Lidiya Grigoryeva Boston 2007
National champion Kastor finishes 5th; Cheruiyot defends crown and solidifies World Marathon Majors lead .. Race report from Tom Surber, USATF
BOSTON – (April 16, 2007) – Robert K. Cheruiyot of Kenya took his third Boston title, while Lidiya Grigoryeva of Russia won for the first time Monday at the 111th Boston Marathon. Deena Kastor of Mammoth Lakes, Calif. was the top-finishing American in her Boston debut, taking fifth in the women’s race and winning the U.S. women’s marathon title (her second), while Pete Gilmore of San Mateo, Calif. was eighth in the men’s race.
It is nearly impossible to conceive of a cold, 48-degree rain and swirling winds being considered good conditions, but compared to the initial forecast of 40mph winds and a possible Nor’Easter, they were much better than expected.
The race for the women’s title was the most compelling of the day. A lead pack of eight women, including Kastor, was led through 14 miles alternately by 2006 Boston runner-up Jelena Prokopcuka of Latvia and defending champion Rita Jeptoo of Kenya. The pace was cautious: after a 5:32 opening mile, the group passed through 5K in 17:14, 10 miles in 58:00 and halfway in 1:17:10.
At 14 miles, runners began to shed layers of clothing as well as competitors. Giovanna Volpato of Italy was the first to fall back, then Kastor lost touch with the leaders after making an unscheduled “pit stop” in between the 25K to 30K mark. The lead pack quickly dwindled to three – Prokopcuka, Madai Perez of Mexico and Grigoryeva. The three ran shoulder-to-shoulder as late as 24 miles, which they passed in 2:18:02.
Just over three minutes later, Grigoryeva, the 2006 Los Angeles Marathon winner, made her move and stormed to victory in 2 hours, 29 minutes, 18 seconds, with Prokopcuka again finishing second, in 2:29:58. The Mexican national record holder, Perez was third in 2:30:16, with Jeptoo fourth (2:33:08) and Kastor, the 2004 Olympic Marathon bronze medalist, fifth (2:35:09).
The men’s race shaped up as a group long run, with a huge pack running two minutes behind a pair of unknown leaders through the first 18 miles. The pack slowly dropped runners, eventually being whittled by 40K to defending champion Cheruiyot and James Kwambai.
Cheruiyot made his move 2 hours, 9 minutes into the race, at Kenmore Square, pulling away strongly and cruising to the finish in 2:14:13, the slowest winning time at Boston since 1977 and almost 7 full minutes behind his own course record from last year (2:07:14). Kwambai was second in 2:14:33, with Stephen Kiogora third (2:14:47) and James Koskei fourth (2:15:05) as Kenyans took the top four places. Teferi Wodajo of Ethiopia was fifth (2:15:06), and Gilmore was eighth in 2:16:41.
It was the third World Marathon Majors win for Cheruiyot, who won Boston and the LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon in 2006. Find current WMM standings and more at: WorldMarathonMajors.com
111th BAA Boston Marathon: USA Women’s Championship
Boston, MA, Monday, April 16, 2007
MEN
1) Robert K. Cheruiyot, KEN, 2:14:13, $100,000
2) James Kwambai, KEN, 2:14:33, $40,000
3) Stephen Kiogora, KEN, 2:14:47, $22,500
4) James Koskei, KEN, 2:15:05, $18,000
5) Teferi Wodajo, ETH, 2:15:06, $14,000
6) Benjamin Maiyo, KEN, 2:16:04, $12,000
7) Ruggero Pertile, ITA, 2:16:08, $9000
8) Peter Gilmore, USA / CA, 2:16:41, $7400
9) Samuel Ndereba, KEN, 2:17:04, $5700
10) Robert Cheboror, KEN, 2:18:07, $4200
11) Stephen Biwott, KEN, 2:19:04, $2600
12) Ulrich Steidl, GER / WA, 2:19:54, $2100
13) Hosea Kiprop Rotich, KEN, 2:20:04, $1800
14) Hiroki Tanaka, JPN, 2:20:10, $1700
15) Miguel Nuci, MEX / CA, 2:20:18, $1500
Masters MEN (40+)
1) Oleg Strijakov, RUS, 2:28:55, $10,000
2) Robert Weiner, USA / CA, 2:31:20, $5000
3) Paul Aufdemberge, USA / MI, 2:33:04, $2500
WOMEN
1) Lidiya Grigoryeva, RUS, 2:29:18, $100,000
2) Jelena Prokopcuka, LAT, 2:29:58, $40,000
3) Madai Perez, MEX, 2:30:16, $22,500
4) Rita Jeptoo, KEN, 2:33:08, $18,000
5) Deena Kastor, USA / CA, 2:35:09, $39,000*
6) Robe Tola Guta, ETH, 2:36:29, $12,000
7) Lyubov Denisova, RUS, 2:38:00, $9000
8) Alice Chelangat, KEN, 2:38:07, $7400
9) Ann Alyanak, USA / OH, 2:38:55, $20,700*
10) Kristin Price, USA / NC, 2:38:57, $14,200*
11) Mary Akor, USA / CA, 2:41:01, $8600*
12) Christine Lundy, USA / CA, 2:41:14, $6100*
13) Janelle Kraus, USA / RI, 2:41:24, $4800*
14) Zoila Gomez, USA / CO, 2:41:36, $4200*
15) Melissa White, USA / MI, 2:42:56, $3500*
*includes USA Women’s Championship money