New York City Marathon Winners: Did They Inspire You? (POLL)
Winner Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya in the 26th mile
Kenyan Geoffrey Mutai shatters record, nears 2-hour finish time as Firehiwot Dado of Ethiopa wins women’s title; did the race inspire you?
The New York City Marathon is an event where the world’s best runners convene to take the five boroughs by storm, inspiring many with their endurance, stamina, and strong minds – all of which help them get through the often grueling 26.2 miles.
And this year was no different. A record 47,438 runners started the ING New York Marathon. While not all finished, some came through with times that shocked the running world.
The winners for the men were Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya, a 30-year-old who shattered a 10-year course record by more than two and a half minutes, finishing in an amazing 2 hours 5 minutes and 6 seconds. Fellow Kenyan Emmanuel Mutai, 27, finished second in 2:06:28. Tsegaye Kebede, 24, of Ethiopia finished third in 2:07:14. The official margin of victory, 1:22.31, was the largest in the race since 1992. Meb Keflezighi, who won the silver medal in the 2004 Olympics and the 2009 NYC Marathon, placed sixth.
“What I know about the race is that I have been invited here to win or lose,” said Mutai after his win, which earned him $200,000. “When I am running, I run with no fear. I was not expecting to win with that time. I am used to running that at the end of the race, but I was not waiting for it.”
Firehiwot Dado of Ethiopia, Winner of the Women's Race
Firehiwot Dado of Ethiopia, 27, won the women’s race with a time of 2 hours 23 minutes 15 seconds – less than a minute off the course record of 2:22:31 set by Margaret Okayo in 2003. Buzunesh Deba, 23, who is also from Ethiopia but lives and trains in New York, finished just four seconds behind Dado. Mary Keitany of Kenya, who was in the lead for most of the first half of the race, finished third in 2:23:38.
Amanda McGrory of the United States, 25, set a course record in the women’s wheelchair race with a winning finish time of 1 hour, 50 minutes, 24 seconds, and Masazumi Soejima of Japan , 41, won the men’s wheelchair competition with a time of 1:31:41.
Here are the times of other big-names who ran the marathon: Softball player Jennie Finch (4:05:26), former hockey star Mark Messier (4:14:27), former Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar (4:19:16), former Fairleigh Dickinson assistant soccer coach and “Survivor” winner Ethan Zohn (4:20:46) and model Christy Turlington (4:20:47). Edison Pena, the rescued Chilean miner, dropped out after 11 miles.
Take our poll below and let us know if this year’s New York City Marathon inspired you!
Loading ...For related stories on genConnect:
- Kelly Hayes: National Running Day: Reasons to Hit the Road
- Fred DeVito: The Cardio Myth
- Paula Simpson: Stay Hydrated to Avoid Weight Gain
Want more genConnect?
- For more daily expert updates, follow genConnect on Twitter and Facebook.
- To stay on top of the latest contributions from experts: Sign Up for genConnect.
These are one expert’s views on the news. Share with us your thoughts in the comments box below.
Category: Exercise, Health, Views on the News, Weight Loss
