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Mary Ngugi, Emmanuel Wafula dazzle at 49th Roma-Ostia half marathon

Kenyans dominated the 49th Roma-Ostia Half Marathon, with victories in both men's and women's categories on Sunday.

Former world half marathon silver medalist, Mary Wacera Ngugi, showcased her enduring class and resolve by clinching victory at the 49th edition of the Roma-Ostia Half Marathon held on Sunday in Rome, Italy.

At 35, the seasoned athlete, who also holds the title of 2021 Boston Marathon silver medalist, entered the race with a personal best of 1:06.29, recorded eight years ago at the Houston Half Marathon. 

Ngugi outpaced her rivals to secure top honors with a commendable time of 1:07.38.

Caroline Korir rounded out the top three, crossing the finish line in 1:09.01, and solidifying the podium positions. 

Ngugi’s victory is not just a personal achievement but also a testament to her commitment to nurturing young talent through her initiative, the Nala Track Club. 

Based in her hometown of Nyahururu, the club aims to empower young girls by providing them with opportunities to engage in athletics, thereby fostering a new generation of champions.

In the men’s category, the competition was equally intense, with Kenya’s Emmanuel Wafula emerging victorious in his debut over the distance, clocking an impressive time of 1:01.10. 

The race was a nail-biter until the very end, with Ethiopia's Yegzaw Bayelign finishing a mere one second behind Wafula. 

Kenyan Kimakal Kipsambu secured the third spot with a time of 1:01.20, while compatriot Asbel Kiplimo finished fourth in 1:02.57.

Kenyan Shadrack Koech to battle Tsegu Wendemu in Italy

kenya’s Shadrack Koech will battle for the men’s top honors at the 49th edition of the Roma-Ostia Half Marathon set for Sunday (03) in Rome, Italy.

The 27 year-old comes to this race with a personal best of 1:01.12 that he got last year at the Trento Half Marathon, where he finished in second place.

Koech will partner with his compatriot Kimakal Kipsambu, who is making a return to the capital after pacing last year’s edition with a time of 1:01.37.

The two will have an uphill task of dislodging the 2019 All-African Games 10,000m champion and also the fastest man on paper with a time 59:42 that he got five years ago at Lisbon Half Marathon, where he took a silver medal, Tsegu Berehanu Wendemu of Ethiopia.

The three elite athletes will have their focus on the race course record of 58:02 that was set two years ago by the reigning World Road Running half marathon champion, Sabastian Sawe from Kenya.

LEADING TIME

21KM MEN

Tsegu Berehanu Wendemu (ETH) 58:42

Shadrack Koech                   (KEN) 1:01.12

Kimakal Kipsambu              (KEN) 1:01.37

Mary Ngugi confirmed for Roma-Ostia Half Marathon

Ngugi, a Boston marathon silver medalist from 2021, headlines the women’s field with a personal best (PB) of 66:29 in the half marathon and 2:20:22 in the marathon.

As part of her preparations for the upcoming Boston Marathon, Mary Ngugi-Cooper will line up for this year’s Roma-Ostia Half Marathon in March.

The race will be held on March 3, 2024 in Italy.

Ngugi, a Boston marathon silver medalist from 2021, headlines the women’s field with a personal best (PB) of 66:29 in the half marathon and 2:20:22 in the marathon.

The 2022 Boston bronze medalist who placed fifth at the New York City marathon last year will compete against her compatriots Caroline Korir and Nelly Jeptoo, the young Ethiopian Wariyo Bekelech Teku (fifth in the recent Ethiopian Cross Country Championships and rising star), and compatriot Anna Dibaba, the younger sister of the well-established Tirunesh and Genzebe.

“I’m really excited to announce that in April I will be running @bostonmarathon. Boston holds a special place in my heart, not only for having two podium finishes in the last few years, but getting married there too! The streets are always amazing, crowds loud and I can’t wait to hit Heartbreak Hill once again with a ridiculously strong field of talented women,” Ngugi said while announcing her return to Boston.A welcome return for the Italian team is Rebecca Lonedo, who is in great shape with a recent PB of 70.13 in Seville.

