Just four weeks after the World Champion- ships in Berlin, the German capital will host another large running event: the 36^th edition of the real,- Berlin Marathon. First in a series of major fall marathons, Berlin is sure to be an exciting race as the defending champion and world record holder, Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia faces the fastest man in the world this year, Duncan Kibet of Kenya. The margin separating the two runner’s personal bests is a mere 28 seconds.

Joining this impressive elite field will be a record 40,923 runners from 122 countries. Berlin is one of the three fall marathons that are part of the World Marathon Majors (WMM). The 2008-2009 WMM series culminates with events in Chicago and New York. Despite these races, it’s pretty much certain that the current leaders, Sammy Wanjiru and Irina Mikitenko will maintain their lead. In order for their nearest rivals to catch them, they would have to win two of the remaining three fall marathons without Mikitenko or Wanjiru earning any points. As it stands now, Mikitenko is looking to become the first woman to win the WMM series twice in a row. The men’s and women’s champions in the WMM each receive half a million dollars in prize money.

Berlin is a great place to break records. Seven world records have been set since the race debut in 1974 with all but one of those in the last eleven years. Gebrselassie, who has run a total of 26 world bests in his career, is the only runner to have achieved two entries in this list with his times of 2:04:26 hours in 2007 and 2:03:59 in 2008.

Paul Tergat (Kenya), who became the first man to break 2:05 for the marathon when he ran 2:04:55 in Berlin in 2003, named four of his compatriots in an interview a few months ago whom he believed could compete against Gebrselassie and perhaps even break the Ethiopian’s world record: the Olympic champion Sammy Wanjiru, Martin Lel, James Kwambai and—Duncan Kibet.

Kibet will be one of the toughest opponents Gebrselassie has faced in quite a few years. The 31-year-old Kenyan leads the world’s fastest times for the marathon this year and his 2:04:27 win in Rotterdam put Gebrselassie’s world mark under unprecedented pressure. It’s a distinct possibility that Kibet can run under 2:04 in Berlin. It’s going to be fascinating to see which of them emerges as the winner of this exciting duel.

“I chose to run the real,- Berlin Marathon because I realized I improve on my personal best here,” explained Kibet. When asked about his duel with Gebrselassie, Kibet said: “I don’t know how he has been training and, equally, he doesn’t know any more about my training. So we shall have to wait and see how the race goes. But I shall try to go with whatever pace he runs.”

Kibet, who is coached by the Italian Claudio Berardelli, surprised himself by the magnitude of his improvement when he ran 2:04:27. But he is also confident he can run still faster. “My training partner James Kwambai finished third in 59:09 at the Rotterdam Half Marathon last Sunday. That is also a good omen for me,” said Kibet.

In the women’s race last year’s runner-up, Askale Tafa Magarsa (Ethiopia) makes her return. The 24-year-old will start as the favorite, having improved her personal best to the world-class time of 2:21:31 behind the winner, Irina Mikitenko. In 2008, she ran three marathons within nine months, but this will be her first major appearance in 2009, including shorter distance races. That is not necessarily a bad omen if she has been concentrating on marathon preparations, but it is hard to assess her current shape. Magarsa’s strongest opponent could well be fellow Ethiopian Atsede Habtamu who ran the Dubai Marathon in January—a race badly affected by a torrential downpour in the closing stages—and finished second in 2:25:17.

Haile Gebrselassie: “I’m in better form than in 2008″

Shortly before the race, Gebrselassie took time out to respond to some questions:

What are your goals in Berlin?

Haile: I want to win and break the world record!

How would you compare your form with that of last year? In 2008 you had a calf problem shortly before the race.

Haile: Overall I’m in better form than a year ago and I don’t have any of the kind of problems I had with my calf in 2008.

How many kilometers did you average in weekly training to prepare for the Berlin Marathon and what was your longest individual run?

Haile: In Ethiopia it’s hard to keep an accurate record of kilometers in training. I don’t run much on normal roads or paths. I don’t know exactly how many kilometers I run per week but I reckon it’s between 200 and 240. 240 would be the maximum and many weeks I would be running around 200 kilometers. My longest training run would be three hours.

You will be racing against Duncan Kibet in Berlin—that will be a tough race. What are your thoughts about this?

Haile: Of course, racing against Duncan Kibet will be very tough. But last year I was up against James Kwambai who was at the front with me right up to 34 kilometers. If Duncan Kibet is still alongside me at 35 kilometers, the race could develop into a tactical contest and we might miss the world record—he may well be in the kind of form to break the world record himself.

This will be your fourth successive appearance in the Berlin Marathon. What kind of relationship do you have with the city and Germany?

