Running News Daily

Kinyanja and Ekai eyeing glory in Leiden Marathon

Kenya's Mildred Kinyanja returns to the Netherlands on Sunday to defend her Leiden Marathon title against a formidable lineup of female athletes. 

Last year, Kinyanja clocked 2:32:40 to claim the race ahead of Linet Chebet ( 2:32:47) and Gladys Chemutai (2:36:26), who finished second and third respectively. 

She boosts a person best (PB) of 2:37:57 set in 2023 at the Eindhoven Marathon, where she placed sixth in a race largely dominated by Belgian athletes.

In the same year, she clinched a bronze medal at the Dodoma Marathon, clocking 2:45:22, amidst tough competition from Naum Kebenei (2:45:20) and Tanzania’s Sara Makera (2:43:05) who secured second and first position respectively.

Adding to her accolades, Kinyanja also claimed the Kuching Marathon crown in Malaysia in 2019 with a time of 3:08:56.

Joining her in the quest for glory is Janeth Kiptoo, boasting a PB of 2:40:14 from the Kigali International Peace Marathon, where she finished eighth.

The Kenyan duo will face fierce opposition from Ethiopia's contingent, led by 2022 Jo'burg 10km Road Race bronze medalist Meskerem Tesfaye. 

Tesfaye holds a PB of 3:00:24 from the 2018 Khon Kaen Marathon, where she finished fourth. She will be accompanied by Dadi Alemu, who achieved a PB of 2:51:35 at the 2017 Stara Zagora Marathon, securing fifth place.

In the men's elite race, Generali Koln Marathon silver medalist Anthony Ekai will spearhead Kenya's charge.

Ekai, 28, finished second last year with a time of 2:15:21, just behind Amos Kipkorir, who clinched the title in 2:14:43.

Ekai will be joined by John Mungai, Isaac Yego, and Emmanuel Kipchumba, forming a formidable Kenyan lineup.

However, the Kenyan contingent faces tough competition from Uganda's Bernard Cheptoch, boasting a PB of 2:14:06 from the 2019 Rabat Marathon, where he finished 14th.

Cheptoch secured the Muscat Marathon title in 2022 with a time of 2:19:28 and claimed bronze at the 2018 Libreville Marathon in 2:21:28.

Representing the hosts is seasoned athlete Bjorn Koreman, with a PB of 2:10:32 set at the 2022 Rotterdam Marathon, where he finished ninth.

(05/07/2024) Views: 595 ⚡AMP
by Teddy Mulei

Former Seoul Marathon gold medalist Franklin Chepkwony collapses and dies after training

Former Seoul Marathon gold medalist Franklin Chepkwony passed away after collapsing on Monday in Eldama Ravine, Baringo County.

The 39-year-old had just finished a 23km training schedule when he collapsed on his way home. 

According to his training partner Mike Boit, Chepkwony was in high spirits during training before they parted ways. 

“Our training went well and he was in high spirits. I was called when I got home that my friend had collapsed and died but I couldn’t believe it. I rushed to his home, where I confirmed indeed he was no more,” he said.

Boit said Chepkwony was among the athletes who took part in the Nairobi City Marathon on July 2, where he placed 54th in 2:16:43. 

According to his uncle, Joseph Tele, a colleague of his tried to administer first aid before a good Samaritan arrived and rushed him to Eldama Ravine Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival.

“I was called when he was rushed to the hospital and unfortunately he passed on. We are now planning his burial. We shall announce the date of his burial once we agree as a family,” Tele said.

His body has since been moved to Eldama Ravine Mortuary awaiting his burial.

Chepkwony first burst into the limelight in 2011 during the Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon, where he came in second in 2:11:00 just five seconds behind Ernest Kebenei who won in 2:10:55.

His international debut came in 2012 at the Zurich Marathon, Switzerland, where he won with a time of 2:10:57.

Later that year, he set a personal best of 2:06:11 after finishing second at the Eindhoven Marathon in the Netherlands just 25 seconds behind the winner. The time ranked him 26th in the world that year.

In 2013, Chepkwony won the Seoul International Marathon on March 17th in a time of 2:06:59, bagging $80,000 for finishing the race under 2:10:00.He later ran his second marathon in the Netherlands in October but disappointingly finished seventh with a time of 2:09:53.

