By Richard Finn for the IAAF
New York, USA – Two big-name favourites with near-matchless credentials – Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia and Catherine Ndereba of Kenya – head the men’s and women’s fields for Sunday’s NYC Half-Marathon. But those fields are so strong that either of the favourites could be upset by any of several formidable challengers.
New York debut for Gebre
Gebrselassie, who will make his New York racing debut on Sunday, has a résumé paralleled in distance-running history perhaps only by the multi-gold medallists Paavo Nurmi and Emil Zátopek. As if his myriad of World records and two 10,000m Olympic gold medals weren’t enough, Gebreselassie is undefeated in his seven previous half-marathons.
“Sunday is going to be really fantastic,” he said upon his arrival in New York. “I have no idea about the course. I hear it’s quite difficult. My top priority is to win the race and get a good time.”
But not far behind “Geb” in the big-race-reputation department is Robert K. Cheruiyot, the defending LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon champion and a three-time Boston Marathon winner. A master of rising to the occasion, he excels on hilly terrain – like that of Sunday’s first seven miles, all in rolling Central Park.
Cheruiyot and Abdi lead field of challengers
Although the soft-spoken Cheruiyot made no predictions, a direct challenge came from Abdi Abdirahman, a two-time U.S. Olympian and the national 10,000m champion, who threw down the gauntlet at a Thursday news conference.
“I want to be the first guy to beat Haile in a half-marathon. And I should be the first guy to beat him in America – he’s coming to my home town!” Clearly, the outspoken “Abdi” has adopted New York, much as America has welcomed him from his native Somalia.
And one shouldn’t count out Hendrick Ramaala, the ING New York City Marathon 2004 champion and perhaps the closest runner-up in marathon history at that race in 2005, when he lost by three-tenths of a second to World record holder Paul Tergat in a diving finish. History’s seventh-fastest half-marathoner, Ramaala considers the distance a specialty; another of his specialties is setting a tough early pace that forces lead packs to run hard from the gun.
“This weekend, well, we just don’t know yet,” said Ramaala. “I won’t wish him bad on Sunday, but I know that in any race, any runner can win or lose.”
Sunday’s lead pack will likely include Kenyans John Korir, who is riding a hot streak of shorter road-race victories, and James Kwambai, a 1:00:22 half-marathoner who was second in this year’s Boston Marathon.
Ndereba aims at defending title
Ndereba, the defending champion of the NYC Half-Marathon, won the 2003 World Championships marathon and was the first woman to break 2:19 for that distance. She has won four Boston Marathons and a total of seven World Marathon Majors races. The smoothest of runners, she showed that her grit matched her cool when she edged hard-charging Benita Johnson of Australia to win last year’s race by less than one second.
Ndereba’s main threat may come from Hilda Kibet, a cousin of reigning IAAF World Cross Country champion Lornah Kiplagat. Kibet has already won two half-marathons this year and has cut her personal best to 1:09:43.
Also improving steadily is Maida Perez, the Mexican marathon record holder at 2:22:59 and third in this year’s Boston Marathon. New Zealand record-holder Nina Rillstone (1:10:49) and a strong Japanese contingent led by Megumi Oshima (1:09:59 personal best) and Yuri Kano (fourth in the inaugural NYC Half-Marathon) round out the field of women’s contenders.
Already a world-class destination race in only its second year, the NYC Half-Marathon expects some 11,000 runners to travel from Uptown through Midtown (and Times Square) to a Downtown finish in sight of the Statue of Liberty. Included are about 600 international athletes and 51 professional runners.
Gebrselassie, ever diplomatic, remarked, “It’s a strong field. Sunday will be a hard time for me because of such big names in the race. It’s going to be a difficult competition.”
As any running fan knows, there are few names bigger than Gebrselassie.