Brazilian man finishes 1st, Latvian woman wins 2 straight titles in NYC marathon

Marilson Gomes dos Santos from Brazil on Sunday made a remarkable debut by crossing the finish line in 2:09:58 to become the first South American to win New York marathon, while defending champion Jelena Prokopcuka of Latvia finished in 2:25.05, becoming the first woman in more than a decade to win two straight titles in New York.

A pack of nine runners that included three Americans led for the first three-quarters of the race. Gomes made his move heading into the Bronx, quickly opening a 30-second lead and maintaining it for the next few miles.

A pair of Kenyans, Stephen Kiogora and defending champion Paul Tergat, worked together to push Gomes at the end, but only finished second and third. Kenyan men also took the third through seventh spots. It was the first time in 10 years that an African man did not win the race.

"I pushed the pace to get less people in the group," Gomes said through an interpreter. "As I did that I kept pushing and they kept staying behind."

The top American was Peter Gilmore, who finished 10th in 2:13. 13. U.S. runner Dathan Ritzenhein, making his marathon debut, was 11th in 2:14.01.

In the women's race, Prokopcuka's bold move away from the lead pack crushed the hopes of Deena Kastor, the world's top-ranked marathoner, who was favored to become the first American woman to win the race since 1977.

Prokopcuka led nearly from start to finish. Kastor finished sixth in 2:27.54. Prokopcuka is the first woman to win two straight titles since Tegla Loroupe of Kenya in 1994-95.

According to organizers, a record 38,368 runners crowded the starting line for the annual race. Runners crossed the Verrazano Bridge and are winding through all five boroughs before they cross the finish line in Central Park.

Source: Xinhua