Hiromi Omanami, seen here in Berlin, triumphed in San Diego. © www.photorun.net
Japan’s Hiromi Ominami and Kenya’s Nelson Kiplagat won the 30th edition of the San Diego Half Marathon. The jubilee event drew a record field of 7,633 runners.
The decisive moment in the men’s race came at 15K, when 27-year-old Kiplagat pulled away from his fiercest rival, Tesfaye Girma. The Ethiopian, who has a personal best for the distance of 61:24, could not respond due to stomach problems. Although he lost a lot of ground, Girma still took second in 66:20 minutes. Kiplagat finished in 64:25. Kenyan Josphat Ndeti came in third with 66:41.
The women’s race was the first one in the U.S. to feature the Japanese twins, Hiromi and Takami Ominami. The 31-year-old runners are based in Boulder for training. Right after the gun Hiromi ran her own race, leaving behind her sister and the other elite women. She clocked 72:49, was well ahead of Takami, who took second in 74:58. California resident Magdalena Lewy Boulet took third with 75:22.
Defending Champions to Return to New York
The two defending champions will return to the ING New York City Marathon on November 4. Last year Marilson Gomes dos Santos from Brazil was the suprise winner of the men’s race, while Latvian Jelena Prokopcuka repeated her triumph from 2005. Last year in New York, the 29-year-old dos Santos beat the world record holder and defending champion Paul Tergat (Kenya) as well as Olympic champion Stefano Baldini (Italy) in 2:09:58. “The enthusiasm my victory caused back home was enormous,” said dos Santos, the first Brazilian winner of the event. “I know that it won’t be easy to repeat this triumph. But since last year I know that I can compete with the best in the world and that I can beat them.” For Prokopcuka there will be two goals on November 4. After Grete Waitz she could become the second woman in history to win the New York City Marathon three times in a row. “That is a challenge, because if I win again I could become a legend,” said the 30-year-old runner, who will compete against Kenyans Rita Jeptoo (Boston winner 2006), Catherine Ndereba (World champion 2003) and Susan Chepkemei (Rotterdam winner 2001) in New York. If Prokopcuka wins New York, she would also become the first winner of the World Marathon Majors. After a two-year cycle the men’s and women’s winners of that series share a jackpot of $1 million.
Gete Wami to Return to Berlin Marathon
Gete Wami (Ethiopia), the defending champion, will return to the real,- Berlin Marathon on September 30. That means that both champions will come back to Germany’s biggest marathon race. Wami’s countryman Haile Gebrselassie intends to break the world record set by his big rival Paul Tergat (Kenya/2:04:55) in 2003 in Berlin.
But for Wami there is more than just victory at stake. If she wins again she would take the lead in the World Marathon Majors. If Wami finishes second in Berlin, she would move up to share the lead with Jelena Prokopcuka.
Wami, age 32, set her personal best of 2:21:34 in last year’s race in Berlin. At that time this was also an Ethiopian record, but in the meantime Berhane Adere improved to 2:20:42. To get the record back and to become the ninth woman in history to break 2:20 are major goals for Wami on the fast Berlin course. Another target for Wami, who finished second in the Flora London Marathon this April, could be the world leading time for 2007. China’s London winner Chunxiu Zhou clocked 2:20:38 in April.
