113. Boston Marathon – By Marc Chalufour and Jim O’Brien

Women's 2009 Story – By Marc Chalufour
Predicting the winner in a marathon is a perilous task, and even trying to narrow the options to a few favorites can prove to be a fruitless endeavor. For the 113th Boston Marathon, the picture seemed clear: Dire Tune, defending champion, was a clear favorite, battle-tested on this course as she was.

The same could be said of 2007 champ Lidiya Grigoryeva. Though Kara Goucher arrived in Boston with just one marathon to her name, she also had the support of a hopeful nation, tabbed as she'd been as America's best chance to break a quarter-century drought on Boylston Street. But no amount of analysis could've predicted the thrilling finish of this year's race.

What must have been going through the mind of 45-year-old Colleen De Reuck, a top masters contender, when she found herself leading all of those pre-race favorites in the early miles? "I was a little bit embarrassed, being up front," she confessed after the race. Yet there she was, leading the field through steadily brisker miles of 6:28, 6:01, 5:53, and 5:45.

"I had never run a slower race," Salina Kosgei said she was thinking during those dawdling early miles. "I was a little bit scared." Surely one of the early favorites would get nervous about waiting too long to strike, and make an attempt to string the pack out. There the pace levelled off, with nobody eager to brave the brisk headwind alone. Only by the ninth mile was De Reuck relieved of pacing duties — by her 46-year-old masters rival Firaya Sultanova-Zhdanova. Then a remarkable thing happened.

In a year when tremendous attention was focused on an American's chances of winning in Boston, four U.S. women found themselves leading the race. Ten miles in, De Reuck, Goucher, Elva Dryer, and Mary Akor were in front. Though their stay together was brief, it didn't go unnoticed, as one by one the U.S. athletes commented on the tremendous support they received from the crowds.

"What matters isn't the clock, but who reaches the finish line first," Goucher said, philosophically, after the race. Yet each athlete has a plan going into the race, and it's safe to say that few of the women in the lead pack had intended on running 2:35:00 pace. "I tried to stay calm, and knew that at some point the pace was going to change."

That change was slow to come, however. Miles 10 and 11 were both over 6:00, then after Bezunesh Bekele injected a little pace for the middle miles, the field slowed again in miles 17 and 18. De Reuck, who had been dropped from the lead pack — but was trying to maintain a steady pace, unlike the ebbing and flowing tempo of the pack — suddenly found her self in front again. And that's when Goucher made a major decision.

"My initial plan was to wait to the end and kick, but I looked around and thought it was too risky to wait," Goucher said, noting the depth of the field that still remained in contention. "I felt great and started to press. I thought I had another gear," she added, with a clear tone of regret.

Slowly the pack dissolved as Goucher pushed the pace through miles of 5:21, 5:20, and 5:09 (in miles 22-24). Finally there were three remaining: Goucher in the lead, defending champ Tune on her heels, and Salina Kosgei lurking behind them. Shades of 2008, the race seemed headed for another sprint finish. With half a mile to go, Tune and Kosgei were in front, and Goucher made the symbolic move of removing her gloves and tossing them aside. The dropping of the gloves would not be enough, however, to get her back into the race that she had been leading for half an hour. The race was down to two.

Last year Tune and Alevtina Biktimirova turned onto Boylston Street together, and fought an epic duel to the finish, swapping the lead until Tune gradually pulled away for a 2-second victory. Remarkably, Tune again found herself bracing for a closing sprint, this time with Kosgei. The two were shoulder-to-shoulder turning off Hereford. Kosgei surge. Tune swept in front of her. Spectators couldn't help but assume that Tune had the race won by virtue of her 2008 performance–but the marathon, as noted, rarely follows a script. And perhaps Kosgei was able to summon some muscle memory from the days of her childhood when she competed in the 400 and 800 meters, for in the final strides of the race she inched ahead, breaking the tape just in front of Tune.

As Kosgei spoke to the media following the race, a huge smile spread across her face and she broke down the final stretch run: "I tried to push…and Tune pushed…and we pushed all the way. And I finished [first], by chance."

Kosgei is the fifth new champion in the women's division in Boston in as many years. The last woman to successfully defend her title was Catherine Ndereba in 2004-2005, however Tune came as close as possible to ending that particular streak. Tune, in fact, collapsed as she crossed the line, just one second behind Kosgei. She was taken to a nearby hospital for precautionary reasons, and reports are that she is fine and under observation.

Emotions ran high following this race. Kosgei couldn't stop beaming, responding to one reporter's question with a very evident analysis: "I'm still very happy." Sitting just inches away, Goucher reflected on the decisions that she had made during the race: "I think that's something I'll think about for awhile," she said, holding back tears.

$353,000 in prize money was split between the top 15 women, with Kosgei taking home $150,000 for her victory.

In the women's wheelchair race, Wakako Tsuchida of Japan won handily, for the third year in a row. She finished in 1:54:37, with Diane Roy (CAN) second in 2:01:27.

 
Men's 2009 Story – By Jim O'Brien
There are many lessons to be learned in the course of running a marathon; but, the one that's most profound is the one that's simplest: there's no such thing as a sure thing.

That's not to say that pre-race conjecture placed any single competitor at the top of the pile in the men's race at the 2009 Boston Marathon; but, the focus did single out three as solid favorites to take the laurel wreath.

Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot had won this race on four previous occasions, and in each of the past three years. He was shooting to become the first man in history to take four consecutive Boston titles. Tipped to deny him was Evans Cheruiyot, no relation, but a man of comparable ability, boasting a PR of 2:06:25, set in winning the Chicago Marathon last fall. Also in the mix was Ryan Hall, the first American contender in many years and the man that most look to to herald a revival of US marathon fortunes. If there was no sure thing, then the next best thing was that one of these three would take the crown.

Think again. The maxim holds true. Neither Cheruiyot prevailed, nor did Hall. Indeed, the crown went to Deriba Merga from Ethiopia, a man of no small ability, but one who, prior to this win, marathon fans may best remember for his heartbreaking slump from the bronze medal position to fourth inside the Beijing Olympic stadium at the Games last year.

Of course, none of this was clear as the gun for the men's race sounded in Hopkinton at 10am. Conjecture was still the currency of the hour. Startlingly, Hall bolted for the lead, a marked departure from customary Boston tactics, which so often see a lone unknown charge for a moment in the sun or a squad of contenders holding close and watching every move. Hall showed no such reticence. There he was, the first American in a generation with a legitimate shot at taking this crown, hammering away at the front as if he intended to simply run away from a field of the world's finest. Confident, he may, but foolish he is not. "My plan was to run my own race from the get-go," he stated afterwards. "I just wanted to find my own rhythm out there."

Inevitably, things became more temperate as the miles unfolded. A first mile of 4:38 saw Hall in the lead, but a 5K split of 14:33 saw a knot of 13 or so all holding tight, albeit at high speed. In addition to Hall, also in the group were Gashaw Asfaw (ETH), Tekeste Kebede (ETH), Solomon Molla (ETH), Daniel Rono (KEN, James Kosgei (KEN), Stephen Kiogora (KEN), plus Merga and three Cheruyiots – Robert the defending champion, Evans, plus a second Robert, the winner in Frankfurt last year.

From there on, it was all parry and thrust. Hall was evidently not happy unless he was at or close to the front of the field, while Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot (the defender) was similarly content to take his turn up front. This, many will recall, was the tactic that had served him very well 12 months previously. Gashaw Asfaw also deemed a place in the vanguard to be the best tactic, and took his turn at the sharpest end as the gang passed 15K in 44:45 and 10 miles in 48:06.

If there are no sure things in marathoning, at Boston maybe there is just one: regardless of what goes on in the opening miles, it will be the Newton Hills that are the ultimate determinant. The opening miles and the impetuous early leaders may tell whatever tale they wish, but they are just the preamble. The real story begins with the right-hand turn at the Newton firehouse (17 miles) as the hills approach. Each incline on its own might be no big deal. Even three together may be manageable in a race of less than 26.2 miles. But to come where they do, at a point in the race where depths of endurance and determination are beginning to be plumbed, that makes them not just fearsome, but crucial.

Asfaw, Hall, the Cheruiyots, Merga, Rono, Cherigat, Kiogora, Molla, Kebede and Kosgei all charged through half way in 1:03:39, with still little indication of how things may unfold. It was all watching and waiting and over-analyzing and guessing. Merga, clearly, was aware of what was coming, and he decided to play it to his advantage. Just past 16 miles, he injected the first real surge of the race. Molla and Rono both went with him, and it appeared as if the first significant blow had been struck, a softener before the hills would inflict their own quota of damage.

What had been a tight group of contenders was immediately a string of lone competitors fighting their own lonely battles. As Merga charged onward – and upward – Molla and Rono fought hard to stay on terms, while Hall, all the Cheruiyots, the whole group, fell out the back door. It was too early to know it for certain, but this was how and when the race was won. Merga never faltered, thereafter; indeed, he seemed to draw strength from the passing miles. Or maybe it was just the roaring Boston crowds. From wherever he drew strength, it makes no difference; he passed 20 miles in 1:37:37, crested Heartbreak Hill as if it were the first in a series of comfortable hill reps, then cruised on to the finish line with never an indication of any distress. His time of 2:08:42, good for $150,000 in prize money, was the 17th fastest in the history of the race.

Behind him, the story was different. The defending Cheruiyot fell assunder in the Hills, ultimately dropping from the fray and winding up in the hospital. Molla also crumpled, struggling through the closing miles to place seventh (2:12:02). Even Hall, who waged an inspiring battle in the closing miles, acceded, "I was in a lot of pain in the last 10K."

Pain or not, Hall clawed his way back towards the front of the field, using the hills to his advantage and, ultimately, drawing alongside Kebede in third. Though Hall prevailed over the Ethiopean, Rono, in second, was too strong and too committed, holding on to edge the American favorite, 2:09:32 to 2:09:40.

"I definitely felt like a rookie out there," Hall commented. "But I'm young and I've got a lot to learn. I had a good time, but I'm excited to go home, train and come back to take another swing at it."

As for Merga, when reminded of his previous comment – "Everybody who comes to Boston wants to be the last lion standing" – he simply stated, "I'm very happy to win the Boston Marathon."

Ernst Van Dyk was a tad more verbose following his record-setting eighth win in the men's wheelchair race. "It's great to become part of the legacy of this race," he stated. "It's just an amazing event with so much history. To become part of that history is a great honor."

Boston Marathon