Mubarak Shami (Qatar) won the Paris Marathon in 2:07:19, the fastest time in the world this year. Despite temperatures above 70 degrees, the former Kenyan won by more than two and a half minutes over the Ethiopian Gashaw Melese (2:09:53). Daniel Rono (Kenya) was third in 2:10:28.
Shami, who won the Vienna marathon two years ago, set a personal best and national record in Paris. The Qatari had placed second in the World Half Marathon Championships in 2005, only losing to Fabiano Joseph (Tanzania) in the last few meters. The 26-year-old Shami went clear of Melese eight kilometers from the finish in Paris.
Fastest woman among the 35,000 runners on the entry list was the Ethiopian Magarsa Tafa in a speedy 2:25:07. Here, too, the margin of victory was emphatic: Gulnara Vygovskaya (Russia) was second in 2:28:22, and Christelle Dauney (France) took third with 2:28:54.
Three Kenyans at the front in Turin
Temperatures rose to over 75 degrees at the Turin Marathon. The warm weather had an influence on the winning times, which were slower than expected. The Kenyan Philemon Tarbei won in 2:10:24 from his compatriots Yusuf Songoka (2:10:51) and Hillary Bett (2:11:05). The Italian Daniele Caimmi ran 2:11:10 for fourth. The fastest woman was Aniko Kalovics (Hungary), whose time of 2:29:24 was the only one under 2:30. Second was the Kenyan Caroline Kwambai in 2:34:52.
Sensation in Linz
Despite the warm weather the Linz marathon in Austria produced a sensation as the Ukrainian Alexander Kuzin won in 2:07:33. The previous year’s winner, Benjamin Itok (Kenya), was a long way behind in second with 2:12:06. The fastest woman was the Austrian Eva-Maria Gradwohl in 2:37:36.
Farewell Race of Sonia O’Sullivan in Dublin
Sonia O’Sullivan, who has in the meantime acquired Australian citizenship, has run her farewell race in Ireland, the country of her birth. The 37-year-old, who is looking to bring her career to an end this year, was unable to finish higher than 11th in 37:04 in the Dublin 10K. Victoria Mitchell (Australia) won the women’s race in 33:06. In the men’s race KIMbia’s Abraham Chebii (Kenya) won in 28:47 from Craig Mottram (Australia) in 29:00.
A Million Dollars in Prize Money in Dubai
The organizers of the Dubai Marathon have announced that there will be $1 million in prize money on offer in next year’s race. The race winners will each receive $250,000, which is twice as much as the current top prize money for a marathon victory which is offered by Chicago. The organizers are offering a bonus of $1 million dollars for a world record.
