By U.S. News Agency / Asian

Hailu Mekonnen came through for Ethiopia in the absence of compatriot and living legend Haile Gebrselassie, winning the men’s Tokyo Marathon in 2 hours, 7 minutes, 35 seconds on Sunday.

Mekonnen won his first marathon after debuting on the circuit last year, finishing 12 seconds off the race record set in 2008 by Viktor Rothlin.

World marathon record holder Gebrselassie had pulled out from the fifth running of the Tokyo Marathon on Thursday after bruising both knees in a freak training injury. (Reported By Shintaro Kano)