He later bounced back with an emphatic win at the Boulogne-Billancourt Half Marathon in France setting a course record of 1:00:11.

In 2014, Chepkwony participated in the Boston Marathon and finished third, his first top finish in World Marathon Majors.

Various Kenyan athletes took to social media to express their sorrow for the loss of a marathon great.

(08/08/2023) Views: 768 ⚡AMP
by Teddy Mulei

World Record Holders, Olympians, National Champions set to Race B.A.A. 5K

The B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile will make a triumphant return to Patriots’ Day weekend, with professional fields featuring world record holders, Olympians, Paralympians, national champions, and local standouts. Held on Saturday, April 16, the B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile will kick-off festivities leading up to the 126th Boston Marathon on April 18.

“The B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile are two events entrenched in the fabric of Boston Marathon weekend, and each features a field which will lead to fast competition,” said Tom Grilk, President and Chief Executive Officer of the B.A.A. “With three years having passed since our last in-person edition of these races, we’re eager to return to the roads to crown champions.”

In the B.A.A. 5K, Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi will make her Boston road racing debut. A two-time Olympian and two-time World Athletics Championships silver medalist, Teferi holds the women’s-only 5K world record of 14:29. She’ll be up against recently crowned American marathon record holder Keira D’Amato, 2021 U.S. Olympians Emily Sisson and Rachel Schneider, reigning U.S. 5K national champion Weini Kelati, and B.A.A. High Performance Team member Erika Kemp. The B.A.A. 5K course and American record of 14:50 –set by Molly Huddle in 2015—could very well be in jeopardy.

On the men’s side, 2019 B.A.A. 10K champion David Bett and 17-time NCAA champion Edward Cheserek, both of Kenya, will square off against New Zealand 5,000m indoor national record holder Geordie Beamish and 2021 U.S. Olympians Mason Ferlic and Joe Klecker. Stanley Kebenei, a World Athletics Championships finalist in the 3000m steeplechase, will also be part of the strong American charge. The B.A.A. 5K course and American record is 13:20, established by Ben True in 2017.

Boston Marathon wheelchair division champions Marcel Hug, Daniel Romanchuk, and Joshua Cassidy will all compete in the B.A.A. 5K less than 48 hours in advance of racing the 126th Boston Marathon. Vanessa de Souza, Shelly Oxley-Woods, and Jenna Fesemyer are top women’s wheelchair entrants.

Following the B.A.A. 5K, the B.A.A. Invitational Mile will take center stage on Boylston Street. U.S. Olympian, Bostonian, and reigning indoor 1,500m national champion Heather MacLean will race for the first time on the three-lap course that finishes at the Boston Marathon finish line. Among her competitors are B.A.A. High Performance Team member Annie Rodenfels, 2019 runner-up Emily Lipari, and Great Britain Olympian Katie Snowden. MacLean and Rodenfels won’t be the only Massachusetts residents toeing the line, as Belmont High School standout Ellie Shea will race among the professionals. Shea ran 9:08.54 for 3,000m during the indoor season, a time that stands as No. 5 on the all-time high school list and is a Massachusetts state record.

Shane Streich, fresh off an indoor American record at 1,000m, will lead the American men in the B.A.A. Invitational Mile along with 3:54 miler Colby Alexander. Neil Gourley of Great Britain is entered, as are Canadian William Paulson, the 2019 Pan-Am 1500m bronze medalist, B.A.A. racing team member Kevin Kelly of Ireland, and local standout James Randon of Rhode Island.

A complete professional field list for the B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile can be found below. Preceding the professional divisions of the B.A.A. Invitational Mile will be a scholastic mile and middle school 1K featuring student-athletes from the eight cities and towns along the Boston Marathon route. Entries for the high school and middle school events will be available on race weekend.

