World 10,000m champion Berhane Adere has been included in the Ethiopian squad for the 12th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Vilamoura on 4 October, as a team of ten left for the Portuguese resort town on Wednesday evening. 
Adere, who was not in the original squad of 12 athletes selected for the championships but instead included in the Ethiopian squad for the 8th All-Africa Games in Abuja, Nigeria, is now set to defend the title she won in Brussels last year and will come up against in-form Paula Radcliffe for the second time in less than a month. 
Radcliffe beat the Ethiopian comprehensively when she ran a time of 65:40 in the BUPA Great North Run held ten days ago, but Adere’s excellent record against the Briton which extends back to the Edmonton World Championships two years ago should make her an able competitor to try and deny the holder of the World Marathon best performance her third title at the distance. 
Announcing the string of last minute changes to the squad, Endalk Kelemwork, Technical Director of the Ethiopian Athletics Federation (EAF) said that Adere’s inclusion will boost the team’s chances of grabbing medals in Vilamoura. “She won in Brussels and still has the talent for road racing,” he said. “It is no doubt that she will only add to the team’s chances in Portugal.” 
But Kelemwork was cautious about her chances against Radcliffe, saying that he hopes that Adere will come off better in what is looking like a two-horse race for the women’s title. “If we look at the race load of both Radcliffe and Berhane [Adere], we see that Berhane has been more occupied over the last couple of months,” he said. “She barely had rest since Paris. But she has shown that she can handle the pressure and the extensive competition load.” 
Apart from Berhane Adere and Olympic Marathon Bronze medallist Tesfaye Tola, Ethiopia will be sending a relatively inexperienced squad to Vilamoura, but according to Kelemwork, that will not prevent Ethiopia’s chances. “The youngsters need all the exposure they can get and we see Vilamoura as a good chance to inspect their credentials.” 
While the men’s challenge will be led by Tola, Kelemwork believes that there are other athletes who can perform well in Vilamoura. In particular, Kelemwork was full of praise for 18-year old Dereje Adere, who caused a surprise ten days ago winning the men’s title at the Ethiopian Cross Country Championships in Addis Ababa. “He is only 18 years old and naturally we expect a lot from him in the future,” Kelemwork remarked. “I cannot predict what the outcome in Vilamoura will be, but he should be an able competitor.” 
Ethiopian Team for Vilamoura 
Men 1.&nbsp;Dereje Adere 2.&nbsp;Tariky Jefar 3.&nbsp;Tesfaye Tola 4.&nbsp;Mesfin Haylu 5.&nbsp;Solomon Tsege 6.&nbsp;Girma Tola 
Women 1.&nbsp;Berhane Adere 2.&nbsp;Teyeba Erkesso 3.&nbsp;Ashu Kasim 4.&nbsp;Sisay Me’eso

World 10,000m champion Berhane Adere has been included in the Ethiopian squad for the 12th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Vilamoura on 4 October

Defending Champion Adere to challenge Radcliffe in Vilamoura

The IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, which take place in Vilamoura, Portugal this Saturday, could turn out to be one of the most spectacular in the event’s history. 
With a flat course set around a Marina, and weather conditions expected to be sunny and between 16 and 26 degrees, the IAAF has decided to set up official timing positions at 10km, 15km, 20km as well as the full Half Marathon distances.
“The IAAF has established a list of official World Bests based on a number of verifiable criteria, and on 1 January 2004, all valid marks will then become official IAAF Road World Records,” said IAAF President Lamine Diack. 
“Naturally, since the World Half Marathon Championships is one of our events, we are making sure that the athletes are given every possible opportunity to enter the record books.”
Amongst the star entries of this weekend’s “World Championships of the Road” is Britain’s Paula Radcliffe, who already holds IAAF World Bests at 10km (30:21), 20km (1:03:26) and Marathon (2:15:25). 
Radcliffe also ran 1:05:40 at the Great North Run in Tyneside, England on 21 September, the fastest ever time for the distance, although on a course that is downhill and therefore invalid for record purposes. More significantly perhaps, she beat a world class field, including Berhane Adere (ETH), Derartu Tulu (ETH), Susan Chepkemei (KEN) and Sonia O’Sullivan (IRL) by almost two minutes.
Radcliffe’s main rival is likely to be Mizuki Noguchi, second on the world list this year with 1:08:29, who heads a strong Japanese women’s team which also includes Takako Kotonida, who is the third fastest this year with 1:08:35.
Although she has never run this distance before, the American all-rounder Marla Runyan set a national record of 1:05:52 earlier this month at the US 20km Championships and will be aiming for a place on the podium. Runyan, who is legally blind, has now won three US titles at 5000m on the track, and ran a superb debut marathon last year in New York, finishing fourth in 2:27:10.
Amongst the men, there are a number of athletes who have shown excellent form recently both on the road and on the track at 10,000m. 
Tanzania’s John Yuda, who finished third in the last two editions of this event, ran 27:09.83 to finish fifth in the high class 10,000m at the last Golden League meeting in Brussels and has run the second fastest half marathon this year (Milano, 1:00:25).&nbsp; Amongst his rivals are likely to be two Kenyans, John Cheruiyot Korir, who was fifth at 10,000m at the World Championships in Paris and the Olympic Games in Sydney, and also sixth in the Long Race at the last World Cross Country Championships in Lausanne. 
His compatriot Yusuf Songoka is also a man to watch, having run 1:00:58 this year to finish second behind World Marathon champion Jaouad Gharib (MAR) in July’s Johannesburg Half Marathon.
Current IAAF World Bests*
Women 10km&nbsp;30:21&nbsp;Paula Radcliffe (GBR) 15km&nbsp;46:57&nbsp;Elana Meyer (RSA) 20km&nbsp;1:03:26&nbsp;Paula Radcliffe (GBR) Half Marathon&nbsp;1:06:44&nbsp;Elana Meyer (RSA)&nbsp;
Men 10km&nbsp;27:02&nbsp;Haile Gebrselassie (ETH) 15km&nbsp;41:29&nbsp;Felix Limo (KEN) 20km&nbsp;56:18&nbsp;Paul Tergat (KEN) Half Marathon&nbsp;59:17&nbsp;Paul Tergat (KEN)
* IAAF Road World Records will be recognised from 1 January 2004

The IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, which take place in Vilamoura, Portugal this Saturday, could turn out to be one of the most spectacular in the event’s history.

Four World Bests could fall in the same race in Vilamoura

The Japanese World Half Marathon Championships team was selected based on the performances at the Japan Corporate team Half Marathon and the Sapporo Half Marathon.
Historically the Japanese women’s team has done well in the World Half Marathon Championships, having finished second three times in the team competition from 1999 to 2001.&nbsp; 
The fastest Japanese half marathon runner of the year is Takako Kotorida, who finished close second (1:08:35) to Noguchi at the JPN Corporate Half Marathon. This will be her third World Half Marathon for Kotorida, having finished 45th in 1998 and 25th in 2001. Kotorida is a national class 10000m runner (PB 31:41.32). She was second in the 2002 nationals and finished fourth in the 2002 Asian Games.
Mikie Takanaka first attracted attention when she finished second (1:08:32) to Mizuki Noguchi at the Miyazaki half marathon. Six months later in the Sapporo Half Marathon Takanaka attempted to run away from the field; she was caught by Catherine Ndereba at 18Km but still finished second in 1:09:13.&nbsp; In 2003 Sapporo half marathon Takanaka again led in the early stage of the race; she finished third and selected for the team. She is running her second World Half Marathon, having finished 19th last year.&nbsp; &nbsp; For Yumiko Hara, her breakthrough came in the fall of 2001. She recorded 31:53.68 and 31:48.50 for the 10,000m and finished second (1:10:46) to Noguchi in the half marathon. Her success continued in 2002, having finished third in Miyazaki half marathon and fourth in the Japan Corporate team Half Marathon Championships. In the 2003 Sapporo half marathon Hara finished second, which qualified her for the team.&nbsp; 
For Risa Hagiwara, who is coached by Sachiko Yamashita (1991 World Championships silver medallist at the marathon), 2003 was a breakthrough year.&nbsp; After winning the Kobe half marathon with 1:11:59, Hagiwara finished second in the Nagoya Women’s Marathon with 2:28:14.&nbsp; Having finished sixth in the 2003 Sapporo half marathon, she was selected for the team.
Turning attention to the men’s team who finished second last year, the runner on the verge of breakthrough may be Kenta Oshima, who was third with 1:01:48, in the Japan corporate half marathon.&nbsp; Oshima is a versatile runner, having recorded 3:45.14 for the 1500m and 1:02:53 for the half marathon in the same year.&nbsp; In his most recent race, Oshima recorded a huge personal best of 27:54.88 at the 10,000m.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
Men&nbsp; Name&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Personal Best&nbsp;Results in the selection race Toshinari Suwa&nbsp; &nbsp;1:02:36&nbsp;&nbsp;Seventh, Sapporo Half Marathon Wataru Okutani&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;1:03:48&nbsp;&nbsp;Ninth, Sapporo Half Marathon Masahiko Takeyasu &nbsp;1:02:31 &nbsp;Twelfth, Sapporo Half Marathon Kenta Oshima &nbsp;&nbsp;1:01:48&nbsp;&nbsp;Third, JPN Corporate Half Marathon Championships Kazuyuki Maeda&nbsp; &nbsp;1:01:49&nbsp;&nbsp;Fourth, JPN Corporate Half Marathon Championships&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
Women Yumiko Hara &nbsp;&nbsp;1:09:28&nbsp;&nbsp;Second, Sapporo Half Marathon&nbsp; Mikie Takanaka&nbsp;1:08:32&nbsp;&nbsp;Third, Sapporo Half Marathon Risa Hagiwara &nbsp;&nbsp;1:11:55&nbsp;&nbsp;Sixth, Sapporo Half Marathon &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Takako Kotorida&nbsp; &nbsp;1:08:35&nbsp;&nbsp;Second, JPN Corporate Half Marathon Championships

