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Grigoryeva is Victorius at 2008 Chicago Marathon
Posted October 12th, 2008 at 11:27 AM by Adam Jacobs
Section: News & Results, Marathons
1 Grigoryeva, Lidiya 2:27:17 (RUS)
2 Biktimirova, Alevtina 2:29:32 (RUS)
3 Shimahara, Kiyoko 2:30:19 (JPN)
4 Tomescu-Dita, Constantina 2:30:57 (ROM)
5 Davila, Desiree 2:31:33 (USA)
Bank of America Chicago Marathon: Women’s Preview
Posted October 10th, 2008 at 1:30 PM by Jared Markowitz
Section: News & Results, Marathons
The Women’s Race at the 2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon will feature a clash between youth and experience. On the side of experience are reigning Olympic champion Constantina Tomescu-Dita and two-time defending Chicago champion Berhane Adere, both of whom have remarkable credentials and are in fine form. They will be challenged by relative newcomer Bezunesh Bekele and several other talented women looking to prove themselves on this big stage.
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Chicago Completes Elite Fields with Adere & Njenga
Posted October 2nd, 2008 at 5:43 PM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons
Race director Carey Pinkowski has completed his elite fields for the 2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon scheduled for Sunday, Oct. 12, adding two of the most successful athletes in the race’s 31-year history.
Two-time defending women’s champion Berhane Adere of Ethiopia got her second victory at Chicago last year when she caught rising Romanian star, Adriana Pirtea, in the final few meters of the race. Running in unusually hot conditions, Adere made up a big deficit in the last kilometer to get her second Chicago victory. In much cooler conditions, Adere also won in 2006 in a personal best 2:20:42, a mark which remains the Ethiopian record.
No woman has every won Chicago three years in a row.
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Bekele and Dibaba to Double at Beijing Olympics
Posted July 15th, 2008 at 9:07 AM by Bob Ramsak
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Track & Field, Olympics
Bernard Lagat’s ambitious goal to succeed Hicham El Guerrouj as the Olympic 1500m and 5000m champion might have gotten even more difficult with today’s team announcement by the Ethiopian Olympic Committee (EOC). Despite earlier indications that he would only defend his 10,000m Olympic title in Beijing, the EOC included Kenenisa Bekele on its 5000m roster as well.
Less than two months ago, Bekele told reporters in Hengelo, The Netherlands, that a double was out of the question.
“It’s very tough to run a double at the Olympics,” he said. “I ran many kilometers in a few days in Athens, and I lost a lot of power.”
Apparently Bekele has had a change of heart. The world record holder at both events and widely acknowledged as the finest distance runner of his generation, Bekele will be aiming to improve upon his showing over the shorter distance in Athens four years ago, where he finished runner-up to El Guerrouj.
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Germany’s Irina Mikitenko Earns Upset Victory at 2008 Flora London Marathon
Posted April 13th, 2008 at 6:30 AM by Adam Jacobs
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Special Features, Live Race Coverage
Germany’s Irina Mikitenko, who had a previous personal best time of 2:24:51, has defeated pre-race favorties Gete Wami and Berhane Adere to win the 2008 Flora London Marathon!
In what is her first major, international marathon victory, Mikitenko earned the victory and followed in the tradition of fellow German Uta Peppig in a time of 2:24:14.
Svetlana Zhakarova was the runner up (2:24:39) and Ethiopia’s Gete Wami, who had taken a serious fall and hurt her hip earlier in the race, finished third in 2:25:35. Selina Kosgei, Ludmila Petrova, Souad Ait Salem, Berhane Adere, Constantina Tomescu-Dita and Liz Yelling
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London Marathon 2008: Elite Women’s Race Preview
Posted April 11th, 2008 at 3:30 PM by Jared Markowitz
Section: News & Results, Marathons
The women’s competition at the 2008 Flora London Marathon promises to be intense despite the absence of perennial favorite and World Record holder Paula Radcliffe, who recently withdrew due to a toe ailment. The race will still include a pair of Ethiopian stars as well as several other first class British marathoners. These women will be racing for one of the most prestigious titles in the marathon world as well as points in the World Marathon Majors contest.