 

2022 B.A.A. 5K WOMEN’S FIELD (NAME, COUNTRY, ROAD 5K PB, TRACK 5000M PB)

Carmela Cardama-Baez, Spain, N/A, 15:25.41 (NR)

Kim Conley, USA, 15:29, 15:05.20

Keira D’Amato, USA, 15:08, 16:09.86

Emily Durgin, USA, 16:05, 15:24.19

Annie Frisbie, USA, 16:35, 16:05.78

Sammy George, USA, 15:53, 15:19.66

Tori Gerlach, USA, 15:56, 15:44.13

Marielle Hall, USA, 15:08, 15:02.27

Elly Henes, USA, N/A, 15:03.27i

Emma Grace Hurley, USA, 16:13, 15:57.23

Katie Izzo, USA, 16:00, 15:41.33

Weini Kelati, USA, 15:18, 14:58.24

Erika Kemp, USA, 15:45, 15:10.10

Melissa Lodge, USA, N/A, 15:53.81i

Sharon Lokedi, Kenya, 15:48, 15:13.04i

Betty Sigei, Kenya, N/A, 15:37.80

Emily Sisson, USA, 15:38, 14:53.84

Rachel Smith (Schneider), USA, N/A, 14:52.04

Emma Spencer, USA, 16:41, 16:04.95

Susanna Sullivan, USA, 16:35, 15:42.59i

Senbere Teferi, Ethiopia, 14:29 (WR), 14:15.29

Abbey Wheeler, USA, N/A, 15:40.67i

 

2022 B.A.A. 5K MEN’S FIELD (NAME, COUNTRY, ROAD 5K PB, TRACK 5000M PB)

Eric Avila, USA, 13:55, 13:18.68

Geordie Beamish, New Zealand, N/A, 13:12.53i (NR)

David Bett, Kenya, 13:54, 13:06.06

Ben Blankenship, USA, 13:56, 13:33.07

Robert Brandt, USA, N/A, 13:19.11

Sam Chelanga, USA, 13:43, 13:09.67

Edward Cheserek, Kenya, 13:29, 13:04.44

Adam Clarke, Great Britain, 13:42, 13:39.21

Graham Crawford, USA, 13:54, 13:22.68i

Aaron Dinzeo, USA, 14:25, 13:58.37

Brandon Doughty, USA, N/A, 13:39.06

Mason Ferlic, USA, 13:52, 13:24.94

Sydney Gidabuday, USA, 13:53, 13:22.66

Eric Hamer, USA, 14:43, 13:29.60

Brian Harvey, USA, 14:01, 14:13.93

Stanley Kebenei, USA, 13:53, 13:45.87

Joe Klecker, USA, N/A, 13:06.67

Kasey Knevelbaard, USA, 13:56, 13:24.98i

Lawi Lalang, USA, 13:30, 13:00.95

Matt McClintock, USA, 13:49, 13:47.68

Tim McGowan, USA, 14:11, 13:54.20

Reuben Mosip, Kenya, 13:34, 13:50.80a

Charles Philbert-Thiboutot, Canada, 14:04, 13:22.44

Brian Shrader, USA, 13:57, 13:29.13

Zouhair Talbi, Morocco, N/A, 13:18.17i

Aaron Templeton, USA, 13:48, 13:39.39

Josef Tessema, USA, 14:05, 13:22.28.

(03/30/2022) Views: 1,716 ⚡AMP
by Running USA

Keira D’Amato Is Trying to Break the American 10-Mile Record on Monday. It Could Cost Her Thousands of Dollars.

Since 2011, Keira D’Amato has been part of the race committee for the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run, the famous Washington, D.C. road race held along the banks of the Potomac River. She’s held a few different roles over the years; recently she’s been responsible for coordinating speakers for clinics at the race expo. This year, Molly Huddle was one of the scheduled speakers, and D’Amato told her she believed Huddle could break the women’s-only American record of 52:12, set by Janet Bawcom at Cherry Blossom in 2014 (coincidentally, D’Amato held the finish line tape for that race). After telling Huddle about the record, D’Amato realized something: I can run that fast too.

Over the following six months, as D’Amato has risen from obscurity to one of the best distance runners in the United States, that statement has become blindingly obvious. After running a personal best 2:34:24 to finish 15th at the Olympic Marathon Trials in February, the 36-year-old has spent the summer and fall demolishing her pbs, from a 15:04 time trial 5,000 on the track in June to a 32:33 10,000 at the MVMNT Race Series in July to a 68:57 to win the Michigan Pro Half Marathon on October 28.