As for the men’s elite list, Ethiopian Tsegu Berehanu Wendemu headlines the list with eyes firmly set on running under an hour as he holds a PB of 59:42.

Shadrack Koech, eager to compete on the fast Roman course after his 61.12 in Trento last October, and Kimakal Kipsambu, returning to the capital after pacing with a time of 61.37 in 2023 make up the top three list of elites.

Dorcas Jepchirchir Tuitoek aims higher at Rome Ostia half marathon on Sunday

Dorcas Jepchirchir Tuitoek will be seeking another title in the Roma Ostia Half Marathon set for this Sunday in Rome, Italy.

Tuitoek has a personal best of 66:33, which she set at the 2019 Istanbul Half Marathon while finishing second.

The Atlanta Half Marathon champion is confident of a  podium finish as she seeks to lower her time in the Italian city.

“I am looking beyond this event because I want to use it as a springboard to one of the marathon major races later this year,” she said.

Tuitoek, who also won the Atlanta Half Marathon in 68:22, is optimistic of lowering her time as she prepares to venture into the full marathon," he added.

She said she is currently undergoing intensive training under Gianni Demadonna in Kapsabet and hopes to head to Rome with much fitness.

This will be her first race of the year on the road after competing in cross-country meetings across the country.

"I competed at the national cross country championships in Ruiru and I finished in position 12, which was good for me," she said.

In Rome, Tuitoek will be up against home girl Giovanna Epis among other top athletes.

The men's field will feature Kenya's Wesley Kibichii who has a personal best of 59:57 and Isaac Kemboi (60:11) among others.

However, the line-up includes top runners like Ethiopian Mogos Tuemay (60:11) and Italian citizen Danielle D’Onofrio (62:32). 

Roma-Ostia half marathon cancelled due to coronavirus

Yesterday the organizers had confirmed the event. Today, in a meeting in the Prefecture attended by the governor of Lazio, Nicola Zingaretti, and the mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, was judged as "inappropriate for the running" of the race.

In the end there is no running. The Rome-Ostia half marathon, which was scheduled for Sunday, March 8, on the roads to the Lido of the capital, and confirmed yesterday, was canceled today due to the coronavirus emergency.

Yesterday the confirmation, today the cancellation, Yesterday the organizers had confirmed the event, "barring any future interventions". 

Today, in a meeting in the Prefecture on the coronavirus emergency, convened by the prefect Gerarda Pantalone and attended by the governor of Lazio, Nicola Zingaretti, and the mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, was assessed as "inappropriate for the half marathon to take place" .

The statement of the Capitol, The Capitol then issued a cancellation of the test and a statement: "A meeting was held this morning in the Prefecture on the topic of the epidemiological emergency coronavirus, convened by the prefect Gerarda Pantalone.

Also attended by the governor of Lazio Nicola Zingaretti and the mayor of Rome Virginia Raggi. The medical-health evaluations from the competent bodies have led to the assessment of the Roma-Ostia 2020 half-marathon, a sports event scheduled for Sunday, March 8, as inappropriate. "

The Roma-Ostia Half Marathon was once again a fast race but with some surprises

The Roma-Ostia Half Marathon once again lived up to its reputation as being a fast race with a winning time of 01:00:17 by Ethiopian runner Guye Adola in the men’s race and 01:06:40 by Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, of Israel, in the highly anticipated women’s race.

Adola, winner of the 2017 edition of this competition, now in its 45th year, ran a smart race, tucking into the lead pack for most of the way until a final sprint to the finish, beating Kenian Geoffrey Yegon by 6 seconds in a race that saw 8,456 finishers run from Rome’s EUR neighbourhood to Ostia, the city’s honky tonk beach town.

