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Duncan Kibet breaks course record,

Anna Incerti takes Milan in almost freezing conditions

by: Race Press Release
November 23, 2008

 

Duncan Kibet and Anna Incerti are the winners of the 9th Samsung Milan City Marathon. The 30 year-old Kenyan broke the course record, finishing 2:07:53 on the impressive Piazza Castello in the centre of the city. Elias Chelimo and Leonard Mucheru took second and third with 2:08:39 and 2:10:05. Despite the almost freezing weather conditions with temperatures of 3° Celsius at the start plus some wind during the race all three Kenyans clocked personal bests on the fast Milan course.

                       

In contrast to Kibet’s win the triumph of Anna Incerti was quite a surprise. The 28 year-old Italian took the race with a great personal best of 2:27:42, beating the big favourite Pamela Chepchumba. The defending champion from Kenya finished second with 2:28:34. Ethiopia’s Merima Denboba took third place with 2:29:57. It was the first time since the inaugural race that the Samsung Milan City Marathon produced an Italian winner. Back in 2000 Lucilla Andreucci had taken the women’s race as well.

 

The Samsung Milano City Marathon confirmed its position as Italy’s fastest men’s race. A record number of 5,875 runners from 61 countries registered for the marathon.

 

In the men’s race a group of six runners reached the half way mark in 64:02 minutes. Behind the two Kenyan pacemakers Elijah Keitani and Benson Cherono (who had been Milan’s course record holder with 2:07:58) there were fellow Kenyans Duncan Kibet, Leonard Mucheru, Elias Chelimo and Marocco’s Rachid Kisri. At 30 k (1:31:26), just before the pacemakers dropped out, Kisri lost contact to the group. So the three Kenyans Kibet, Chelimo and Mucheru, who are all managed by Federico Rosa, were left at front to battle it out. It was Mucheru, who first lost contact just after the 35 k mark (1:46:47). He had been unlucky because of a toe nail problem. The nail came off during the race so Mucheru was running with some pain. But he still managed to achieve his goal by taking third place with 2:10:05.

 

The wind had been especially disturbing in the part from 25 k to beyond 30 k, which led to a slower pace at this stage of the race. But with about six kilometres to go Duncan Kibet surged ahead, now running kilometre splits of well under 3:00 minutes. The fastest one was the 37th k with 2:52. “I had felt a slight problem with my muscle in my leg at around 28 k. So I was not pushing too hard at that stage of the race. I was more careful then. But it got better so that I could run faster again,” Duncan Kibet said. Because of his great speed in the final kilometres he still managed to break the course record by five seconds, which had seemed out of reach at 35 k. Additionally it is a personal best for Duncan Kibet. In his first marathon he had been second in Vienna this April with 2:08:33. “I am very happy to have won this and to have broken the course record. I think I have the potential to further improve in the marathon”, said Duncan Kibet.

 

While Duncan Kibet had always been in the first group and in control it was a different race for women’s winner Anna Incerti. Right from the start the Italian chose a slightly slower pace than the two leading women. But defending champion Pamela Chepchumba, who had company with Merima Denboba (Ethiopia), did not run as fast as expected and so their lead at half way was just twelve seconds. 1:14:01 was the split time for the two while Anna Incerti reached this point in 1:14:13. The Italian crowd favourite, who had been tipped to become Italy’s next great women marathoner before the race in Milan, then reached the leaders at 23 k. “Before the start I never had thought that I could win this one. But when I caught Pamela I realised that she had slowed and that I might have a chance,” said Anna Incerti. It was soon after 30 k, when Merima Denboba was dropped. The Ethiopian finished third with a personal best of 2:29:57. Anna Incerti then broke away just before the 40 k mark. Breaking 2:30 for the first time she achieved her biggest success in her career so far. Both winners earned prize money of 20,000 Euros. “I found it hard to run in the wind and I got problems at 39 k,” explained Pamela Chepchumba why she was unable to defend her title in Milan.

 

 

 

Results, Men:

1. Duncan Kibet                   KEN    2:07:53

2. Elias Chelimo                   KEN    2:08:39

3. Leonard Mucheru KEN    2:10:05

4. Rachid Kisri                      MAR   2:11:53

5. Benjamin Korir                 KEN    2:13:17

6. Musundeki Ikoko              TAN    2:13:32

7. Ali Mabrouk El Zaidi        LBA    2:13:33

8. Oleksandr Kuzin               UKR    2:13:43

9. Christopher Isegwe         TAN    2:16:52

 

Women:

1. Anna Incerti                       ITA      2:27:42

2. Pamela Chepchumba     KEN    2:28:34

3. Merima Denboba            ETH    2:29:57

4. Ivana Iozzia                       ITA      2:37:32

5. Bizuhan Kiflegiorgis        ETH    2:40:03

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