On Monday, D’Amato will try to back up her claim from the spring: she’s going for Bawcom’s record at the Up Dawg Ten Miler, where she’ll face a five-woman professional field that includes Olympian Molly Seidel. And that leads into one of the oddest statistics of a very odd year.

If D’Amato had broken the record at Cherry Blossom in April (which cancelled its 2020 edition due to COVID-19), she would have earned a $10,000 bonus.

If D’Amato breaks the record on Monday — or even if she doesn’t — she could end up out around $8,000.

That’s because D’Amato is covering most of the costs of the Up Dawg Ten Miler, which will take place in an undisclosed location in the DC area. Even though D’Amato is staging a race for five athletes rather than Cherry Blossom’s typical 17,000, several key expenses remain: getting the course USATF-certified and measured, securing park permits and road closures. It can add up quickly.

And then there is drug testing. USATF rules state drug testing is only required to ratify American records in events for which World Athletics recognizes an official world record. Since 10 miles is a “world best” distance, that means drug testing isn’t required to ratify an American record at the Up Dawg Ten Miler — but D’Amato is leaning toward including it anyway to avoid all doubts. However, based on the quote she received from USADA, it would run her an extra $3,000-$3,500. She hasn’t made a final decision yet.

There is an online store selling race merchandise to help offset the cost of the event. And around 20 members of the CUCB organizing committee have also chipped in a total of $2,000 — and, more importantly, their time — so that D’Amato can chase the record.

“If there was a way to measure intensity per person, this race would be much more intense [than the Cherry Blossom Ten Mile Run],” says CUCB event director Phil Stewart. “We’re not dealing with getting 17,000 people entered in the race and moving them around or ordering as many porta potties or things like that, but this is a group of special individuals. I’ve spent a lot of time being consumed by making sure that we have all of the conditions set for the record to be accepted if the record is broken. If Keira or anybody breaks the record here, the worst nightmare would be that there was some little USATF rule that I didn’t know about that was required for an American record to be set.”

Stewart knows that feeling all too well; last year, Stanley Kebenei thought he had broken Greg Meyer‘s American 10-mile record at Cherry Blossom, only for it to be revealed that a set of cones had been improperly placed, making the course 240 feet short (CUCB still paid Kebenei the $10,000 bonus).

With no mass race entries to fund the Up Dawg Ten Miler, CUCB will lose money on the event. But it’s worth it to Stewart to support D’Amato, whose meteoric rise he has followed first-hand — Stewart was among a group of CUCB committee members who traveled to Atlanta to support her in the Trials in February.

“One of the things that has been fun about [this event] is that in a time when there’s so much downbeat news, I think a lot of people have gotten excited about working on something that’s upbeat,” Stewart says.

And D’Amato? Well, in keeping with her carefree, laid back demeanor, she’s trying not to think about the cost and electing to focus on the positives. Five fast women (Susanna Sullivan, Bethany Sachtleben, and Emily Durgin round out the field) are gathering on Monday at 8 a.m. to race 10 miles. There will be a free live stream, with commentary, on the CUCB Facebook page. This should be fun, right? No. This will be fun.

“For me, it’s not about the money at all,” D’Amato says. “Right now when everyone’s starving for motivation and opportunity, I felt like this would be a service to the running community. And it fell in line really perfectly with my training too.”

Keira D’Amato’s return to competitive running began with a joke. Which, if you know anything about D’Amato, could not be more fitting.

D’Amato loves all things humor. The name of Monday’s race, Up Dawg, was her idea — a nod to a joke from The Office. When D’Amato joined Strava a few years ago, she began using jokes or puns to title her runs. Sample entry: November 16. My cousin, a magician, decided to incorporate the use of trapdoors in his shows. But I think it’s just a stage he’s going through. She used to rely on her children’s popsicle sticks for material or by asking her Amazon Alexa, “Tell me a joke.” As she amassed Strava followers (she’s over 2,600 now), she began receiving suggestions from fans — which delights her to no end.

“You have no idea how awesome it is that when people hear a funny joke, they think, Oh, I need to send this to Keira,” she says.

