Eliud Kipchoge wins elusive Olympic marathon; Galen Rupp third in second-ever marathon

— -- Eliud Kipchoge of Kenya finally has won the gold medal in the Olympic marathon, finishing with a time of 2 hours, 8 minutes, 44 seconds as he sprinted to the finish line with a smile on his face.

Kipchoge missed the 2012 London Games, but he finished second in 2008 in Beijing and was third in the 2004 Athens Games. He was a favorite coming in as the dominant marathoner of the past couple of years, and he took the lead for good after the 30-kilometer mark.

Feyisa Lelisa of Ethiopia finished second for the silver, while American Galen Rupp took bronze in his second marathon ever and first in the Olympics. Rupp became the first American to medal in this event since Meb Keflezighi won silver in 2004.

Keflezighi overcame multiple issues -- including a slip at the finish line -- to finish 33rd.?Jared Ward, the third American runner, was sixth in a personal best.

A field of 155 runners, the biggest in Olympic history, started the marathon.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.