K. Ken Nakamura looks at the Japanese team for the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Vilamoura

Japan looking for Team Gold in Vilamoura 

Last weekend the intense Italian road race calender featured Kenenisa Bekele’s victory at the 14th edition of the traditional Memorial Peppe Greco 10 km road race on the streets of Scicli, a small town in Southern Sicily. 
The “double double” world cross country champion from Ethiopia, who also won his first world title on the track this summer over the 10000 metres and the bronze in the 5000 metres in Paris, followed in the footsteps of his predecessor Haile Gebrselassie, a four times winner in Scicli. 
In the past editions this nice road race was highlighted by a fabulous head to head battle between Gebrselassie and Paul Tergat in 1998 with the twice 10,000 metres Olympic champion from Ethiopia pulling away from Tergat, who set a new World Best in the Berlin marathon on Sunday only in the final metres of the race. 
In the 2003 competition Bekele lived up to the tradition of the Memorial Peppe Greco with a easy win in 28:50 after breaking away from the rest of the group at halfway. Only Robert Kipchumba managed to resist to Bekele’s attack and finished second with 28:52. Third was John Korir with 28:58.
Results of the Memorial Beppe Greco road race (10 km): 1 Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) 28:50; 2 Robert Kipchumba (Kenya) 28:52; 3 John Korir (Kenya) 28:58; 4 Bernard Barmasai (Kenya) 29:01; 5 Martin Sulle (Tanzania) 29:11
Okayo runs 1:07:23 At Udine Half Marathon
Margaret Okayo won the international Udine Half Marathon in Northern Italy on Sunday with the world seasonal best of 1:07:23. This clocking ranks her eighth in the all-time best over this distance.
Okayo, winner at the 2001 New York and the 2002 Boston marathons, also lowered her previous half marathon PB of 1:08:51 she ran on the same course two years ago, exactly one month before her triumph in the Big Apple.
This year Okayo clocked 33:29 at halfway, one minute faster than the Hungarian Aniko Kalovics and the Kenyan Margaret Atodonyang. The 27-year-old Kenyan slightly slowed in the second half, clocking 33:54 but scored a easy win over her compatriot Atodonyang (1:09:12) and Kalovics who also managed to dip under the 1:10 barrier with 1:09:48.
More proof of the fast Udine course was the result scored in the men’s race by James Kwambai of Kenya who ran the third best time in the world this season with 1:00:38 by beating his countrymen Simon Kiilu (1:01:34) and Joseph Ngeny (1:00:35). Kwambai built up his win by running the first half in 30:51 before a 29:47 negative split in the second part of the race. 
Results of the Udine half marathon: Men: &nbsp;1 James Kwambai (Kenya) 1:00:38; 2 Simon Kiilu (Kenya) 1:01:34; 3 Joseph Ngeny (Kenya) 1:01:35; Women: 1 Margaret Okayo (Kenya) 1:07:23; 2 Margaret Atodonyang (Kenya) 1:09:12; 3 Aniko Kalovics (Hungary) 1:09:48&nbsp;

Last weekend the Italian road race calender featured Kenenisa Bekele’s victory at the 14th edition of the traditional Memorial Peppe Greco 10 km road race

