Welcome to the 39th ING New York City Marathon! By Larry Eder

November 2, 2008 by Larry Eder (New York NY) Fred Lebow's spirit continues to be part of this marathon. One of my favorite stories was from 1986, when I met one of the early sponsors of the marathon. The spokesperson told me that Fred had come to them, asking for $5,000 in the early 1970s, talking about a city wide marathon. The sponsors thought the garment salesman from Romania was a) eccentric, b) or just plain crazy.

In 1976, after the Montreal Olympics, the five borough race began. Bill Rodgers won that race in 2:10:55, as part of vindication for his tough race at the Montreal Olympics. Frank Shorter ran second in New York, and the race was on! Lebow had attracted sponsors and runners to a five borough race and putting New York at the forefront of the city marathon craze.

Mary Wittenberg started the elite race for women, with 42 women, representing 13 nations and with sixteen Americans in the field. Paula Radcliffe has taken the lead at the beginning, with Kara Goucher next to her and Geta Wami nearby. How does one defeat Paula Radcliffe? Well, several athletes will try and do that for the next two plus hours.

Note, the open field starts in thirty minutes. Strong wind on the course so far....temperature is close to freezing, the athletes are tucking in to stay out of the wind, except for Radcliffe...actual temperature is 40 degrees, and Tegla Laroupe did not start due to illness.

Paula Radcliffe is on a roll. She lead the field through the first mile, up the Verrazanno Narrows Bridge in 6:31, then downhill, hitting mile two in 5:21. Radcliffe is already churning up the long blue line of the marathon course.

The wind is very, very tough. Radcliffe hit the first mile in 6:31, mile two in 5:21, mile three in 5;36, mile four in 5:39, mile five in 5:37 and mile six in 5:34. Right behind Radcliffe is Kara Goucher, with Tume, Wami and Jeptoo in attendance. Catherine Ndereba leads the second pack. Radcliffe took the pack, down to Goucher, Tume, Wami, and Jeptoo, in 39:54, her second mile at 5:34 pace, in a row. Radcliffe looks determined. Kara Goucher dropped a water bottle early on, muttered a nice expletive, and kept running.

The men's race started and five Americans were in the lead at the first mile. By mile two, passed in 10:39, with Nate Jenkins, James Carney, Josh Rohatinsky all up front. The second mile was hit in 5:13. Rohatinsky ran a 1:02 half marathon at the San Jose RNR Half Marathon on October 5, 2008.

The women's race continues to play itself out. Paula Radcliffe took the lead from the first steps, and except for Kara Goucher accidentally taking the lead a few times, Radcliffe has lead.

The 5k was passed in 18:04, a 5:48 pace, the 10k was hit in 35:33, a 5:43 pace, and 15 kilometers in 52:43, a 5:39 pace.

Paula Radcliffe has been relentless. The wind is her toughest competitor and may make this race even more difficult for Radcliffe to get a third win, but who knows? Kara Goucher, the debutante here for the marathon, is following Radcliffe. The pace has dropped each five kilometers, now at 5:39, a 2:28.20 pace.

The pack is Paula Radcliffe, Kara Goucher, Tira Dune of Ethiopia, Geta Wami of Ethiopia,a dn Ludmila Petrova of Russia and Lidia Simon of Romania, and Rita Jeptoo of Kenya. Catherine Ndereba of Kenya and Kim Smith have been dropping back for the past five kilometers.

Ten miles was hit in 56:02, again, the wind is playing such a huge point in this race.

The wind is a big part of this race, and Radcliffe is pushing, pushing...Radcliffe continued to drop the pace, now at 5:35 per mile, hitting the half marathon point in 1:13:23, with Goucher in 1:13:24, Ludmilla Petrova of Russia in third in 1:13:24, Geta Wami at the same time and Dire Tune also at 1:13.24. Rita Jeptoo of Kenya in 1:13:25.