D’Amato’s impishness was on display during Christmas 2016, when she decided to gift her husband, Anthony, an entry to the 2017 Shamrock Marathon, held in March in Virginia Beach.

“Who gives someone a gift of a marathon entry?” D’Amato says. “Because that means you have to start training a lot. It’s kind of a backhanded compliment gift, I guess. But then I felt a little bad, so I signed up too.”

D’Amato was no stranger to running. A four-time All-American at American University under coach Matt Centrowitz, she finished 6th at the 2005 NCAA XC champs as a senior, ahead of future stars Amy Cragg, Molly Huddle, and Jenny Simpson. She remains friendly with the Centrowitz family, and is even in a fantasy football league with Olympic 1500 champ Matthew Centrowitz — let’s just say both D’Amato and Centro are better runners than fantasy football managers.

“I think at one point, I was in second-to-last and he was dead last,” D’Amato says. “But I also think Centro does a whole bunch of them, so maybe in his other leagues he’s doing better. But it was either the first or second week, I played him, and I crushed him.”

After graduating in 2006, D’Amato (then known as Keira Carlstrom) spent a few years running for DC Elite, a post-collegiate group coached by Scott Raczko — better known as the coach of Alan Webb. By 2008, she had lowered her 1500 personal best to 4:22, but was in constant pain, beset by a series of stress fractures and ankle pain. Her issues were the result of a condition known as a tarsal coalition — an abnormal bridging of bones in the foot — but the surgery to correct it was not covered by her insurance.

So D’Amato “retired” and got a job at mortgage giant Freddie Mac. Even after undergoing surgery to correct her condition in 2009 (her new job had better insurance), D’Amato ran sparingly for the next seven years. In her first run back after giving birth to her daughter, Quin, in August 2016 (she also has a six-year-old son, Tommy), D’Amato couldn’t make it through a three-minute run without walking. Yet she steadily built up ahead of Shamrock, and despite hail, sleet, and brutal winds on race day, D’Amato blew past her pre-race goal of 3:25.

“I couldn’t run slow enough to do that pace,” says D’Amato, who ran 3:14.

D’Amato felt there was a lot left in the tank, and took her next marathon, in Richmond in November, more seriously. After running 2:47 there — just two minutes off the Olympic Trials standard — she knew it was time to return to serious training. She reunited with Raczko, and steadily dropped her times while balancing running with her career as a realtor. When she ran a pb of 2:34 to finish 15th at the Trials at age 35, it looked like the culmination of a remarkable three-year journey.

In reality, D’Amato was just getting started.

Since the Trials, D’Amato has run personal bests over almost every distance. Her 15:04 5,000 doesn’t officially count because it came in a time trial rather than a race, but it’s faster than the Olympic standard of 15:10 and would have ranked her 6th in the US during the 2020 outdoor season.

Her most impressive performance came in last month’s Michigan Pro Half Marathon, where she clocked 68:57, 47 seconds ahead of runner-up Emma Bates, a 2:25 marathoner who finished 7th at the Olympic Trials. That made D’Amato the second-fastest American half marathoner on the year, behind Sara Hall, and 10th on the US all-time list. She is now in very elite company.

(11/22/2020) Views: 1,306 ⚡AMP
by LetsRun

Eliud Kipchoge will have a total of 42 pacemakers as he seeks to run the marathon in under two hours at the INEOS 1:59 Challenge

World record holder and Olympic marathon champion Eliud Kipchoge will have a total of 42 pacemakers as he seeks to run the marathon in under two hours at the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna, Austria in October.

More than half the pacemakers tasked with helping Kipchoge become the first man to break the two-hour mark either live and train in Kenya or have roots from the country.

"13 more pacemakers have been confirmed to help Kipchoge in his bid to become the first human to run a sub-two hour marathon at the INEOS 1:59 Challenge in Vienna in October," organizers said in a statement on Wednesday.

All 13 of the pacers took part in testing for the challenge in Vienna at the start of September and will return for the real thing in three weeks' time with the aim of helping Kipchoge make history.