Haile: I felt right at home in Germany from the very first time I was there. That was at the 1993 World Championships in Stuttgart when I won a gold and a silver medal. I have many great memories of competing in Germany—they include indoor meetings in Stuttgart or Karlsruhe, the Golden League in Berlin in the summer and, of course, the marathon in Berlin. I’m proud to have set so many world records in Germany. The way the fans get behind you at the real,-Berlin Marathon is incredible—everyone seems to know me and know my name. For the fans who want to know what I’m doing, they can now receive Twitter messages from me on the Internet by clicking on to: http://twitter.com/HaileGebr

The Big Autumn Marathon: Leading Contenders and Dates

Berlin (September 20)

World Marathon Majors (WMM)-Race
IAAF Gold Label Race
Entry Limit: 41,000
Entries: closed

Prize Money: $70,000
Total Prize Money (without Time Bonuses): $371,000

Course Records:
2:03:59 – Haile Gebrselassie (ETH) WR
2:19:12 – Mizuki Noguchi (JPN)

Top athletes and their Personal Bests:
Men: Haile Gebrselassie (ETH/2:03:59/WR), Duncan Kibet (KEN/2:04:27), Atsushi Fujita (JPN/2:06:51), Francis Kiprop (KEN/2:08:30), Eshetu Wondimu (ETH/2:08:41), David Langat (KEN/2:08:58), Mariko Kiplagat (KEN/2:09:04), Dereje Debele Tulu (ETH/2:09:08), Alfred Kering (KEN/2:09:19), Cuthbert Nyasango (ZIM/Debüt).
Women: Askale Tafa Magarsa (ETH/2:21:31), Atsede Habtamu (ETH/2:25:17), Genet Getaneh (ETH/2:26:37), Silvia Skvortsova (RUS/2:27:07), Rosaria Console (ITA/2:27:48), Tatiana Aryasova (RUS/2:29:09).

Chicago (October 11)

World Marathon Majors (WMM)-Race
IAAF Gold Label Race
Entry Limit: 45,000
Entries: closed

Prize Money: $125,000
Total Prize Money (without Time Bonuses): $579,000

Course Records:
2:05:42 – Khalid Khannouchi (MAR)
2:17:18 – Paula Radcliffe (GBR)

Top athletes and their Personal Bests (at the time of going to press):
Men: Sammy Wanjiru (KEN/2:05:10), Abderrahim Goumri (MAR/2:05:30), Vincent Kipruto (KEN/2:05:47), Evans Cheruiyot (KEN/2:06:25), Ben Maiyo (KEN/2:07:09), Wesley Korir (KEN/2:08:24).
Women: Irina Mikitenko (GER/2:19:19), Deena Kastor (USA/2:19:36), Teyba Erkesso (ETH/2:24:18), Liliya Shobukhova (RUS/2:24:24), Lidiya Grigoryeva (RUS/2:25:10), Mizuho Nasukawa (JPN/2:25:38), Adriana Pirtea (ROM/2:28:52).

Amsterdam (October 18)

IAAF Silver Label Race
Entry Limit: 8,000
Entries: closed

Prize Money: not given

Course Records:
2:06:20 – Haile Gebrselassie (ETH)
2:22:20 – Gete Wami (ETH)

Top Athletes and their Personal Bests (at the time of going to press):
Women: Hilda Kibet (NED/2:32:10)

Frankfurt (October 25)

IAAF Gold Label Race
Entry Limit: 13,500
Entries: still open (Frankfurt-marathon.com)

Prize Money: $21,500
Total Prize Money (without Time Bonuses): $135,000

Course Records:
2:07:21 – Robert Cheruiyot (KEN)
2:25:12 – Alevtina Biktimirova (RUS)

Top Athletes and their Personal Bests (at the time of going to press):
Men: William Kiplagat (KEN/2:06:50), Robert Cheruiyot (KEN/2:07:21), Wilfred Kigen (KEN/2:07:33), Jason Mbote (KEN/2:07:37), Gilbert Kirwa (2:08:21), Stephen Kiogora (KEN/2:08:24), Günther Weidliner (AUT/2:12:39).
Women: Rose Cheruiyot (KEN/2:25:48), Ruth Wanjiru (KEN/2:27:38).

New York (November 1)

World Marathon Majors (WMM)-Race
IAAF Gold Label Race
Entry Limit: 45,000
Entries: closed

Prize Money: $130,000 Dollars
Total Prize Money (without Time Bonuses): over $600,000

Course Records:
2:07:43 – Tesfaye Jifar (ETH)
2:21:43 – Margaret Okayo (KEN)

Top Athletes and their Personal Bests (at the time of going to press):
Men: Ryan Hall (USA/2:06:17)—probable starters: Paul Tergat (KEN/2:04:55), Hendrick Ramaala (RSA/2:06:55), Marilson Gomes dos Santos (BRA/2:08:37)
Women: possible starter: Paula Radcliffe (GBR/2:15:25/WR)

World Marathon Majors (WMM)
2008-2009 Standings

Men:
1. Samuel Wanjiru (KEN) 65
2. Tsegaye Kebede (ETH) 35
3. Deriba Merga (ETH) 30
4. Emmanuel Mutai (KEN) 26
    Martin Lel (KEN) 26
    Robert K. Cheruiyot (KEN) 26

Women:
1. Irina Mikitenko (GER) 75
2. Dire Tune (ETH) 40
3. Alevtina Biktimirova (RUS) 30
    Salina Kosgei (KEN) 30
    Constantina Dita (ROU) 30
6. Xue Bai (CHN) 25
    Lidiya Grigoryeva (RUS) 25
    Paula Radcliffe (GBR) 25

Each WMM Series takes place over a two year cycle. The men’s and women’s winners each receive prize money of $500,000.