Italian road race season off to flying start with Bekele and Okayo

The day after he broke the world marathon best Paul Tergat revealed that his next target will be the Olympic Games in Athens next year. “I have not won a gold medal at the Olympics. So this is a big challenge for me”, the 34-year-old Kenyan said during a press conference in Berlin on Monday. 
Although he added: “Of course I first have to get into the Kenyan team,”&nbsp;after Sunday Kenyan selectors should find no way of&nbsp;leaving&nbsp;Tergat behind. He smashed the world record in the Real Berlin Marathon becoming the first runner to finish under 2:05. Tergat ran 2:04:55 just a second ahead of Sammy Korir.
“Athens would be my last race for the Kenyan team”,&nbsp;Tergat stated. “But the Olympics would not be the end of my career. I think I have a couple of more years to run the marathon.
"I still really like running. And I will continue as long as I feel fine during running. Running is my passion, but on the other hand it is of course not the whole life.” 
Paul Tergat also admired Andres Espinosa (Mexico) who ran a masters world record in Berlin (2:08:46) at the age of 40. “He was really surprising – I would like to be able to run like him when I will be 40 one day”, Paul Tergat said. 
He will now have a three week break and then start training slowly. Regarding his career with so many unlucky second places Tergat said: “This world record with a sub 2:05 is a consolation for me. I hope that this record stands for a while.” He rates his win as an extraordinary success in his career. “This is a record in the marathon. It is exceptional, you can not really compare it with a 10 k or a half marathon.”
Asked what had changed when he changed from the 10,000 m to the marathon after the Olympics in 2000, he replied: “The marathon has changed my running. I am more tolerant and more patient now. I have learnt that nothing is impossible if you believe in yourself, stay focussed and train hard.” 
“I have lived and trained for that record for a long time”, Tergat said. He said he was lucky to have finally everything combined – ideal weather, a good course and organisation plus very strong pacemakers. “This Berlin course is really fast. I believe that for Paula Radcliffe it would be possible to run a time of 2:13 here.”
A record number of about 30,600 runners finished the race. It is the first time that more than 30,000 runners have finished the Berlin Marathon.

The day after he broke the world marathon best Paul Tergat revealed that his next target will be the Olympic Games in Athens next year.

With Marathon Best to his credit Tergat eyes Greek glory

BerlinPaul Tergat crowned the jubilee edition of the 30th Real Berlin Marathon with a sensational new world best. Having not won one of his former five marathon races, the 34-year-old Kenyan became the first runner to achieve a sub 2:05 time in the classical race. Paul Tergat ran 2:04:55. Khalid Khannouchi (USA) was the holder of the former mark, having won the London Marathon in 2002 in 2:05:38. Berlin’s women’s winner was Yasuko Hashimoto with 2:26:32. “This marathon has made history. I am simply overwhelmed”, Paul Tergat said.
Instead of, as expected, running alone during the last few kilometres Paul Tergat had company: Sammy Korir came close again in the last few metres and finished just one second behind. Besides Titus Munji it was Korir who had been Tergat’s most important pacemaker during the race. Munji (Kenya) was third in 2:06:15. These three results made the Real Berlin Marathon the best ever marathon. The average time of the first three Kenyans is still faster than Khannouchi’s former world best. Munji’s result is now the eighth fastest time ever. Additionally no other team has been as fast as those three Kenyan’s, who all belong to the same training group of Dr. Gabriele Rosa. Their team time in Berlin was 6:16:06. In Amsterdam in 1999 the first three Kenyans had run 6:20:26 as a team.
While it was probably not a surprise that Paul Tergat ran a world record in perfect weather conditions with temperatures between 9 and 16° Celsius and no wind, there was another world record in the men’s race which was indeed a surprise: Andres Espinosa (Mexico), the winner of the New York Marathon 1993 became the first master runner to run sub 2:10. Espinosa finished fourth in 2:08:48. 
In front of about a million spectators Paul Tergat, who earned 120,000 Euros in Berlin, was helped by two great pacemakers: Korir and Munji, who stayed in the race and both were rewarded with world class times on the new Berlin course with the finish at the Brandenburg Gate. The new course proved that it was as fast as the old one was. It was in the beginning, when the pace changed several times. First the leading group was going too fast, then they slowed too much. So the kilometre splits changed from 2:54 to 3:07. But finally the pacemakers got it right and passed the half way mark as planned in 63:01 minutes. 
It was after the 25 k mark (1:14:42), that Tergat pushed the pace himself for the first time. That was when last year’s winner Raymond Kipkoech was dropped. He finally came in fifth in 2:09:21. The Kenyan who had won in 2:06:47 last year, was supposed to be Tergat’s main rival on his way to his first marathon win. Five times before Tergat had missed victory in a marathon. 
Tergat had said before the race that he would give everything he had in the second half. But Munji and Korir stayed in front of him a remarkably long time. “I have to thank them both – they have helped me to achieve this world record. In the morning when it was clear that we would have perfect weather conditions we decided to go for the world record. But although they were the pacemakers I expected that they would run the whole race”, Tergat said.
At 30 k (1:29:24) and at 35 k (1:43:59) the three were still together. Meanwhile the split times had dropped clearly under three minutes. At one stage, between 30 and 31 k, they even ran 2:47. It was at 36 k, when Sammy Korir tried to surge away, but he could not drop Paul Tergat. Titus Munji was beaten at this point, but Tergat was now running no longer behind but next to Sammy Korir. It was on the last kilometre, when the two could already see the Brandenburg Gate on Unter den Linden, that Tergat could finally leave Korir behind. But the drama continued for Tergat on his way to victory. He was somehow irritated and did not chose the shortest line through the Brandenburg Gate. And Korir could then almost close the gap again. So there were just a few metres separating the two at the finish line. But both were celebrating in the finish, when they hugged each other. “The last few metres were very exciting. I then said to Sammy simply: ‘we did it’,” Tergat said later.
“I was supposed to run the Amsterdam Marathon – that was the race I originally trained for. But when I saw these very fast split times I decided to stay in the race”, Korir said. He had a marathon best of 2:08:13. It was the same reason for Munji to stay in the race.
“I want to thank my wife, my manager and the organisers who all supported me to make this possible”, Paul Tergat said in a first statement. Later on he added: “There was great support by the spectators, that helped a lot. I think today we got the maximum result that was possible for us. In future I might perhaps be able to run something like 2:04:30. But I don’t expect to be able to run a 2:03.”&nbsp; 
Asked if he was somehow relieved that he finally won a marathon, Paul Tergat said: “I always said I know that my time in the marathon will come if I stay focussed. And felt that I would be able to break the marathon one day. Now that has happened and I am very happy.”
The women’s race was of course somehow pushed into the background because of the men’s event. Yasuko Hashimoto surged away from Emily Kimuria, who is a training partner of Tegla Loroupe, before the 35 k mark. The Japanese, who had a personal best of 2:29:37, finished with 2:26:32. “I hope I will further improve in future”, Hashimoto said. Second place went to Kimuria (KEN - 2:28:18). Third was Ornella Ferrara (ITA - 2:28:28), making her comeback after maternity leave. It was the fourth win in a row in Berlin for Japan after two wins of Naoko Takahashi in 2001 and 2002 and Kazumi Matsuo in 2000.
Results, Men: 1. Paul Tergat &nbsp;&nbsp;KEN&nbsp;2:04:55 2. Sammy Korir&nbsp;KEN&nbsp;2:04:56 3. Titus Munji&nbsp;&nbsp;KEN&nbsp;2:06:15 4. Andres Espinosa&nbsp;MEX&nbsp;2:08:46 5. Raymond Kipkoech&nbsp;KEN&nbsp;2:09:21 6. Kazuhiro Matsuda&nbsp;JPN&nbsp;2:09:49 7. Kurao Umeki&nbsp;JPN&nbsp;2:09:52 8. Andre Ramos&nbsp;BRA&nbsp;2 :09 :58 9. Makhosonke Fika&nbsp;RSA&nbsp;2:10:16 10. Javier Caballero&nbsp;ESP&nbsp;2:10:44
Women: 1. Yasuko Hashimoto&nbsp;JPN&nbsp;2:26:32 2. Emily Kimuria&nbsp;KEN&nbsp;2:28:18 3. Ornella Ferrara&nbsp;ITA&nbsp;2:28:28 4. Ana Dias&nbsp;POR&nbsp;2 :28 :49 5. Alina Ivanova&nbsp;RUS&nbsp;2:29:00 6. Monika Drybulska&nbsp;POL&nbsp;2:29:58