The other named pacers in this group include:

Eric Kiptanui of Kenya, who holds the sixth-fastest half-marathon time (58:42) from the 2018 Berlin Half-Marathon, Another slate of 13 elite runners has been named who will take turns pacing Eliud Kipchoge to what the world hopes will be the first-ever sub-two-hour marathon next month in Vienna, and it includes Marius Kipserem of Kenya, who set a new course record of 2:04:11 at the 2019 Rotterdam Marathon.

The other named pacers in this group include:

Eric Kiptanui of Kenya, who holds the sixth-fastest half-marathon time (58:42) from the 2018 Berlin Half-Marathon.

Micah Kogo of Kenya, 10000m bronze medallist at the 2008 Olympics, Chala Regasa of Ethiopia, who set a course record of 27:23 at the Valencia 10K Ibercaja in January, which is this year’s sixth-fastest time in the world over 21.1K. 

Gideon Kipketer of Kenya, who set his marathon PB of 2:05:51 at Tokyo in 2017, where he finished second.

Stanley Kebenei of USA, who raced the World Cross Country Championships in Denmark in March, and who finished second in the USATF 3,000m steeplechase national championships and will have just competed at the World Championships in Doha when he returns to Vienna.

Shadrack Koech of Kazakhstan ran a PB in the 10K of 28:22 in the Netherlands this year, and a PB over 10,000m of 28:24:40, also set this year. 

Moses Koech of Kenya finished third in 27:46 behind Joshua Cheptegei and Julien Wanders in the Durban 10K last year.

Thomas Ayeko of Uganda was part of the team that won gold at the Cross-Country World Championships in Denmark this year. He was fourth in the 5,000m at the Commonwealth Games in 2018 and has a half-marathon PB of 60:26.

Emmanuel Bett of Kenya has a 10,000m PB of 26:51:16 and a half-marathon PB of 60:08.

Timothy Toroitich of Uganda made the final of the 10,000m at last year’s Commonwealth Games, after winning bronze at the African Championships. He also won bronze at the first Commonwealth Games half-marathon in Cardiff.

Kaan Kigen Ozbilen of Turkey, who changed his name in 2015 (he is the former Mike Kipruto Kigen). He won silver medals in the 5,000m and 10,000m at the 2006 African Championships representing Kenya. He holds national records for Turkey in both the half-marathon (59:48) and the marathon (2:05:27). He also won a silver medal in the European Championships half-marathon in 2016.

(09/22/2019) Views: 2,129 ⚡AMP

Leonard Korir and Stephanie Bruce won the USATF Half Marathon titles in Pittsburgh

On a cool, damp Sunday morning in the City of Champions, Leonard Korir, 32, from Colorado Springs, CO and Stephanie Bruce, 35, from Flagstaff, AZ won the USATF Half Marathon titles, clocking 1 hour, one minute, 53 seconds and 1:10:44, respectively. Against top U.S. fields, Korir earned his 9th national title and second USATF Half Marathon title, and Bruce earned her second national title.

In the men’s 32nd national half marathon championship, Stanley Kebenei, Korir and Andrew Colley took an early lead with fast mile splits of 4:41 and 4:42 at Miles 3 and 4. At nine miles, Korir made his move and took a lead, followed slightly behind by Kebenei.

Korir kept a 4:45 minute per mile pace until the end, breaking the tape four seconds ahead of Kebenei at 1:01:53 and securing the 10th fastest half marathon championship performance of all time. Colley finished in third at 1:03:11.

“I like how Stanley pushed the pace early on and kept the race honest,” said Korir, a 2016 U.S Olympian. “I knew I had a good push at the end. We are teammates, so I was glad to help him get a personal best.”  

In the women’s 23rd national half marathon championship, the leading pack of six runners included Sara Hall, Bruce, Katy Jermann, Bethany Sachtleben, Samantha Palmer and Emma Bates.

At mile 5, Bruce, Hall and Bates pushed the pace and broke from the pack. At Mile 12, Bruce made her move and with her final push was able to finish in 1:10:44, the 9th fastest female half marathon championship performance of all time. Hall finished in second with a time of 1:11:04, and Bates took third with a time of 1:11:13.

