Ethiopia's Endeshaw Negesse destroyed a quality field including Olympic and world champion Stephen Kiprotich to produce a stunning upset in the Tokyo Marathon on Sunday.
Birhane Dibaba completed an Ethiopian double by winning the women's race to underline the depth of marathon running in the East African country.
Negesse boosted his hopes of being selected for this year's world championships in Beijing with a masterful run, leaving the favourites floundering in his wake after an explosive final seven kilometres to clock a winning time of two hours and six minutes flat.
"It was a tough race," the 26-year-old told reporters.
"There was a bit of rain and the cold made it hard work but luckily I was able to hang in and win the race. My dream is to go on and make the Ethiopia team for Beijing."
Ugandan hero Kiprotich, competing in honour of the memory of his baby daughter Elizabeth who passed away from a respiratory illness last month, put in a late burst to pip last year's winner Dickson Chumba of Kenya to second place.
The London Olympic gold medallist and world title holder finished a step ahead of Chumba in a personal best of 2:06:33.
The ninth running of the Tokyo Marathon marked the start of a new format comprising the world's top six races -- including Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York -- and offering a $US1 million ($A1.3 million) purse split between the men's and women's champions.
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