2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon - Race Day Coverage

October 12, 2008 by Larry Eder (from www.runblogrun.com) The weather was again part of the story at the 2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, version 31, with a spectacular win by Evans Cheruiyot, in his only second marathon, running a 2:06:25, the thirtieth fastest time on the all time list, after a near suicidal early pace. Lidiya Grigoyeva of Russia, who benefited from the conservative running of the women's elite race, ran her second half five minutes faster than the first, taking the lead at 30 kilometers and winning by two minutes!

But the other part of the race, where nearly 35,000 still have to finish-the citizen runners, even with the heat, has been much better for both runners and the race. The water is cold, there is enough precautions that the criticisms of last year will not be heard in 2008..

Deep thoughts..

Last night, Carey Pinkowski, the Executive Director of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon spoke to the crowd of race directors and industry dignitaries at the the B of A/Running Network Race Directory and Industry reception. "I remember something my college coach, Jumbo Elliot said, A true champion is judged by how he deals with adversity." Cary was very introspective last night and quite relaxed after the reception, when he and I caught up.

The 2007 race was tough and must have been difficult for Carey Pinkowski. But, in champion fashion, the Bank of America Chicago marathon staff took over the challenges and is now an example of how to prepare for inclement weather. Pinkowski and crew have done their job well. And the temperatures were part of the story-65 at the start, with 70 percent humidity to 78 degrees and 40 percent humidty
by two hours into the race...

More on the weather...

At 11.30, aid stations one to eight have had all the runners pass. By 11 am, the temperature was 84 degrees, humidity just under 40 percent, and the warning flags had gone from yellow to red. That means that the volunteers began to alert the
runners to adjust their plans, and perhaps go slower....and now, the interviews......

Evans Cheruiyot, Kenya, Winner, 2008 Bank of America Chicago champion

"I ran, I feel okay. After I try my best, and I won today. I ran last month in Rotterdam, 59:29, it was okay for that time...I felt comfortable...I put alot of water on my head as I sweat alot...I had won the 20k ( Paris in 2005) and I did not get any money (his agent took off with money and left group of Kenyan athletes without any means of support, in Strassbourg)..we were fifteen Kenyans, in strong room, did not get about big house, because we did not know about this manager, but we survived!

Mandago ran just like a fartlek, he was testing me (about eighteen miles), but me, I just kept together...I will use my money for a business in Kenya, maybe like a supermarket in Eldoret, and I am Kaligen ( his tribe). (The other fourteen runners who lived with me in Strassbourg), are strong, but not like me...the corruption was so bad I drove to workouts..I watched the Olympics middle of the night...from Eldoret"

Top Ten Men:1) Evans Cheruiyot, Kenya, 2:06:25, 2) David Mandago, Kenya, 2:07:37, 3)Timothy Cherigat, Kenya, 2:11:39, 4) Wesley K. Korir, USA, 2:13:53, 5) Martin Lauret, Netherlands, 2:15:10, 6)Emmanuel Mutai, Kenya, 2:15:37, 7) Mike Reneau, USA, 2:16.20, 8)William Kipsang, Kenya, 2:16:41, 9) Daniel Njenga, Kenya, 2:17:33, 10)Richard LImo, Kenya, 2:18:48.

Lidiya Grigoryeva, Bank of America Chicago marathon champion..
"During training, I had a slight problem with my leg..but it did not affect the race, I had a spasm in my leg, but it was not a problem..with five kilometers to go, I know that I had a good lead with five kilometers...when I get home, my daughter, Victoria, who is six and one half years, when told of her mother's win, Victoria asked if she (her mother) had bought a dress yet for the daughter for the upcoming wedding!"

Top ten women: 1) Lidiya Grigoryeva, Russia, 2:27:17, 2) Alvetina Biktimorova, Russia, 2:29:32, Kiyoko Shimihara, Japan, 2:30:19, 4) Constantina Tomescu-Dita, Romania, 2:30:57,5) Desiree Davila, USA, 2:31:33, 6) Colleen de Reuck, USA, 2:32:35, (new US age record), 7)Bezuneh Bekele, Ethiopia, 2:32:41, 8) Paige Higgins, USA, 2:33:06, 9) Kate O'Neill, USA, 2:34:04, 10) Berhane Adere, Ethiopia, 2:34:16.

Carey Pinkowski, Executive Director, Bank of America Chicago Marathon:
"We are running 65 percent of capacity, all good day, significantly lower numbers in tents this year, and the temperature at eleven in the morning was 84 percent. I increased resources across the board, city opened with opening hydrants, misting sites on the course, this is about a collective effort, what we took from 2007, and aspects we changed last year were all for the better...I was focused on the operations scheme today, I will watch the race on a tape this afternoon. They come here to pin their ears back and get after it, they wanted to put some great performances up--goes back to Steve Jones and Joan Samuelson, that is what this race is all about..."