Paul Tergat crowned the jubilee edition of the 30th Real Berlin Marathon with a sensational new World Best.

Tergat goes under 2:05 in Berlin

South Africa's Hendrick Ramaala won the&nbsp;Lisbon Half-Marathon with a sprint finish on Sunday, while Olympic 10,000m champion Derartu Tulu of Ethiopia repeated her victory of last year in the women's event.
Ramaala, who finished second here last year, covered the 21.10- kilometre course in Lisbon in 1:02:10.
After running shoulder-to-shoulder with John Korir from the start, Ramaala outpaced the Kenyan in a sprint to the finish line to win by three seconds. Mitei Enoch of Kenya placed third, clocking 1:02:41.
Tulu was an easy winner in the women's race. She had a time of one hour, 11 minutes and 30 seconds. Joyce Chepchumba of Kenya was second with 1:11:44. Beata Rakonzczai of Hungary finished third at 1:15:06.
More than 14,000 athletes took part in the two events.
Men 1. Hendrick Ramaala, RSA, 1:02:10 2. John Korir, KEN, 1:02:13. 3. Mitei Enoch, KEN, 1:02:41. 4. Christopher Cheboiboch, KEN, 1:03:30. 5. David Mokori, KEN, 1:03:34. Women 1. Derartu Tulu, ETH, 1:11:30. 2. Joyce Chepchumba, KEN, 1:11:44. 3. Beata Rakonczai, HUN, 1:15:06. 4. Marima Denoba, KEN, 1:15.06. 5. Iness Chenonge, KEN, 1:15.06.

South Africa's Hendrick Ramaala won the Lisbon Half-Marathon on Sunday, while Olympic 10,000-meter champion Derartu Tulu of Ethiopia repeated her victory of last year in the women's event.