The men's race has a huge pack. Nate Jenkins of the US had the lead at 16:19 for 5k, with Abel Kirui of Kenya, Hendrick Ramaala of South Africa, Josh Rohatinsky, Abdi Abdirhaman, Paul Tergat are all in the front pack. Abderrahime Bouramdane of Morroco is also in attendance. The pace is 2:17 pace, walking for these guys....

The pace dropped pretty quick. The 10k was hit in 31:38, with Abdi Abderhaman in the lead. Abdi took the lead just around 8k, which I thought was much too early. The rest of the pack was at 31:48-a second 5k in 15:30. The pack is still Abel Kirui of Kenya, Hendrick Ramaala of South Africa, Josh Rohatinsky, Abdi Abdirhaman, Paul Tergat are all in the front pack. Abderrahime Bouramdane of Morroco is also in attendance.

The wind is very tough, and the pack is fourteen runners at 15k. The third five kilometers was run in 5:03 pace, hitting the 15k in 47:12. The pack did not change as the men hit ten miles in 50:32. More to come....

Paula Radcliffe continues her long run to Central Park. The pace continues to drop, and in the wind, the pace will hurt all. Over the 20 to 25k split, Radcliffe dropped the pace to 5:35 per mile. The 25k was hit in 1:26:56. Kara Goucher was in third, one second back, with forty year old Ludmilla Petrova of Russia in second. Geta Wami of Ethiopia in fourth, and Dire Tune of Ethiopia in fifth. Rita Jeptoo in sixth, three seconds back and Catherine Ndereba in seventh, thirty three seconds back. Kim Smith of New Zealand, also in her debut, is one minute back in 1:27:56.

The thirty kilometer mark is where the cracks began to appear. Kara Goucher of the US is having a rough patch, something that would come in her first marathon. She has dropped back to fifth. Radcliffe leads in 1:43:32, again a 5;33 pace! Each five kilometers has gotten faster, and faster! Forty year old Ludmila Petrova of Russia is in second, looking very good, with Dire Tume and Geta Wami in third and fourth. What is wrong with Kara?

Kim Smith, at 1:47:20 is 52 seconds back. Debut marathoner Katie Macgregor of the US moved ahead of Smith, in 1:46:14 for ninth, 46 seconds back....

Now, Paula Radcliffe shows her stuff. The nineteenth mile in 5:18, the twentieth mile in 5:12 and the twenty-first mile in 5:14!. Ludmilla Petrova was holding on for dear life, as Paula Radcliffe shows her talent, focus and drive. Petrova starts to fall back, a meter, two meters, and then...Paula is by herself. She is on her way to winning her eighth of ten marathons she has won!

While Goucher had dropped back to fifth, Kara Goucher has moved back into third place, she is moving closer and closer to Petrova. What is clear is that Paula Radcliffe, is exorcising a few demons with this race. Hitting 20 miles in 1:50.55, 21 miles in 1:56:13, twenty-two miles in 2:01:25, twenty-three miles in 2:06:40, and twenty four miles in 2:12:12.

Paula has a lead of over a minute, forty by twenty-four miles. When the breaks happen, Petrova lost over a minute, twenty in three miles! Radcliffe, to my knowledge, did not look back the entire race.

Forty kilometers was passed in 2:16:40 and Paula had to know, from the cheering crowds, that she is winning. What a great feeling! Twenty-five miles was hit in 2:17:26, and twenty-six miles was hit in 2:22:45. The final three hundred, eighty-five yards must have been true redemption for Paula Radcliffe, who, three times now, has come back from difficult races, terrible injuries, to win the ING New York in 2004, 2008 and now 2008.

Hitting the finish line in 2:23:56, the number eight time on the ING New York course, Paula Radcliffe of Great Britian has now become the only women to win three NYCN races, second only to Grete Waitz of Norway's nine wonderful wins at the ING New York City marathon!

The battle for second was fantastic! Kara Goucher moved from fifty-four seconds back to ten seconds down on Petrova, but Ludmila Petrova held on, running 2:25:43, for second, setting a world masters record, breaking the mark of Priscilla Welch, which was set in 1987 as Welch won London!