David Mandago, Kenya, second place

"Main problem was the weather conditions. It was hard for me to lift the legs because I sweat alot. I was not scared about anything, but toward the end, I was started to feel the sun being strong. I was sweating a lot. No, I did not expect to win. I was trying to do something something, but the weather did not allow me to go...in 2006, I ran a hotter marathon in Mombai, India."

Timothy Cherigat, Kenya, third place, (his twelfth marathon, has raced Boston six times, Chicago twice, NY two times)
"Marathon is a race to learn about. Today I stayed back, and I ran by myself. If I had been much stronger, I would have run much better. To try and run more faster and get a better position today. I train in Kenya, then in Colorado at our camp with Deiter. I decided to be patient, go back a little bit, start pushing later. Kenyan navy is in Mombasa, Eldoret is where I was born. I show up when I do not train, and work there. I am a corporal in the Kenyan Navy. Sometimes in the sea, but not too much. I do not think I am liberty to say that ( response to question about how many ships Kenyan Navy has.)"

(Congrats to Phil McCartney, Nike global running footwear manager, 2:27:16, who presented to media last night and ran race today. Phil was 20th.)

Congrats to Running Network Footwear Editor, Cregg Weinmann, who ran 3:48:54 for his marathon run, Cregg was 4,419th. )
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2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon Live Coverage, update 3. Miles 21-Finish, by Larry Eder

The temperature continues to go up, at 78 degrees by ten am, Emmauel Mutai has dropped back five minutes, fifty six seconds in the past ten kilomters-Mutai is in fourth! Timothy Cherigat is in third! And Lidya Grigoryeva is running alone and strong!

Evans Cheruiyot of Kenya busted the race open between 35 and 40 kilometers. Hitting 22 miles in 1:45:30, 23 miles in 1:50:24, 24 miles in 1:55:22 and twenty miles in 2:00.15. By the time Evans hit forty kilometers in 1:59:33, he had seventeen seconds over David Mandago. Timothy Cherigat had moved into third and Emmanuel Mutai was drifting farther and farther back...

Evans Cheruiyot, with only one other marathon behind him, continued to push to the finish. Over the last two kilometers, he put over a minute on second place! But, the heat has got to hurt out there and the sub 2:05 pace, dropped to a nice 2:06 pace. Cheruiyot has persisted, in spite of the suicidal early pace, and his near falling off the pace. But, his desire overcame the competition and Evans Cheruiyot, who had won his only previous marathon in 2:09:16, is now two for two, with his fine win at the Bank of America Chicago Marathon in a fine 2:06:25!

Holding for second, David Mandago of Kenya ran a fine 2:07:37 and coming way from behind, Timothy Cherigat, who had been over a minute down at halfway, took third in 2:11:39 for third. More info on the top men soon!

Women's Race-Grigoryeva powers away!

Lidiya Grigoryeva has finished eight World Majors marathons. She has run 30:32. She is cool and calculating and today, her calculations were brilliant. Grigoryeva went by Biktimorova just past thirty kilometers, passed in 1:46:09 by both of the runners. After Lidiya took off, that was all she wrote for Ms. Biktimorova.

Lidiya Grigoryeva was relentless, running miles in the 5:30s, then 5:20s. By thirty-five kilometers, Grigoryeva had a twenty-three second lead, which she passed in 2:03:06.

Grigoryeva continued to push and her effort showed. By forty kilometers, her lead was now one minute, forty-five seconds over Biktimorova and 2:49 over Kiyoko Shimahara of Japan, who had moved through the pack. Tomescu-Dita moved into fourth and Desiree Davila was in fifth at 40k.

Lidiya Grigoryeva of Russia become the second Russian women to win at Bank of America Chicago Marathon, with her 2:27:17 win. Talk about negative splits! The women ran 1:16:02, then a 1:11:15 for the second half!

Alevtina Biktimorova of Russia took second in 2:29:32, with Kiyoko Shimihara in third in 2:30:19.

Observations on the women's side? Grigoryeva ran a smart race, and her calculated move made total sense in this heat-a very smart race and a great win for the Russian.

On the men's side? The 2:06;27 time was the number thirty on the all time list, but, my guess is ( suggested by one media expert), that with the exception of the Beijing Olympic race, not one of the other thirty fastest times was run within ten degrees of this race!

We should have top ten results soon and also interviews, so do not go away!

*******

2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon, update 4, Miles 14-20, by Larry Eder

The weather at 9:20 AM is 75 degrees on the course, and 48.6 percent humidity..and the men's race is down to Emmanuel Mutai and David Mandago in the lead, with Evans Cheriuyot in some distress...the womens' race is about to change....