Ramaala and Tulu win in Lisbon

USA Track &amp; Field on Thursday announced the USA teams for the 12th IAAF World Half-Marathon Championships October 4 in Vilamoura, Portugal. Marla Runyan - a 2000 Olympian, three-time 5,000m USA track champion and multiple national champion on the roads - and 2003 USA women's marathon champion Sara Wells lead the U.S. contingent.
The 3.5 km multi-loop course - traversed 6 times - goes around the heart of Vilamoura, a port city in southern Portugal. The men's championship race starts at 10 a.m. and the women's 11:30 a.m.
With world titles and prize money at stake, individual and team races should be highly competitive in a championship that annually is one of the deepest and fastest road races in the world. Team scoring is accumulative time by the top three team members; the highest finishing third place runner will decide a tie.
The prize purse totals $245,000, with $140,000 for the top six individuals ($30,000, $15,000, $10,000, $7000, $5000 and $3000) and $105,000 for the top six teams ($15,000, $12,000, $9000, $7500, $6000 and $3000).
At the 2002 championships in Brussels, Team USA placed 10th in both men's and women's team competition. David Morris was the top American as he finished 26th in 1:03:26. Rosa Gutierrez was the top woman for Team USA, placing 52nd (1:16:28).
Best-ever U.S. individual finishes at the World Half-Marathon Championships are Clint Verran, 17th (1:05:56 in 2000) and Milena Glusac, 10th (1:13:53 in 2000). In 2000 and 1992, the women's team had their best team finishes by placing 5th (3:49:03/3:35:32); in 1996 the men's team was an all-time best 8th (3:13:52).
The fastest American time was produced in 1992 by Bill Reifsnyder (1:02:00/18th). Sharing a time of 1:11:34, Gordon Bloch in 1992 (14th) and Milena Glusac in 2001 (24th) have posted the fastest U.S. women's times.
USA Teams Men Teren Jameson, 26, Salt Lake City, UT&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:05:06 ('03) Ryan Kirkpatrick, 25, Boulder, CO&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 59:32 (20K-'03) Brian Sell, 25, Rochester Hills, MI&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:03:57 ('02) Scott Strand, 35, Birmingham, AL&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:05:13 ('03) Matt Thull, 28, Wauwatosa, WI&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 47:54 (10Mi-'03)
Women Christine Clifton, 31, Kirkland, WA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:11:31 ('03) Magdalena Lewy, 30, Oakland, CA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:13:29 ('02) Sylvia Mosqueda, 37, Los Angeles, CA&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:10:46 ('02) Marla Runyan, 34, Eugene, OR&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:11:19 ('02) Sara Wells, 24, Edina, MN&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 1:13:36 ('03)

Marla Runyan, three-time 5000m USA track champion and multiple national champion on the roads - and 2003 USA women's marathon champion Sara Wells lead the US contingent to Vilamoura.

Marla Runyan and Sara Wells head Team USA to Vilamoura

Defending champion, Paul Kosgei&nbsp; will spearhead 10 runners&nbsp; to represent Kenya at the IAAF World Half Marathon scheduled for 4 October in Vilamoura, Portugal. 
Kosgei won the title last year in his first major race in Brussels, where he beat Morocco's Jaouad Gharib in a sprint finish in the last 50 metres.
Kosgei skipped the World Championships in Paris this year so as to concentrate on the Vilamoura event.
According to the list announced yesterday by Athletics Kenya (AK) secretary general, David Okeyo, Kosgei will team up with Patrick Ivuti who was placed second in his best time of 59.31 in Lisbon in 2000 and Martin Lel. Other team members are Jackson Koech and Paul Kirui. 
Three-time World half marathon runner-up, Susan Chepkemei leads the women's squad. Chepkemei has finished second on three occasions since 2000. She says she is tired of silver medals and will this time round take a shot at the gold medal. Chepkemei has a personal best of 1:07.36. 
Also in the Kenyan squad is Commonwealth 10,000 m champion, Salina Kosgei who will be seeking to make up for her poor performance in the recently concluded World Championships, where she finished a poor 19th in the 10,000m during the event. Others in the team include Magdaline Chemjor, Helen Kimutai and Jane Amoro. 
The team will be led by former World and Olympic silver medallist, Patrick Sang , who will double up as coach and manager. 
Full Kenyan team : Men 1. Paul Kosgei 2. Jackson Koech 3. Paul Kirui 4.Martin Lel 5. Patrick Ivuti 
Women: 1.Susan Chepkemei 2. Magdaline Chemjor 3.Helen Kimutai 4. Jane Amoro 5. Selina Kosgei&nbsp;

Defending champion, Paul Kosgei  will spearhead 10 runners to represent Kenya at the IAAF World Half Marathon scheduled for 4 October in Vilamoura, Portugal.