“Running with Sara and Emma today, we made it like a boxing match,” Bruce said. “Everyone took turns at the lead, and we were pushing each other.”

(05/06/2019) Views: 2,236 ⚡AMP

Stanley Kebenei broke the American 10 mile record at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile

Stanley Kebenei could pick from a few comeback stories on his way to setting the American record at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile. A year ago, he was sitting at home nursing an Achilles tendon injury that left him in despair.

A week ago, he had just run a miserable race for the world cross country championships. But none of that mattered when he crossed the line Sunday in 46:00, breaking Greg Myer’s 1983 record of 46:13, also run at Cherry Blossom.

“It’s a dream come true,” Kebenei said. “You should never lose hope.”

He put his 35th place finish in Aarhus, Denmark behind him when he flew to Washington, D.C. and spent the intervening week training in Maryland. He’s a Kenyan-born American citizen who ran at the University of Arkansas and trains in Colorado Springs with the American Distance Project.

“I just didn’t even think about (world cross country),” he said. “It was one race, and this was another. I had my eye on the American record.”

He told Elite Athlete Coordinator Bill Orr as much the morning of the race, then went out to back up the shot that he had called.

Kebenei, 29, felt sluggish early on, but by the third mile, the lead pack began throwing in surges, which Kebenei felt comfortable covering. By mile eight, though, things had changed, and when  defending champion Jemal Yimer started pulling away, Kebenei, who won the 2017 race, had to decide between trying to top Yimer or focusing on his record attempt.

He backed off.

“If I had tried to run with them, I felt like I might have lost it in the last mile and slowed down too much,” he said. “I focused on a mile at a time at the end, but wanted to be ready for the last hill.”

Kebenei had spent a good portion of 2018 fretting about his Achilles.

“I was sitting in my house, feeling helpless and desperate,” he said. “Some injuries give you hope, but a hurt Achilles’ tendon makes your mind weak.”

He didn’t feel confident again until the Twin Cities 10 Mile in October, where he finished third.

(04/08/2019) Views: 2,084 ⚡AMP

Past Champions Jemal Yimer And Buze Diriba wants to Defend their Titles at Credit Union Cherry Blossom Ten Mile

Organizers of the 47th Credit Union Cherry Blossom Run announced today that 2018 champions Jemal Yimer and Buze Diriba will return to our nation's capital to defend their titles on Sunday, April 7. Past champions Stanley Kebenei(2017) and Stephen Sambu (2014 & 2015) will join Yimer on the starting line at 7:30 a.m., while Diriba will be joined by 2017 women's champion Hiwot Gebrekidan and the other elite women, who will have their own separate start at 7:18 a.m. One other past champion, Joan Nesbit Mabe, who was the last American woman to win Cherry Blossom in 1996, will be competing as an age grouper in the 55-59 women's category, starting alongside some 16,000 other runners.

This year's race will offer $96,500 in prize money and bonuses to top runners in the 10-mile:

$40,000 in prize money, plus a possible $3,500 in bonuses will be awarded in equal amounts to the top 10 international men and women;

time bonuses include $1000 for 1st sub-46:00 male; $750 for 2nd sub-46:00, $1000 for 1st sub-52:00 female; $750 for 2nd sub-52:00 female;

$25,000 in American Development Prize Money will be awarded in 2019 to the top 10 U.S. men and women, with double dipping allowed - meaning top American runners can collect top-10 overall prize money and top-10 American Development Prize Money;

As they have since 2017, race organizers are offering a $10,000 American record bonus for the first American man to break Greg Meyer's American record of 46:13, set here in 1983, and for the first American woman to break Janet Bawcom's single-sex American record of 52:12, set here in 2014;

Thanks to a collaborative effort between Credit Union Cherry Blossom Run organizers and the Road Runners Club of America (RRCA), $1,500, $1,000 and $500 will be awarded to the top-three men and women alumni of two innovative developmental programs, the RRCA Roads Scholars Grants, and RRCA's RunPro Camp.

Event Director Phil Stewart said: "We are pleased to host the Washington area's only internationally significant road race, featuring top runners from around the globe. We also believe in helping Americans onto the world stage through our American prize money and support for RRCA Roads Scholars and RunPro Camp alumni. These elite athletes provide inspiration to 16,000 others who chase after them in vain."