Kara Goucher finished third in her debut marathon, breaking the American debut record of one Deena Kastor (Deena ran her debut in 2001 at ING New York), with her time of 2:25:53. Goucher has just put the first American on the podium since Anne Letko in 1994!

Fastest Mile Splits | Split: | Event: Split: Finish Print | View Full List
Top 10 Leaders
Place Bib# Runner Country / State Time Differential Pace / Mile
1 F1 Radcliffe, Paula GBR 2:23:56 +0:00 5:29
2 F40 Petrova, Ludmila RUS 2:25:43 +1:47 5:33
3 F7 Goucher, Kara USA / OR 2:25:53 +1:57 5:33
4 F5 Jeptoo, Rita KEN 2:27:49 +3:53 5:38
5 F3 Ndereba, Catherine KEN 2:29:14 +5:18 5:41
6 F2 Wami, Gete ETH 2:29:25 +5:29 5:41
7 F4 Tune, Dire ETH 2:29:28 +5:32 5:42
8 F9 Simon, Lidia ROM / CO 2:30:04 +6:08 5:43
9 F6 Morgunova, Lyubov RUS 2:30:38 +6:42 5:44
10 F14 Macgregor, Katie USA/Minn 2:31:14 +7:18 5:46

Today was Paula Radcliffe's day of redemption! Three wins with three starts at ING New York City Marathon! Ludmila Petrova of Russia held on for as long as she could and was rewarded with a world Masters' womens record. Kara Goucher, running a her third place time was fastest time ever by an American women in New York!

The wind, again, has been one of the key players today. Abel Kirui of Kenya hit the halfway in 1:06:06, a 5:02 mile pace. Abderrahime Bouramdane of Morocco, Isaac Macharia, Mohammed Awol , Abderrahim Goumri, Abdi Abdirahman of USA, Boaz Cheboiywo of Kenya with Daniel Rono and Paul Tergat in this front group.

The level of elite marathon competition is very tough. So much at this level requires a great deal of luck. Staying out of trouble, staying hydrated, and finding a place to make one's move is key to success here.

Goumri took the pack through the 25k in 1:17.27, with Tergat, Kirui and Marilson dos Santos of Brazil there as the pace increased to just under five minutes per mile. Falling off the back was Abdi Adirhaman of the US, who was eight seconds back at twenty-five kilometers.

The race started to really broke open at this time. Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil took the lead at thirty kilometers, which was hit in 1:32:12. This was the fastest part of the race so far, a 4:56 pace. Paul Tergat, the former world record holder and like dos Santos, former winners here, was looking very good at this point. I was also looking at Abderrahim Goumri and Kirui.

Goumri and Dos Santos, by nineteen, showed that the race was down to these two magnificent runners. Nineteen miles was hit in 1;33.50, with Goumri, Dos Santos, Daniel Rono and Paul Tergat in tow. Twenty miles was hit in 1:38:37 with Goumri just ahead of Dos Santos.

At twenty-one miles, Goumri lead Dos Santos in 1:43:19. The battle was telling, as Daniel Rono dropped back twenty three seconds and Paul Tergat dropped back 32 seconds. At twenty two miles, with Goumri and Dos Santos together, Rono was 37 seconds back and Tergat had fallen off the back to 1:01 behind the leaders.

Who would win? Goumri had not won here before, and while Dos Santos had a win here, he was looking like it was a long day at the office. At twenty-three miles, Goumri pushed the pedal down, hitting 1:52:48, twenty-four in 1:57:19 and twenty-five miles in 2:02:43. By this time, Goumri had seven seconds on Dos Santos and it seemed that perhaps Goumri had the win.

In the next pack, Josh Rohatinsky, Jason Lemkuhle and Abdi Abdirhaman were moving up from tenth, ninth and eighth, and taking some of the top athletes as they charged over the last two miles. California's Bolata Asmeron, in his first marathon, was moving quickly through the second pack as well!