Defending Champion Kosgei heads Kenyan squad for Vilamoura

A record number of 35,000 runners from 91 nations will compete in Sunday’s jubilee edition of the Real Berlin Marathon. But the focus of this 30th edition, which is Germany’s most prestigious road race, will be mainly on one man: Paul Tergat, who already is the second fastest marathoner of all times with a personal best of 2:05:48. 
The 34-year-old runner, five times World Cross Country Champion, hopes to become number one on Sunday. 
During the press conference there was another one of Kenya’s greatest runners sitting on the podium: Tegla Loroupe. She has already achieved what is Paul Tergat’s goal on Sunday. Four years ago Loroupe produced one of the greatest results in the history of the race, when she won the Berlin Marathon in a world best of 2:20:43.
So Tegla had some encouragement for Paul Tergat: “I wish you the best of luck. You will realise on Sunday what I have experienced: that this is a very fast course and that the spectators are simply fantastic. 
“I love the Berlin Marathon. So please Paul bring the world record to Berlin and don’t leave it somewhere else.
“I think if the weather is good and Paul is well prepared that he really has a chance of breaking the world record,” Loroupe said, and added: “But this is a marathon – and you never know what is going to happen.” 
Tegla will also race on Sunday, but instead of running the whole distance she forms a relay with three others runners for charity. Tegla Loroupe supports the Deutsche Welthungerhilfe (German World Food Programme). “I am happy to do this as I know how important the help is for African people,” Loroupe said. So she will run the first 15 km on Sunday and then watch the event live on the screen.
It was in the London Marathon 2002 when Khalid Khannouchi (USA) ran the fastest race so far with 2:05:38. Paul Tergat was just ten seconds behind in second place.
Various reports from Kenya during recent weeks suggested that Tergat is in very good shape. But the athlete was cautious when asked about the possibility of beating Khalid Khannouchi’s time on Sunday. “I have trained very hard for this for the last four months. And I believe I am in very good shape. But if you are aiming for a world record, everything has to be perfect on the day. I will try on Sunday – and we will all see the result,” was his reply. 
While understandably cautious three days before his race, he had made clearer statements in Runner’s World Germany that he has trained for the World record. “If everything is fine on the day I know that I can run 2:05 or may be even under 2:05.” 
Back in Kenya Tergat is reported to have run up to 41 km in training. “I realised during my previous marathons that after 38 km a lot depends on mental strength. So that is what I specially trained for.” 
Despite being the second fastest marathoner of all times and having run five marathons, so far he has never won. Tergat was second in his first three races and then fourth twice: London 2001, Chicago 2001, London 2002, Chicago 2002 and again London this year. So there is another goal in Berlin: winning. “I don’t care that much that I have not yet won a marathon. If I continue to perform well and run fast then I am sure my time will come. It is also a question of experience. And I have some experience now.” 
His main rival on Sunday will probably be one he knows well: Raymond Kipkoech. The 25-year-old Kenyan belongs to the same training group of Italian manager and coach Gabriele Rosa. A year ago Kipkoech was a surprise winner of the Real Berlin Marathon, clocking 2:06:47; in 1999 another of Rosa’s athletes, Josephat Kiprono, won in Berlin (2:06:44). Rosa said after that race: “If Paul Tergat should ever run the Berlin Marathon a result of 2:05 or 2:04 could be possible for him.” On Sunday we will know if Dr. Rosa’s prediction was right. It was made at a time when Tergat was still concentrating on the track.
Another one to watch on Sunday will be the European Champion Janne Holmen. The Finn, who sensationally won the Gold in Munich last year, will run his first marathon since those championships. His goal will be the 25-year-old Finnish record of 2:11:15 (Esa Tikkanen/Boston 1978) and possibly a time sub 2:10. “Janne is in a much better form than last year. This is because he fully concentrated on preparing for this race for the whole season. Additionally his training was not disrupted by injuries or allergies, of which he suffers. It is the first time that preparations went so well”, his manager, Jukko Härkönen, said.
In comparison the women’s race will not be as strong as the men’s. Unfortunately hopes for a German win were dashed last Sunday. Sonja Oberem (Bayer Leverkusen), who was third in last year’s European Championships, had to withdraw due to a muscle injury she suffered during training. 
Instead there is a chance for Japan to make it four in a row after victories for Kazumi Matsuo and Naoko Takahashi (2001 and 2002). Yasuko Hashimoto could be in to continue the win streak. But there are a number of others to watch: Alina Ivanova (Russia), the former World race walking champion who turned to running after being disqualified in the 1992 Olympics after crossing the line first, Renata Paradowska (Poland) or Ornella Ferrara (Italy). 
Also Liz Yelling could produce a surprise. The British runner will run her debut marathon in Berlin. She is a training partner of Paula Radcliffe and has the same coach: Alexander Stanton. It is much more difficult to predict who will reach the new finish first in the women’s race. Organisers have changed the course. So the jubilee edition of the race will finish just 300 metres after athletes have run through the Brandenburg Gate.

