NAIROBI, Feb. 25 (Xinhua) -- Former Olympic bronze medalist Wilson Kipsang of Kenya said Sunday stomach problems forced him to stop midway through the Tokyo marathon course on Sunday.

Speaking moments after he dropped out of the race with only 15km done, the former world record holder said, "I really wanted to go fast, but after suffering from stomach problems the last two days before the race, I didn't have the power to run a decent race today."

In the absence of Kipsang, Kenyan Dickson Chumba was the strongest as he recaptured the title he last won in 2014, timing 2:05:30.

However, the hero of the day was Yuta Shitara of Japan, who was second clocking a national record time of 2:06:11. He improved the mark after 16 years and got 1 million U.S. dollar bonus for it.

In the women's race, Birhane Dibaba of Ethiopia running a smart race, working hard after 30 km also achieved a second Tokyo title in 2:19:51, just four seconds off the course record.

Second Ruti Aga 2:21:19 and London World Championships bronze medalist Amy Cragg living up to her pre-race vow to make the top three in 2:21:42.