Ethiopia dominated the competition at the Tokyo Marathon on Sunday, winning both the men's and women's categories.

Tadese Takele won the men's race in a time of 2 hours, 3 minutes, 23 seconds on Sunday as Uganda's double Olympic track champion Joshua Cheptegei finished ninth.

Takele broke clear of the pack with around four kilometres to go in warm conditions to claim his first major marathon title, shaving a second off his previous personal best.

Takele's compatriot Deresa Geleta was second in 2:03:51, with Kenya's Vincent Kipkemoi Ngetich third in 2:04:00.

"The weather wasn't a problem, it wasn't too hot and for me it was comfortable," said Takele.

"The course was good and this was a great day for me. In the future, I hope to run even better than I did today."

In the women's race, Ethiopia's Sutume Asefa Kebede defended her title, finishing in 2 hours, 16 minutes, 31 seconds.

Kenya's Winfridah Moraa Moseti was second in 2:16:56, with Ethiopia's Hawi Feysa third in 2:17:00.

Cheptegei, who won gold in both the Tokyo Olympics 5,000m in 2021 and the 10,000m in Paris last year, was running his second marathon after making his debut at the distance in Valencia two years ago.

The 28-year-old finished in a time of 2:05:59.

Former women's world record-holder Paula Radcliffe, who was running her first marathon in 10 years at the age of 51, finished in a time of 2:57:26.

Britain's Radcliffe also plans to run the Boston Marathon next month. (AFP)