The focus of this 30th Jubilee edition of the Berlin Marathon will be mainly on one man: Paul Tergat, who already is the second fastest marathoner of all times with a personal best of 2:05:48.

Loroupe encourages Tergat to go for record in Berlin

MonteCarloThe 12th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, which takes place in Vilamoura, Portugal on Saturday 4 October, will be the last of the prestigious World Athletics Series events of 2003, but also a distance running spectacle which have aptly been described as the “The World Championships of the Road.”
The description came from the lips of Britain’s Paula Radcliffe who will be bidding for a third gold medal in these championships after wins in 2000 and 2001, and is also in the sort of form that could see her establish a new World Best for the distance. If successful, the 29 year-old would equal the feat of just one other athlete Tegla Loroupe, though the Kenyan’s triple triumph will took place in consecutive years (1997, 1998 and 1999).
The World Half Marathon Championships has an illustrious history as denoted by the roll call of champions since the inaugural event in 1992. Along with Radcliffe and Loroupe, the women’s title has also fallen to Britain’s Liz McColgan, who won on home turf in the opening edition, and was the 1991 World 10,000m gold medallist. The newly crowned World champion over 25 laps of the track, Ethiopia’s Berhane Adere, is also the current holder of the World Half Marathon title. 
South Africa’s Elana Meyer who took first place in 1994, and established three world bests over the Half Marathon during a career that continues still is another of the distance running greats to have prospered in the women’s competition.
Defending champion Paul Kosgei of Kenya will head an exceptionally strong Kenyan men’s line-up in Vilamoura which also includes World Cross Country silver medallist Patrick Ivuti. They will be bidding to retain their team title and take an eighth men’s squad gold in this event.
As in the women’s event, to read through the list of the men’s race winners is to re-encounter so many star names. The victories of Khalid Skah of Morocco (1994) who was the 1992 Olympic 10,000m champion and Kenyan Moses Tanui (1995), himself&nbsp; the 1991 World 10,000m gold medallist, are still memorable, while the names of&nbsp; Paul Tergat (1999 and 2000) and Haile Gebrselassie (2001) need no further introduction.
Vilamoura promises another gathering of the world’s elite on a flat course which invites fast times, and with Road World Bests becoming official IAAF World Road Records as of 1 January 2004, Vilamoura is set to offer another attraction.
IAAF

Carlo – The 12th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships, which takes place in Vilamoura, Portugal on Saturday 4 October, will be the last of the prestigious World Athletics Series events of 2003, but also a distance running spectacle which have aptly been described as the “The World Championships of the Road.”

The World Half Marathon – from the distance running past into the future

Morocco will be sending both men’s and women’s teams to the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships that will be staged&nbsp; in Vilamoura, Portugal&nbsp; on 4 October.
In the absence of the newly crowned World Marathon Champion, Jaouad Gharib, who took silver in the last edition of the World Half Marathon Championships, in Brussels, the men’s team will be led by the seasoned campaigner Mohammed El Hattab, who won gold in the fifth Francophone Games in Ottawa in 2001.
The women’s team of four athletes will be headed by Kenza Wahbi, who came 35th in the World Championships marathon in Paris in 2:38:36 and who has to her credit this year victories in the Barcelona Marathon and Granottes (ESP) half marathon.
Altogether, Morocco has won four medals in the World Half Marathon Championships, with Khalid Skah taking gold in Oslo (1994) and bronze in Uster (1998), Gharib’s silver in Brussels in 2003 and a team bronze in 1994.
Moroccan Teams
Men Rachid Ait Bensalem&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:01:33) Mohammed El Hattab&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:01:55) Abderrahim Goumri&nbsp;&nbsp;(27:26.01 – 10,000m) Abdellah Falil&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:01:07) Abderrahim Harroufi&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:01:17)
Women Bouchra Chaabi&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:12:10) Malika Assehsah&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:11:46) Kenza Wahib&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:12:00) Zhor El Kamch&nbsp;&nbsp;(1:09:15)

Morocco will be sending both men’s and women’s teams to the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships that will be staged in Vilamoura, Portugal  on 4 October.

WORLD ATHLETICS HALF MARATHON CHAMPIONSHIPS

Radcliffe wipes out the opposition in Vilamoura

Lel takes gold for Kenya as Tanzania win first team gold

The Ones to Watch in Vilamoura

Malta opts for mix of experience and youth

Women's Medal Chart set for revision