New York Marathon Preview

New YorkLeading the strongest field ever assembled for the New York City Marathon, defending champions Tesfaye Jifar and Margaret Okayo return to preserve their "Big Apple" titles in Sunday's 33rd edition of one of the world's largest Marathons.

Last year's race, run in the wake of the September 11 attacks, exemplified the fighting spirit of the city, with more than 24,000 runners overcoming fears and anxieties to take part in the five borough tour that traverses five bridges in front of 2.5 million spectators. Both winners, Ethiopian Jifar and Kenyan Okayo, responded with course records, standards that appear to be in jeopardy this weekend.

Women

In the race's premiere in 1970, only one woman started. This weekend, as was the case in several major marathons this year, the focus will be on the women.  Starting 35 minutes before the men, and with pace makers of their own, the women's race will unfold unimpeded, as Okayo, Sonia O'Sullivan and Lornah Kiplagat challenge the course record of 2:24.21.

Largely overshadowed by the exploits of fellow Kenyan Catherine Ndereba and Britain’s Paula Radcliffe, the tiny Okayo has been one of the most consistent marathoners of the last few years. Her stunning 2:20:43 win over Ndereba in Boston last Spring, shattered the course record, and ranks the 26-year-old as the sixth fastest marathoner ever. Okayo, who finished third in New York in 2000 and runner-up in Chicago in 1999, tuned up for her title defence with easy wins at Italy's Giro Di Pettinengo 4-K on October 13 (12:30), and Lisbon's Oni Meia-Maratona Half Marathon (1:09:51), the latter with a win over Ethiopian Derartu Tulu and and Kenyan Esther Kiplagat.

Ireland’s living legend O'Sullivan is expected to challenge for the title in her "competitive" marathon debut. Her only marathon race, a 2:35:42 which won the 2000 Dublin Marathon, says little about the 32-year-old phenomenal build-up to her New York debut. In 2002, O'Sullivan has contested every distance from 800 metres (2:04.91) to the Half Marathon, the latter in a world-lead and national record of 1:07:19 at the BUPA Great North Run in Newcastle earlier this month. 

Her season includes double track silver at the European championships, a national record 30:47:59 for 10,000m, and a short-lived 51:00 World best for 10 miles. In the Run London 10K in late September, the 1998 double World Cross Country champion finished third behind Paula Radcliffe's European record in 33:47, after a 90 minutes pre-race run!

Lornah Kiplagat makes her New York debut having displayed exemplary form. She's run the second and third fastest 10Ks of the year (30:44), set a 10Mile World best (50:54) in Zaandam, Netherlands in late September, and began her 2002 campaign with a win at January's Osaka Marathon in 2:23:55. Holder of the World best for 20K, Kiplagat, who is seeking Dutch citizenship, set her Marathon best of 2:22:36 in Chicago in 2000, finishing second.

31-year-old Joyce Chepchumba has perhaps the strongest major race credentials of the women's field. She claimed the 1997 and 1999 London Marathons, the latter in a PB 2:23:22; the 1998 Chicago and 2000 Tokyo titles; and struck Olympic Bronze in Sydney. She finished sixth in London this year (2:26:53), and most recently, was a strong third in the Great North Run in 1:08:34, just two weeks after winning the Greifenseelauf Half
Marathon in Switzerland in 1:08:40.

The big four will have plenty of company in their course record assault. Italy's Maria Guida, winner of the European marathon title in Munich in August (2:26:05), is expected to push the pace as well. She has a 2:25:57 best to her credit from 1999, worked as a pacer in London, and most recently clocked a fast 1:09:27 a month ago in the Udine Half Marathon.

Two-time Olympian Kerryn McCann won the Commonwealth title this summer, her first marathon win, after finishing fourth in January's Osaka race in 2:28:30. The winner of two Australian Half Marathons this year, the 35-year-old McCann is a strong big race competitor as well, with a third place finish in Chicago last year and a 2:25:59 best from London in 2000, where she finished fifth.

Esther Kiplagat, no relation to the younger Lornah, was fifth here last year in 2:26:25 and ninth in 2000, and lowered her personal best to 2:25:32 in Paris this year, finishing third.

Russian Ludmila Petrova, the surprise 2000 winner here, returns after a personal best 2:22:33 in London, where she finished third.

Men

In the men’s race, the defending champion Jifar, who lowered Juma Ikangaa's 12-year-old course record to 2:07:43 last year, faces a tough challenge as he intends to become the race's seventh repeat winner.

The 25-year-old from Addis Ababa, who finished a close second to Haile Gebrselassie in last year's World Half Marathon Championships, has raced sparingly since his New York win. He was fourth on the fast Lisbon Half Marathon course (1:00:33) in March, before finishing ninth in the Flora London Marathon, in 2:09:50. A month later, he was fifth at the IAAF World Half
Marathon Championships (1:01:11).

The key for Jifar, whose personal best is 2:06:49 from Amsterdam in 1999, will lie in the race's second half. In his New York win, his splits -1:03:51 and 1:03:52- were virtually even. In London, he faltered dramatically in the second half, running 1:02:46 and 1:07:04 halves.

