Exciting Sprint Finishes Highlight RAK Half
Posted February 8th, 2008 at 11:00 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons
No half-marathon in the world pays more prize money than the Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates, and it looks like race organizers got their money’s worth with today’s edition.
The road race, in only its second year, wrapped up this morning with thrilling sprint finishes on both the men’s and women’s sides. When all the dust had settled, Kenyans Patrick Makau and Salina Kosgei were declared the winners, and will take home USD 25,000 (tax free!).
Makau, a lanky and boyish athlete at age 22, continued to be impressive over his signature distance of 21,097 meters, dipping under the one-hour mark for the fifth time in his still-budding career.
Makau pushed the pace at 14 km, and just three kilometers later he was left with only one rival, the diminutive Ethiopian Tsegaye Kebede, best known for his 2:08:16 marathon (8th place) in Amsterdam last October. Things got physical, as the two traded the lead on the way to the finish line.
“I thought I could win from about 18 kilometers,” Makau told organizers after the race, “but he was very strong. He helped me get away from the others, but then he was hitting me with his elbow, I had to tell to stop.”
The race literally came down to the final two meters, with Makau edging Kebede at the line by half a step. Both athletes were given the same time: 59:35.
Just a little ways back, Tanzanians Dickson Marwa and Fabiano Joseph finished third and fourth, respectively, also getting under the one-hour barrier. Marwa had one of the best races of his career, beating Joseph, the 2005 IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships gold medalist, by four seconds, 59:52 to 59:56. For Marwa it was a personal best by 32 seconds. Japan-based Kenyan Mekubo Moguso was fifth in 1:00:35.
What the women’s race lacked in speed it made up in closeness. Kosgei (a former 800m runner), compatriot Pamela Chepchumba, and little-known Ethiopian Atsede Habtamu, headed to the tape in a tight bunch. Kosgei’s legs remembered those long-ago track sessions, and she spurted ahead of her challengers in the final meters to win by less than a stride. All three athletes were timed in 1:12:27.
In all, a USD 131,000 prize money purse was distributed.
Top Results:
MEN -
1. Patrick MAKAU KEN 59:35 USD 25,000
2. Tsegaye KEBEDE ETH 59:35 15,000
3. Dickson MARWA TAN 59:52 10,000
4. Fabiano JOSEPH TAN 59:56 6,000
5. Mekubo MOGUSO KEN 60:35 5,000
6. Matthew KOECH KEN 60:59 3,000
7. Kiplimo KIMUTAI KEN 61:00 1,500
8. Dieudonné DISI RWA 61:07
9. Tewodros SHIFERAW ETH 62:09
10. Paul KOSGEI KEN 62:17
WOMEN
1. Salina KOSGEI KEN 72:27 USD 25,000
2. Pamela CHEPCHUMBA KEN 72:27 15,000
3. Arsede HABTAMU ETH 72:27 10,000
4. Alice TIMBILIL KEN 72:29 6,000
5. Helalia JOHANNES NAM 72:29 5,000
6. Helena KIPROP KEN 72:33 3,000
7. Deriba ALEMU ETH 72:36 1,500
8. Nataliya BERKUT UKR 72:42
9. Atsede BAYSA ETH 75:12
10. Inga ABITOVA RUS 75:42
(c) 2008 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission.
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Tags: half marathon, Middle East, Patrick Makau, rak, rak half, rak half marathon, ras al khaimah, Salina Kosgei, UAE, United Arab emirates
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The Final Sprint