Leading the way for the women will be the inaugural World Marathon Major Champion, Gete Wami of Ethiopia. Wami had a stellar track career before turning to the marathon, and has finished on the podium in numerous world class marathons. She won last fall’s Berlin marathon and finished second at London last year (to China’s Chunxiu Zhou). Her lifetime best of 2:21:34 ranks near the top of the field but is almost a minute slower than that of fellow Ethiopian Berhane Adere, whose 2:20:42 is the fastest in the field. Adere also sports an impressive marathon resume with two Chicago victories and the 2008 Dubai title to her credit. Adere will be looking to avenge a few uncharacteristically poor performances at London as her fourth and eleventh place finishes the last two years are far below her standards.
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Cheruiyot, Wami Lead Galaxy of Stars at World Marathon Majors Races This Month
Posted April 1st, 2008 at 10:49 AM by Martin Kennedy
Section: News & Results, Marathons
The new era in long distance running continues with a galaxy of the sport’s brightest stars back in action this month as the World Marathon Majors series resumes at the Flora London Marathon and the 112th running of the Boston Marathon.
More than $850,000 in prize money, prestige and all important points in the race to crown the 2007-2008 WMM champions will be on the line in the British capital on Sunday, April 13 followed eight days later at the celebrated Hopkinton to Boston course on Monday, April 21.
Reigning women’s WMM champion Gete Wami of Ethopia leads the field in London while the WMM men’s champion Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot of Kenya tops the field in Boston.
In London, United States sensation Ryan Hall makes his first start since winning the US Olympic Team Trials – Men’s Marathon race last fall in New York. It will be his second consecutive appearance in London, following his breakthrough seventh place finish last year in his 26.2-mile debut.
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2008 Previews & Predictions: Women’s Marathon
Posted January 24th, 2008 at 12:30 PM by Jared Markowitz
Section: News & Results, Marathons, Olympics
The marathon promises to be one of the marquee events in women’s track and field in 2008. Among the highlights will be an epic showdown in London, a thrilling U.S. Olympic Trials, and Paula Radcliffe’s last chance at Olympic glory in Beijing. These and a few other huge races should provide many memorable moments and will define many careers. I will again try to make predictions based on as much hearsay, personal bias, and circumstantial data as I can gather.
The first big event on the 2008 women’s marathon calendar is the Flora London Marathon, which will be held on April 13. This race feature’s several of the world’s top female marathoners including World Record holder Radcliffe, World Marathon Majors Champ Gete Wami, Dubai Marathon champ Berhane Adere, Svetlana Zakharova, Constantina Tomescu-Dita, and Benita Johnson.
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Gebrselassie Oh So
Close in Dubai
Posted January 18th, 2008 at 12:58 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons
As ING New York City Marathon director Mary Wittenberg once said: “You can’t script sport.”
Haile Gebrselassie’s world record attempt Friday at the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon veered off plan when the great Ethiopian scorched the first half in 1:01:27, at least half a minute faster than he had intended. He had hoped to run the second half of the race faster than the first, but fading in the later kilometers he only managed 1:03:26 for the last 21.1 km. Nonetheless, his final time of 2:04:53 was still the second-fastest marathon of all-time, two seconds faster than Paul Tergat’s 2003 world record set in Berlin.
Although Gebrselassie missed out on the $1 million world record bonus, he still won $250,000 in prize money, the largest first prize in marathon running.
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It’s Official: Paula Radcliffe to Return to London Marathon
Posted January 15th, 2008 at 11:04 AM by David Monti
Section: News & Results, Marathons
Any doubts that Paula Radcliffe might skip the spring marathon season were laid to rest today when Flora London Marathon race director, Dave Bedford, announced that the world record holder would try for her third London title on Sunday, April 13.
“We are delighted to have Paula back in London and pleased that she has decided to race here again against such a strong field,” Bedford said through a media release.
Radcliffe, who turned 34 last month, previously won London in 2002, 2003 and 2005. Should she prevail again this year she would tie Norway’s Ingrid Kristiansen with four titles, the most by any man or woman at London. Radcliffe set the absolute world record in a mixed-gender race in 2003 when she ran a jaw-dropping 2:15:25 with the aid of male pacers. She also set the world record for an all-women’s race in London in 2002 in her marathon debut, clocking a solo 2:18:56. Radcliffe is coming off of a thrilling victory at the ING New York City Marathon last November where she won a pitched battle with Ethiopia’s Gete Wami.