This year's Boston Marathon winner, Rodgers Rop, leads the list of Jifar's challengers. Third in New York last year, the 26-year-old Kenyan followed up his Boston win with a successful defence in the Berlin 25K, where he set the World best of 1:13:44 for the distance in 2001. In strong form, Rop finished second in the Tilburg 10 Miler (46:37) on September 8, and most recently, was third in the BUPA Great North Run in 1:01:40.

Late race leaders will keep a watchful eye on Christopher Cheboiboch, whose valiant finishing kick nearly stole this year's Boston race from Rop. He simply ran out of room, finishing three seconds back with a personal best of 2:09:05. The 25-year-old Kenyan ran a seasonal best 1:01:35 at the City-Pier-City Half Marathon in Den Haag, Netherlands, a few weeks before his Boston run, but most recently finished a disappointing 12th in September's Rock & Roll Half Marathon in Virginia Beach.

Italians have won four times in New York. Stefano Baldini, who lowered the national record to 2:07:29 in London, is aiming to increase that number to five. His build up to his second New York appearance --he was third in 1997 in 2:09:31-- was solid, with a win in the Giro Al Sas 10-K 12 days ago in Italy, and a fourth place finish at the Great North Run (1:01:55) on October 6.  His bronze medal performance last year in Edmonton displayed the big race ferocity of the Italian 10,000 champion.

Kenyan Japhet Kosgei, last year's runner-up (2:09:10), tuned up with two Half Marathons in September - a 1:04:41 in Lisbon's Oni Meia, finishing 11th, and a 1:03:00 for seventh in Virginia Beach. The 34-year-old from Eldoret, who began running seriously at age 28 because he was overweight and "needed capital," has a personal best 2:07:09 from his 1999 win in Rotterdam.

Moroccan-born Frenchman Mohamed Ouaadi makes his New York debut after a strong runner-up finish in the Paris to Versailles 16.3K race in late September. He was second in his other marathon appearance this year, Japan's Lake Biwa race in March, in 2:09:00, while his personal best (2:07:55) dates back to 1999.  The 32-year-old finished eighth in the 2000 Olympic Marathon.

Two-time World Half Marathon silver medallist Hendrik Ramaala is a voracious racer, and often finishes on or near the victory podium. The 30-year-old South African was second in the Oni Meia Half Marathon in Lisbon, a month ago in 1:02:20, sixth in the Run London 10-K (28:50) a week earlier, and runner-up in the Beach-to-Beacon 10K (28:12) in early August. He began the year with a big win at the World's Best 10-K (28:15) in February, before finishing second to Gebrselassie in the March Lisbon half (59:42), and was sixth in April's Paris Marathon in 2:10:06.

31-year-old Welshman Jon Brown hasn't raced a marathon since finishing sixth here last year (2:11:54), but proved his fitness 18 days ago with an easy 10 minute win at the Royal Victoria Half Marathon in his adopted hometown of Victoria, British Columbia. He considered his 1:02:32 a training run. The British national record holder at 10,000m (27:18.14), Brown missed a medal in Sydney's Olympic Marathon by just six seconds, in his follow-up race at the distance after clocking a PB 2:09:44 in London, the previous year.

South African Gert Thys, the seventh fastest marathoner ever (2:06:33 from 1999), most recently worked as a pacer in the Chicago Marathon. In March, he was fourth in the Seoul's Dong-A Marathon in 2:12:46.

Some notable debutantes:

- 33-year-old Marla Runyan, profiled yesterday, makes her marathon debut on the heels of a 1:11:19 run at the Philadelphia Distance Run Half Marathon in September.

- Mebrathom Keflezighi. The 27-year-old, whose family emigrated from Eritrea to the United States in 1987, renewed American's distance passion after lowering the national 10,000m record to 27:13.98 last year, breaking a 15-year-old mark.  His recent races include a fourth place showing in the World Cup 5,000m (13:33:44) in late September, and, a week earlier at the CVS/Pharmacy Downtown 5-K in Providence, Rhode Island, he captured his fifth national title of the year.

- Mark Carroll. After setting a course record 1:03:11 in Grete's Great Gallop Half Marathon in Central Park on October 6, the Irishman characterized the performance as a "tempo run," adding, "I was well within myself."  Afterwards, he ran another five miles to complete his workout. The 30-year-old, originally from Cork, enjoys racing in New York: he is a three-time Millrose Games winner and holds the Armory Track & Field Centre record in the mile.

- Gabriel Muchiri. The 22-year-old Kenyan has notched three Half Marathon wins this year, including a 1:01:54 personal best in May in Indianapolis.

- 28-year-old Kenyan Teresa Wanjiku won three Half Marathons in a span of five weeks this summer, including a 1:11:42 personal best in Medellin, Colombia.

Excluding time incentive bonuses, a guaranteed prize purse of more than $475,000 will be on offer. Winners will take home $80,000 plus a Pontiac Vibe. 30,000 participants are expected to line up at the edge of the Verrazano Narrows Bridge on Staten Island, a staggering number unimaginable to the 127 entrants in the race's inaugural edition in 1970.

Bob Ramsak for the IAAF