Travel Guide |
June 5, 2006


Ethiopian, Kenyan win San Diego’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon

Spectators look on as Ambesse Tolossa, left, of Ethiopia and Simon Bor, right, of Kenya race side-by-side during the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon in San Diego, Sunday. Tolossa won the men’s race. Over 20,000 runners took part in the annual music themed race.
(Denis Poroy / AP)


SAN DIEGO — Ambesse Tolossa of Ethiopia won the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon on Sunday, while Alice Chelangat of Kenya took the women’s race.

Tolossa, running in the United States for the first time, broke away from 37-year-old Simon Bor of Kenya with four miles to go and covered the 26.2 miles in 2 hours, 10 minutes, 8 seconds. Bor was the runner-up, 29 seconds behind.

It was Tolossa’s fourth career marathon victory, including this year’s Tokyo Marathon.

Stephen Kiogora of Kenya was third in 2:11:45, followed by Benjamin Kemboi of Kenya (2:11:50) and Tekeste Kebede of Ethiopia (2:13:15).

Chelangat was running alone from the 18.6-mile mark and outdistanced Hellen Kimutai to finish in 2:28:21. Kimutai, who was third in last year’s event, was second in 2:28:44. Katie Lee of Danville, Calif., was the first American woman to finish in eighth (2:53:20).

“I really like the bands en route,” Chelangat said. “When they play and sing, ‘Go ladies, go ladies,’ I thought they were saying, ‘Go Alice, go Alice,’ and it makes me run fast.”

Tolossa and Bor were step for step for most the race after they broke away from a pack of half dozen runners at about the 17-mile mark.

Just after mile 18, Bor got a water bottle while Tolossa missed his water station. However, Bor shared his water with Tolossa. Soon after, Tolossa was able to break away from Bor and go on to win the race.

“We each have our separate food,” explained Tolossa through his interpreter and coach, Yilma Berta. “And we wouldn’t share that. But water that is something that we do share.”

Results: Men

1. Ambesse Tolossa, Ethiopia, 2:10:08.

2. Simon Bor, Kenya, 2:10:37.

3. Stephen Kiogora, Kenya, 2:11:45.

4. Benjamin Kemboi, Kenya, 2:11:50.

5. Tekeste Kebede, Ethiopia, 2:13:15.

6. Raymond Kipkoech, Kenya, 2:13:38.

7. Christopher Cheboiboch, Kenya, 2:14:10.

8. Simson Limareng, Kenya, 2:15:54.

9. Moses Kemboi, Kenya, 2:17:45.

10. Terefe Yae, Ethiopia, 2:18:05.

Women

1. Alice Chelangat, Kenya, 2:28:21.

2. Hellen Kimutai, Kenya, 2:28:44.

3. Lyubov Morgunova, Russia, 2:29:39.

4. Askale Tafa, Ethiopia, 2:39:47.

5. Shitaye Gemechu, Ethiopia, 2:36:53.

6. Rimma Pushkina, Russia, 2:37:53.

7. Yihunilish Bekele, Ethiopia, 2:42:52.

8. Katie Lee, Danville, Calif., 2:53:20.

9.Jennifer Pfeifer, Folsom, Calif., 2:57:14.

10. Whitney Altizer, Black Mountain, N.C., 2:58:14.

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Meseret Defar breaks 5000m world record


Meseret Defar of Ethiopia set the world record in the women’s 5,000 meters in 14 minutes, 24.53 seconds at the Reebok Grand Prix on Saturday.

Defar easily outpaced the field to break the mark of 14:24.68, set by Turkey’s Elvan Abeylegesse in 2004. Workitu Ayanu of Ethiopia was second to Defar in 14:50.51.

Runner Meseret Defar of Ethiopia poses next to her world record winning time in the women’s 5000m run at an athletics grand prix meet in New York June 3, 2006. (Brendan McDermid – UNITED STATES/Reuters)

The 22-year-old Defar ran the final 400 meters in a blazing 61 seconds, and was greeted to loud cheers when she crossed the line. “New York, New York” started blaring on the public address system.

“I was very confident when I saw the time with a lap to go that I could break the record,” Defar said.

Defar won Olympic gold in Athens in the 5,000 and finished second at the world championships last year. She tried to break the indoor record in the 3,000 at the Boston Indoor meet in January but fell just short for the second straight year.

Defar ended up winning in 8:30.94, just missing out on breaking Ethiopian Berhane Adere’s 4-year-old world record of 8:29.15.

“I tried to break the 3K indoor record before and I tried on the roads for this so I’m happy now I’ve got this,” she said. “After the 3,000, I was dreaming and I knew I could beat the record.”

Defar got a boost last week from heralded fellow Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie when they saw each other at a meet in Hengelo, Netherlands. Gebrselassie, who won Olympic gold in the 10,000 in 1996 and 2000, encouraged Defar to go for the record.

“I was in Hengelo with Haile, he said to me, ‘You can do it. You can beat the record in New York.’ After that, I knew I could,” she said.

Defar said she will run in five Golden League meets in Europe this summer and said, “I want to win all five.”

The Olympic 5,000m champion improved her personal best by over four seconds as she won in 14 minutes 24.53sec, pipping the old record of 14:24.68.

“When I saw the one lap to go split, I was very confident,” Defar said later through an interpreter.

“I’m very happy with this year. I will try to break the record again. I know I can do it.”

Defar made light of the wet conditions to improve the previous mark set by Elvan Abeylegesse of Turkey in Norway in 2004 by 15 hundredths of a second.

Pipped to the world title by compatriot Tirunesh Dibaba in Helsinki last year, Defear said she had been working with Haile Gebrselassie during a training camp in the Netherlands.

“He encouraged me. He said, ‘I know you can break the record,'” she added.

Already the African record holder, Defar said she would compete in five more Golden League meetings this season over either 5,000m or 3,000m.

“I hope I win all of them,” she said.

Workitu Ayanu of Ethiopia finished second in 14:50.51 with American Sara Slattery some distance back in third with 15:24.01. (Wire Services)

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