2012 Haspa Marathon Hamburg: Shami Dawit runs 2:05.58, Rael Kiyara runs 2:23.47, by Pat Butcher, note by Larry Eder

Pat Butcher, our globalrunner, sent us this story on today’s HASPA Marathon Hamburg, which had some fast performances. Here is Pat’s take on the race…

CS CORRESPONDENT

hamburg,
sunday, april 29, 1300gmt

Marathons
can be won in lost in many different ways. Shami Dawit of Ethiopia and Rael
Kiyara of Kenya employed a similar tactic to win the men’s and women’s races at
the 27^th Haspa Marathon Hamburg this morning, attacking between 30
and 40 kilometres, and breaking both course records, with 2.05.58 and
2.23.47.

The
big difference though was that Dawit was already close to the lead at the
three-quarter mark, and ran away at pace to win by over a minute; whereas Kiyara
was a minute behind at 30k, and closed on her runaway rivals like an avenging
angel, putting them to the sword just after 40k, and winning by half a minute.
They were both mightily impressive runs, on a windy morning that threatened to
ruin the organisers’ hopes of giving their new committee the kudos of good
results.

They
needn’t have worried. As soon as Dawit and Kiyara got into gear, Julio Rey’s
2.06.52 from 2006, and Irina Timofeyeva’s 2.24.14 from 2008 were destined for
the dustbin of history. Dawit was ten seconds shy of his best, in Dubai three
months ago, but given the respective conditions, this was an infinitely superior
run, and two sub-2.06’s in succession contributes to the resurgence of Ethiopian
marathoning. Kiyara flew the flag for the Kenyan rivals with close to two
minutes improvement on her previous best.

For
a city that boasts one day’s rain in three, this was fortunately one of the
other two days, though the wind off the North Sea did threaten proceedings. But
a group of 15 men and a half dozen women through the first half helped dissipate
that, and with the breeze at their back over the final kilometres, both winners
said they barely noticed the wind.

Dawit
waiting for his moment in the sun, and when it came, he had plenty of time to
savour it. He had finished one second behind his colleague Dadi Yami in Dubai,
and that one second seemed to convince everyone that Yami was the big favourite
here. He certainly played that role throughout the first half of the race,
ignoring the pacemakers and going to the front himself. But Dawit, who had sat
quietly through press conferences while Yami was lionised by press and TV alike,
surged silently to his colleague’s shoulder at 30k, and then proceeded to run
29.07 for the next 10k, and leave Yami in the dust. Yami nonetheless underlined
his good run in Dubai (2.05.41) by finishing second, in 2.07.01, and Kenyan
Augustine Ronoh(sic) was third, in 2.07.23.

Kiyara
played a waiting game. While her young colleague Valentine Kipketer raced
through the half in 1.10.24, with Netsanet Abeyo right behind, Kiyara was adrift
by herself in seventh place in 1.11.43. But a few kilometres later, as the field
fell apart in front of her, she picked up the pieces, moving into third by 30k.
 Although still a minute behind, she
said afterwards, that was the point she thought she might
win.

“The
others started much too quickly,” she said, “so I decided to run my own pace. I
didn’t think I had a chance to win until I started seeing the leaders after 30k.
But I wasn’t sure, it was only when I passed the Ethiopian at 40k that I thought
I was going to win”. Abeyo held on to finish second in 2.24.12, just under the
old record, and her colleague Etalamehu Kidane was third in
2.5.49.

Hamburg
has suffered from internal rivalries and lost sponsors in recent years, falling
off from a pre-eminent place in both German and international marathons, but
with a new young team, and a couple of course records to their credit, this
looks like a turning point.

RESULTS

MEN

1       
2        Shami
DAWIT              
ETH           
2.05.58

2       
1        Dadi
YAMI         
         
ETH           
2.07.01

3       
6       
Augustine RONOH       
KEN          
2.07.23

4       
42     
Shumi DECHASA        
         
ETH           
2.07.56

5       
46     
Ahmed ABDULLAH    
QAT          
2.08.36

6       
25     
Fikadu LEMMA           
ETH           
2.09.50

7       
4        Paul
BIWOTT              
KEN          
2.10.14

8       
47     
Essa RACHED             
MOR         
2.10.52

9       
44     
Mustafa MOHAMED   
SWE          
2.12.28

10      14      Cosmas KIGEN            
KEN          
2.12.50

WOMEN

1       
F2     Rael
KYARA                
KEN          
2.23.47

2       
F3     Netsanet
ABEYO         
ETH           
2.24.12

3       
F5    
Etalemehu KIDANE      ETH           
2.25.49

4       
F7     Beatrice
TOROTICH     KEN          
2.27.41

5       
F13   Valentine
KIPKETER    KEN          
2.28.02

6       
F1     Robe
GUTA                           
ETH           
2.29.22