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Who was America's most-valuable male runner in 2008?
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- Chicago Marathon ‘07: Lead pack down to three - Adere, Pirtea, and Ivanova
Women at 25k in 1:28:59. Olaru has dropped back and is at least 15 seconds back at this point.
The women’s leaders are Ivanova, Adere, and Pirtea as the pack has cut down with the quickening pace and increased heat.
Adere and Ivanova are running shoulder to shoulder with Pirtea right behind them.
Johnson and Erkesso […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Ivanova and Adere trying to break away at 14 miles
Women are through 14 miles in 1:20:12 and ran the last mile in 5:36. The sun is directly in the face of the runners, causing some to struggle with the heat and some to feel blinded.
At this point, Ivanova, and Adere are trying to break the pack of 5 women and make their move.
***** […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Women hit half-way point in 1:15:10
The women’s field is now at the half-way point in 1:15:10. They are on pace for the slowest women’s Chicago Marathon in over 10 years.
Adere is sitting on Ivanova just waiting to pounce.
The women’s 20k time was 1:11:15 and the leader’s times are as follows:
Ivanova 1:11:18
Adere 1:11:18
Pirtea 1:11:18
Johnson 1:11:18
Olaru 1:11:19
Yelling 1:11:31
O’Neill 1:11:44
At 7:30am this […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Ivanova back in lead; women though 12 miles in 1:08:49
Liz Yelling’s has now dropped back as the women continue to take turns in the lead.
In all, the women are through 12 miles in 1:08:49 and ran the last mile in 5:43.
Ivanova is back in the lead in front of a pack of about 6 women, including 2006 champion Berhane Adere. Adere is the […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Yelling takes the lead after 11 miles
After 11 miles, Liz Yelling of Great Britain has taken the lead.
However, Ivanova and Adere are right behind her.
The women are through 11 miles in 1:03:45.
***** ***** ***** ***** *****
Check back often for TheFinalSprint.com’s LIVE coverage […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: O’Neil, in her debut, is beginning to catch up after 10 miles
Women through 10 miles in 57:17. 5:47 for the last mile.
Kathy Butler has fallen back by 30 seconds. American Kate O’Neill is 17 seconds back and continuing to gain on the leaders.
Here are the elite women’s 15k rankings and times:
Alevtina Ivanova 52:21
Berhane Adere 53:21
Benita Johnson 53:21
Nuta Olaur 53:22
Liz Yelling 53:22
Adirana […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Ivanova takes lead at 8 mile marker
Alevtina Ivanova has taken over the lead for the women at about the eight mile mark. The 7 other women are still packed closely behind her and are mixed in with a bunch of the male age groupers.
The women’s 8 mile split is 45:45; 5:50 for the last mile.
However, Adere is right behind […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Women’s 10k splits
The women’s 10k splits were as follows:
Nuta Olaru 35:22
Berhane Adere 35:23
Adriana Pirtea 35:23
Kathy Butler 35:23
Alevtina Ivanova 35:23
Benita Johnson 35:23
Liz Yelling 35:24
Kate O’Neill 35:31
Jessica Ruthe 35:41
***** ***** ***** ***** *****
Check back often for TheFinalSprint.com’s LIVE coverage of the 2007 […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Butler increases lead after 5 miles
Now past the 5 mile mark, Kathy Butler has increased her lead to about 8 seconds over a pack of 5 women 5 seconds behind her, which includes Berhane Adere and Teyba Erkesso.
In all, the women’s 5 mile split time is 28:30 and the last mile wa run in 5:54.
***** ***** […] - Chicago Marathon ‘07: Women run through 2 mile mark
Women are through 2 miles in 11:17; 6:00 minutes even for the second mile.
All of the top women are still near the front, including: Berhane Adere, Kathy Butler, Teyba Erkesso, Alvetina Ivanova, Benita Johnson, Nuta Olaru, Kate O’Neil, Driana Pirtea, Jess Ruthe, Linda Somers Smith, and Liz Yelling.
***** ***** […]
The Final Sprint
On January 8, 2009
Joe said:
Hey Nick, First of all I want to tell you what an inspiration you are to me. I am an "old timer" (just...