In the women’s race, Salpeter, bettered her PB by 1:15, running a constant pace of 3:08/km, while the American Jordan Hasay, finished with a time of 01:11:06, well above the expected PB that everyone was hoping to see her run. At the presentation of elite runners on Saturday, Hasay seemed to want to run a fast race and, with an identical PB as Salpeter, everyone was hoping for an exciting and fast duel to the finish. But today wasn’t going to be that day for Hasay. During the race, the live tracking for Hasay did not work so there were no live split times for her at the 5km, 10km or 15 km markers and commentators never mentioned where she was during the race.

Only when she arrived at the finish line 4:26 after Salpeter (and 6th woman overall), was it obvious that she was way off a PB pace today. Hasay, part of the Nike Oregon Project and trained by Alberto Salazar, is set to run in the Boston Marathon on April 15. An Italian male runner who finished in a little over 1hr 7 minutes and who was at the start with Hasay, said she ran the first 2 kms very fast but then dropped off her PB pace and he passed her at km 3. A spokesperson for Hasay said after the race that Hasay did not have any injuries that affected her performance today, citing that after a year away from competition she was only a bit “race rusty.”

Jordan Hassy is set the break the American Half Marathon Record Sunday in Rome

American distance star Jordan Hasay may be set to break the American record in the half marathon tomorrow at the Huwai Roma Ostia Half Marathon.

The current American record of 67:25, set in January 2018 by Molly Huddle, is only 30 seconds faster than Hasay’s PB of 67:55, set in 2017 at the Prague Half Marathon. And while this time is good, it does not correspond to her PB of 2:20:57 run at the Chicago Marathon that same year. 

During a presentation of the elite athletes today at the Roma Ostia Village, former Italian distance runner Gianni De Madonna – 2nd at the New York City Marathon in 1987 – asked the top athletes about their plans for the race. Hasay’s main competition, Lonah Chemtai Salpeter, from Israel who also has a PB of 67:55, said that she hoped for a fast race as she wanted to improve her time. When De Madonna asked if she was hoping for a time of 66 to 66:30, she laughed and said that she would do her best to stay with the pacers that they will be following.

In the men’s race, 2017 winner Guye Adola is back for a repeat victory. Adola, from Ethioia, was an unknown in 2017 when he crossed the finish line in 59:48 but made a name for himself several months later when he came in 2nd to Eliud Kipchoge at the Berlin Marathon with a time of 2:03:46, only 14 seconds behind the current world record holder in the marathon.

The weather should be ideal for racing: cloudy with a high temperature of 14 C.

Ethiopia’s Guye Adola from Ethiopia and Lonah Chemtai Salpeter from Israel lead the field at the Huawei Roma-Ostia Half Marathon

Adola made a major breakthrough at the 2017 Berlin Marathon, when he ran the fastest ever time for a debutant with an impressive 2:03:46 performance to finish just 14 seconds behind Olympic champion and world record holder Eliud Kipchoge.

Adola, who clocked his 59:06 half marathon career best in New Delhi in 2014, will be chasing his second win at the Roma Ostia after his 2017 victory in 59:18.

His top rivals will include Kenyan Geoffrey Yegon, who has a 59:44 PB from 2016 and more recently finished second at last year’s Prague Half Marathon in 59:56. Three other Kenyans are also expected to contend: Emmanuel Kipsang, who has clocked a lifetime best of 1:00:14 and finished fourth at this race last year; Kiprono Kipkemoi, who ran 1:00:56 in Lisbon 2018; and prolific racer Cornelius Kangogo, a three-time winner of the Corrida de Houilles and two-time champion at the Media Blenio in Dongio.

The Italian challenge is led by 2014 European marathon champion Daniele Meucci, who is returning to his best form after a tough 2018 season. He’ll be joined by Stefano La Rosa, who has a marathon PB of 2:11:08 set in Seville in 2018.

Salpeter came to the fore last summer when she won the European 10,000m title, and has continued to impress. Last November Chemtai broke the Israeli national marathon record with a 2:24:17 run in Florence. A month earlier she produced her half marathon best, clocking 1:07:55 in Lisbon.