Women's race

14 miles for women were hit in 1:20.41, with Alevtina Biktimora, Lidiya Grigoryeva, with Kate O'Neil in the top group. Worknesh Tola, Berhane Adere and Bezuneh Bekele of Ethiopia in tow, with Adriana Pirtea of Romanie in tow. Fifteen miles was hit in 1:26.05, sixteen miles in 1:31:30, seventeen miles in 1:37:00 and eighteen miles in 1:42:34. It was at fifteen miles that the race would change for the women.

By eighteen miles, after pushing three miles in 5:38, 5:33, 5;33, Alevtina Biktimora and Lidya Grigoryeva of Russia are the lead, pushing the pace, and putting some distance between the two Russian women and the crowd.

How big a drop? Well, the two Russians have 58 seconds on Bezunesh Bekele of Ethiopia, 1:46:09 to 1:47:07 at thirty kilometers. Kyoko Shimahara of Japan is in fourth in 1:47:34. Constantina Tomescu-Dita of Romania is at 1:47:35. Berhane Adere of Ethiopia is in sixth in 1:47:35, Colleen de Reuck of the US is in seventh in 1:47:40 and Kate O'Neil of the US in eighth in 1:47:52.

Grigoryeva is pushing very hard, she does not want it to come down to a kick like in Boston last year. Grigoryeva and Biktimorova hit nineteen miles in 1:48:10. Lidiya Grigoryeva has taken the lead and in less than a mile, has seemingly broken Alevtina Biktimorova of Russia. Just before twenty miles, Grigoryeva made the sign of the cross on her chest. Perhaps she was praying for some divine intervention, but her 5:30 mile for the twentieth, broke the race wide open. Grigoryeva hit twenty miles in 1:53:50 ( remember, they hit ten miles in 58:16, and the second ten miles in 55:34.

Running the twenty first mile in 5:14, Lidiya Grigoryeva hit twenty-one in 1:59:04!

Men's race

David Mandago, Evans Cheruiyot and Emmanuel Mutai are beating themselves up. Fourteen miles in 1:06L39, fifteen miles in 1:11:23, sixteen miles in 1:16:18, seventeen miles in 1:21:15, eighteen miles in 1:26:02. Mutai and Mandago look very good and Cheruiyot is gutting it out, but still looks okay. Cheruiyot has a personal best of 2:09:16, he is the slowest of the three.

Thirty kilometers was hit in 1:29:09 for David Mandago and Evans Cheruiyot, with Emmanuel Mutai, on his twenty-fourth birthday, starting to have some trouble, and dropping to fifteen seconds back.

David Mandago and Evans Cheruiyot took control just before nineteen miles. Nineteen miles for the men was hit in 1:30:52, twenty miles in 1:35:43 and twenty-one miles in 1:40:38... lots of the race to go! Mandago and Cheruiyot are running neck and neck, who will take this one?

*******

2008 Bank of America Chicago Marathon Live Coverage, update 3. Miles 6-13.1, by Larry Eder

The men's race pace is still under 2:05 pace and the field has gone from fifteen to nine to three. The women's pack is down to nine and the weather is getting warmer....

Miles 6 to 13.1--the battle widens

Oh, as an update, 32,889 is the official number of starters who got across the line...in the thirty-first running of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon..

Men's elite

The pace is getting hotter and hotter in the men's race....Mile seven was hit in 33:31, 8 miles in 38:24, nine miles in 43:11 and 15 kilometers in 44:43, with ten miles in 47:53. Those miles were run all in 4:43-4:48 pace.

Then, boom! A 4:38 mile for mile eleven, hit in 52:35, 12th mile in 57:11, and thirteen miles in 1:o1:54, with the half marathon in 1:02:27. Emmanuel Mutai, David Mandago and Evans Cheruiyot are together, Limo is ten seconds back.

Also note that the last pace setter dropped out at ten and one half miles, so the lead pack is beating itself up and the weather is getting warmer and warmers. Watch for Richard Limo or William Kipsang to make a late race move...

Women's elite

Seven miles was passed in 40:52, eight miles in 46:48 and nine miles in 52:30. The pack is Adriana Portea of Romania, Constantina Tomescu-Dita, the Olympic gold medalist, Alevtina Biktimorova of Russia, Worknesh Toal of Ethiopia, Berhane Adere of Ethiopia and Bezunesh Bekele of Ethiopia, with Kate O'Neil, Page HIggins and Colleen De Reuck of the US, with Zoila Gomez, the fourth placer from the US Trials, in close attendance.

The nine women in the lead pack hit ten miles in 58:16, eleven miles in 64:21, twelve miles in 69:41, and the half way hit in 1:16.03!

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