Defending champion and two-time runner-up (2016 & 2017) Buze Diriba comes in as the favorite in the women's race. As it has since 2006 - with the exception of the wind-plagued 2016 event, when the women's start was combined with the men's - the separate start for women mentioned in the first paragraph will allow for the women's times to be considered as women's-only records without any effect of being paced by males. The format also provides increased visibility for these talented female athletes.

(04/04/2019) Views: 2,425 ⚡AMP

Shadrack Kipchirir, won the 42nd Gate River Run Clocking 43:41, edging Stanley Kebenei and two-time defending Gate champion Leonard Korir for his first win in the event

The redemption portion of the event was delivered by Kipchirchir, who had paid his dues in the run. He finished second twice, 2016 and ’18, beaten by the two men who he edged Saturday. 

"I mean those guys … I was sick of them," Kipchirchir said. "Three years ago. Kebenei beat me by a microsecond. Then two years ago, Lenny outkicked by microseconds. Today I wanted to come and knock them in their head. That was my main aim."

Kebenei won the 2016 run in 44:37, just 2 seconds in front of Kipchirchir. Korir (43:23) won the 2018 Gate by 1 second over Kipchirchir. Korir was trying to become just the fifth male runner to win the event three consecutive years.

Six elite runners were within two seconds of each other with a mile to go on the Hart Bridge, Martin Hehir, Frankline Tonui, Kipchirchir, Kebenei and Korir.

Six elite runners were within two seconds of each other with a mile to go on the Hart Bridge, Martin Hehir, Frankline Tonui, Kipchirchir, Kebenei and Korir.

(03/09/2019) Views: 2,313 ⚡AMP

Olympian Leonard Korir is aiming to become only the fourth man to win the Gate River Run three years in a row

The two-time defending champion headlines the elite men’s field entering Saturday’s 42nd annual Gate River Run through downtown Jacksonville, the national 15-kilometer championship for USA Track and Field.

With one more victory, the 32-year-old Leonard Korir can join a select club as winners of three straight men’s titles. Only Todd Williams (1994-96), Meb Keflezighi (2001-04) and Ben True (2013-15) have previously accomplished the feat.

Race director Doug Alred said he’s hoping to see a tight contest, and he feels the odds this year are good.

“It’s not that exciting when one person just runs away with it,” he said. “If the leaders can just stay together onto the Hart Bridge, that would be great.”

So far, that’s been the case in Korir’s past two victories. His 2017 win was the event’s closest finish ever, edging Shadrack Kipchirchir to the finish line by a fraction of a second.

Despite his record in Jacksonville and his international achievements at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, there’s reason to believe that Korir is far from a lock to repeat Saturday.

Unlike 2017 and 2018, he did not win the USATF cross country championships, held this time in Tallahassee on Feb. 2. Instead, he took third, while Kipchirchir beat him out by five seconds.

In addition to Kipchirchir, 2016 champion Stanley Kebenei returns, coming off a fifth-place finish in the cross country finals.

(03/08/2019) Views: 2,580 ⚡AMP

Kenyan-born American runner Paul Chelimo wins his first USA road title this morning in New York

The 2018 USATF 5K Championships for men and women was part of the Abbott Dash to the Finish 5K held this morning in New York City and produced by the New York Road Runners.  The race featured Team USA Olympians and national record-holders vying for $60,000 in prize money and the title of USA champion.  The first place man and woman won $12,000 and the title.  In addition to the elites, thousands of others took to the street the day before the NY City Marathon.  Paul Chelimo and Shadrack Kipchirchir battled to the end both clocking 13:45 with Paul breaking the tape first.  Stanley Kebenei was eight seconds back.  Emily Sisson pulled ahead in the women's race clocking 15:38.  Erike Kemp was second in 15:50 followed by Amy Cragg (15:54) and Kim Conley (16:01).  Paul is a Kenyan-born American runner.  He was the 2016 Olympic Silver medalist at 5000m.  He said after the race, "Wow, so excited to have won my first USA road title alongside my best friend, brother and training partner."   (11/03/2018) Views: 1,862 ⚡AMP