The Ethiopian adds the world crown to the Olympic title he won at Sydney last year.

Stefano Baldini of Italy finished third to win the bronze medal.

The end of the race concluded the opening ceremony of the first championships held in North America, with 40,000 spectators filling the Commonwealth Stadium.

Those fans were rewarded with as good a finish to a marathon as one could expect, with Abera and Biwott both evenly placed entering the final 200m.

Tightly bunched

Abera finished in 2 hours 12 mins 42 second, a second ahead of Biwott in one of the closest marathon finishes in a major championship.

Baldini's time was 2.13:17.

A large pack of leaders remained tightly bunched for much of the race, until Abdelkhader el Mouaziz of Morocco - the reigning London marathon champion - broke away at the 1.20 hour mark.

His move drew a smaller pack that included Biwott, Abera and Baldini, and they traded the lead repeatedly until Biwott and Abera moved ahead.

They entered the stadium together to thunderous applause, then dueled down the stretch with a grimacing Abera edging Biwott out for the victory.

"Halfway through the speed was a bit too fast, but I was feeling very confident in the end," said Abera.

"When Biwott and I were the only ones in the lead, I knew I would win. Compared to the Olympics I consider this to be of similar calibre. The only secret to this kind of success is hard work."