5K to 10K in 2013, Kenyan women have won all three editions.

Jepkosgei has the fourth fastest 10K time in the field, and is the only woman other than the three favorites to have broken 32 minutes. She is the only women in the field who is representing the RunCzech Racing team. In her RunCzech debut, Jepkosgei won and broke the course record at the Mattoni Karlovy Vary Half Marathon.

One of the best Czechs lining up on September 10 is Anežka Drahotová, who most recently finished 10th in the 20K race walk at the Olympics. Drahotová certainly has had the most diverse career in the field--in addition to race walking and road running, she's also competed internationally in road cycling and the 3000 meter steeplechase.

Men's Field

Nat	First	Last	10K PR
KEN	Daniel Kipchumba	CHEBII	27:35
KEN	Patrick	MAKAU	27:27
KEN	Richard Kiprop	MENGICH	27:48
KEN	Daniel Kinyua	WANJIRU	28:05
KEN	Stephen Arita	OMISO	27:55
KEN	Evans Kigen	KURUI	27:56
UGA	Geofrey	KUSURO	28:06
TAN	Gabriel Gerard	GEAY	28:04
KEN	Emmanuuel Kiprono	KIPSANG	28:06
KEN	Peter	KWEMOI	28:06
BEL	Soufiane	BOUCHIKHI	28:11
ERI	Simon	TESFAY
KEN	Kenneth	KETER	28:18
KEN	Abraham	KIPYATICH	28:19
KEN	Mathew Kipkorir	KIMELI	28:19
BRA	Paulo	PAULA
GER	Falk	CIERPINSKI	28:57
CZE	Jan	KREISINGER	28:59
KEN	Yego Solomon	KIRWA	29:06
UKR	Oleksandr	SITKOVSKYY	29:18
KEN	Simon Kiruthi	MUTHONI	29:52
KEN	Amos Kibiwot	KURGAT
CZE	Milan	KOCOUREK	29:30
CZE	Jiří	HOMOLÁČ	29:59
SVK	Juraj	VITKO	30:18
CZE	David	VAŠ	31:34
CZE	Radek	HÜBL	31:15
CZE	Vít	PAVLIŠTA	30:12

Women's Field

Nat	First	Last	10K PR
KEN	Violah	JEPCHUMBA	30:29
KEN	Gladys	CHERONO	30:56
KEN	Paskalia Chepkorir	KIPKOECH	30:57
KEN	Joyciline	JEPKOSGEI	31:28
KEN	Lucy	CHEROUIYOT	32:21
POL	Katarzyna	KOWALSKA	33:37
JPN	Misato	HORIE
KEN	Emmaculate	JEBET	32:33
CZE	Eva	VRABCOVÁ	33:07
JPN	Kikuyo	TSUZAKI	33:25
UKR	Olga	SKRYPAK	32:44
UKR	Valentyna	ZHUDINA	33:27
CZE	Kristiina	MÄKI
CZE	Anežka	DRAHOTOVÁ	33:59
ETH	Muliye	DEKEBO	34:50
KEN	Ruth	CHEPNGETICH
UKR	Iulia	SHMATENKO	34:22
CZE	Tereza	ČAPKOVÁ	34:04
CZE	Petra	KAMÍNKOVÁ	33:38
CZE	Valerie	SOUKUPOVÁ	35:15
CZE	Petra	VAŠINOVÁ	35:40
CZE	Dagmar	RYCHNOVSKÁ	37:59
ETH	Afera	GODFAY	31:08