Haftamnesh Tesfay Haylu won here last year in 1:09:02 and returns to defend her title. She’ll also face Kenya’s Antonina Kwambai, who clocked 1:08:07 at the Paris Half Marathon in 2018 and her compatriot Diana Chemtai Kipyogei, who set her lifetime best of 1:07:07 in Valencia last October. 

The field also includes established marathoner Jordan Hasay of the USA. The 27-year-old finished third at the Boston Marathon in 2017 in 2:23:00, the fastest ever performance by a US debutante. Six months later she finished third at the Chicago Marathon in 2:20:57.

The blond super star Jordan Hasay is set to run the 45th Huawei Roma Ostia Half Marathon Sunday in Italy

Last year, Galen Rupp was the American star at the Huawei Roma Ostia Half Marathon. For the 45th edition, on March 10, 2019, twenty-seven-year-old Jordan Melissa Hasay, also as Rupp, grew up and settled under the technical direction of Alberto Salazar at the prestigious Nike Oregon will be on the starting line.

Jorday Hasay, undoubtedly, has sport in the DNA. Her father was a basketball star, while her mother Teresa, was a national swimmer in England.

Hasay placed third in the 2017 Boston Marathon in 2017, clocking 2:23:00, a record for an American athlete in the debut at the distance. Her best marathon time is 2:20:57.  

She has had some injury situations of late but she is now healthy and is looking forward to racing in Italy this coming weekend.  

A Chance Encounter with Rupp and Salazar on a Roman Holiday

Carla van Kampen posted this Saturday on FB, "Had a chance encounter with lifelong running idol, the great Alberto Salazar and his Olympic silver and bronze medal athlete Galen Rupp! Galen had just finished an easy three mile run and was doing exercises as Salazar showed up from his two mile run.

After a quick dash into their hotel to get a change of sneakers for Galen for his 100 meter strides, Salazar measured the distance by his steps and used a broken pair of glasses on the road as his marker.

Salazar told him to run them in 14 seconds.....and Galen did just that." ...The next day Galen ran the second fastest Half Marathon ever run by an American...59:47.

Galen Rupp runs first sub 60 to win 44th annual Roma Ostia Half Marathon

Galen Rupp ran a personal best to win the 44th edition of the Roma-Ostia Half Marathon on Sunday (March 11, 2018).

The US distance runner won the Rome race in 59:47 as he went sub 60 minutes for the first time and takes 43 seconds off his 2011 best.

He had Ryan Hall’s 2007 US record in his sights and came very close only missing Hall’s time by four seconds.

However, if he had dipped under the 59:43 mark it would not have stood as an American record however because the course is a point to point race and not record-eligible....

Rupp launched his decisive attack between 15th and 16th kilometers when, after a tactic of waiting during which he vented his most credited opponents, he lengthened the pace by breaking the Kenyans Moses Kemei, second place in 1:00:44, and Justus Kangogo, third in 1:01:02....

The female race saw Ethiopian’s Hftamenesh Haylu in first with 1:09.02 and compatriot Dera Datta close behind in 1:09:21. Third place went to Kenya’s Rebecca Chesir, who finished in 1:11:04.

Galen Rupp is going to be racing half marathon on Sunday in Italy

The IAAF has confirmed that "Galen Rupp will be in the spotlight at the 44th edition of the Huawei Roma-Ostia Half Marathon, an IAAF Gold Label road race, on Sunday March 11 in Rome, Italy."

“I am very happy to run in Rome, I have heard great things about this race,” Rupp said. “My goal is to run a fast time in my preparation for the Boston Marathon.”

“I like the Roma-Ostia course as it is flat and it will give me the chance to fulfill my potential. I think it will be a high-level race, where I will run to win. I am aiming to run my personal best. If I am fit I can attack the US record.”

That mark in 59:43, set by Ryan Hall in Houston in 2007. Rupp’s lifetime best in 1:00:30 set in 2011. However, since this is a point to point course it would not count as an official American Record.