Abderrahim Goumri did not have much time to relish his lead. Marilson Gomes Dos Santos called something from within, and just before twenty-six miles, charged back into the lead...and there was a break. By twenty-six miles, Marilson Gomes Dos Santos of Brazil has eighteen seconds between himself and Morocco's Goumri. Goumri just could not lift his legs and Dos Santos looked like a miler. This was the break that Dos Santos needed.

Great athletes, one training in Morocco and one training in Brazil, dueled for over seven miles to determine the king of the ING New York City marathon for a day. Marilson Gomes Dos Santos was considered a flash in the pan when he won his first race here. This time, Dos Santos was on the short list. Abderraham Goumri of Morocco, who has never won a marathon, will have to wait until another day to change that statistic.

Over the last two minutes, Dos Santos ran strong and his winning margin stretched to twenty-four seconds. Goumri held on for second place, and Daniel Rono of Kenya was third. Paul Tergat stayed in fourth.

Abdi Abdirhaman of US was sixth in 2:14:17. Josh Rohatinsky was seventh in 2:14:23. Jason Lemkuhle was eighth in 2:14:30-three US runners in a row. In tenth place, Bolata Asmeron ran 2:16:37 for his debut marathon.

Top 10 Leaders
Place Bib# Runner Country / State Time Differential Pace / Mile
1 4 Gomes Dos Santos, Marilson BRA 2:08:43 +0:00 4:54
2 2 Goumri, Abderrahim MAR 2:09:07 +0:24 4:55
3 7 Rono, Daniel KEN 2:11:22 +2:39 5:00
4 5 Tergat, Paul KEN 2:13:10 +4:27 5:04
5 12 Bouramdane, Abderrahime MAR 2:13:33 +4:50 5:05
6 6 Abdirahman, Abdi USA / AZ 2:14:17 +5:34 5:07
7 16 Rohatinsky, Josh USA / OR 2:14:23 +5:40 5:07
8 14 Lehmkuhle, Jason USA / MN 2:14:30 +5:47 5:07
9 10 Rotich, Hosea KEN 2:15:25 +6:42 5:09
10 18 Asmerom, Bolota USA / CA 2:16:37 +7:54 5:12

38, 833 runners started the 39th ING New York City marathon. On a cool, windy day, many different stories, many different heroic moments, many life memories. Two winners today, Paula Radcliffe and Marilson Gomes Dos Santos, lead the fields to a wonderful day on the course, a chance to challenge oneself, and a chance to see what one is made of-a life moment.

Somewhere out on the course, several of Ryan Shay's former teammates were thinking of him, perhaps smiling through the pain, celebrating his life one year after his fall...a time for everything.

Part of the handing out of wreaths to Olympic champions in Ancient Greece is apocryphal, but if it did not happen, it should have. Some stories suggest that as the ancient Olympians were crowed with their crowns of olive leaves, someone whispered into their ears, victory is fleeting...those life moments, such as finishing a treasured race, can be treasured.

For Paula Radcliffe, this was an important race. If she had not won, one wonders how much longer she would be around. Racing at her level has been a challenge, and obviously, her 2:15:35 is Beamonesque. For me, the way Paula won this race, from the gun, showed not only her native ability, but the frighteningly awesome sense of determination Paula Radcliffe possesses.

For Marilson Gomes Dos Santos, to come back at the end of a race, when the muscles are screaming, and the spirit is waning is remarkable. Dos Santos now joins the few men who have come back and won here more than one time. Brazil will be proud.

And in Kara Goucher, we have a new star! Goucher ran a superb race for her first taste of the marathon. Kara told the media afterwards that she had some stomach distress, but she came back, charging from sixth to third over the last several miles, ten seconds off second place. The fastest debut by an American women ever, the fastest time by an American women on the ING NYCM course and the best American women's finish since 1994!

It is 1:40 pm here in New York. I am heading back to my hotel, then out for a nice long walk. I thank you all for following the race on the Running Network.com site and the runblogrun.com

Some deep thoughts will follow tonight!