Olympic women's marathon start time changed

Kenya's Brigid Kosgei, right, and Kenya's Ruth Chepngetich race during the London Marathon in London, England, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020 [AP]

The Olympic women's marathon will start at 12am Kenyan time (6am) in Sapporo on Saturday, one hour earlier than initially planned due to the "weather", a Tokyo 2020 official said on Friday.

There is no change at this stage to the men's start time of 7 a.m. on Sunday, the official added.

The International Olympic Committee decided in 2019 to move the marathon to the northern city of Sapporo to escape the worst of Tokyo's summer heat.

Olympic Marathoner Peres Jepchirchir trains in Kapsabet for Olympic games. 01.06..2021. {Peter Ochieng, Standard.]

But Sapporo was just as hot as Tokyo on Friday with the mercury hitting a high of 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit).