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Under Armour Baltimore Running Festival
By Steve Nearman
Baltimore, MD
October 16, 2010
For Corrigan Sports Enterprises
Of all the runners in the today's elite field at the 10th running of the Under Armour Baltimore Marathon, David Rutoh might have least expected himself to win.
He was up against the likes of Julius Keter, who holds the course record here of 2:11:56 from 2008, Ethiopian Alene Reta, who was coming off a 2:12 marathon performance in April, and there was a deep list of competitive Kenyans.
"I wasn't expecting to win," said the 24-year-old from the Kenyan town of Kericho. "There were a lot of strong guys." He ran with Bib #3294, meaning he paid his own way instead of having expenses paid by the race as an elite athlete.
Two of the strongest guys - Keter and Reta - never made it to the finish, opening the door for Rutoh to make a late dramatic charge to win his second career marathon in his richest payday of $23,000. His time was a respectable 2:13:11.
Victory for Olena Shurkhno, on the other hand, was no shocker. She, too, had strong competition including defending champion Iuliia Arkhipova of Krygyzstan and the always tough Lyubov Denisova of Russia.
Shrugging off a challenge by Arkhipova in the waning miles of the race, Shurkhno emerged on top, earning $23,000 with a solid performance of 2:32:17.
"I wanted to run faster today," said the 33-year-old Shurkhno through her interpreter Denisova, who has won several of her 15 career marathons, including a personal best 2:30:11 at the 2008 Toronto Marathon. "I had a problem with my right hamstring, it started three weeks ago and it began to hurt after 12 miles today."
Had the winds not brushed back the runners on the second half of the course, one might have found today's conditions spectacular. Cloudless skies and upper mid-50s greeted the sold-out field of 22,000 at the starting line adjacent to Orioles Park in downtown Baltimore.
Keter, who turns 22 on Wednesday, took instant advantage of the weather, immediately jumping to the lead on the up hills for the first few miles of the course. He would build up a lead as much as a city block before Reta emerged from the chase pack and drew even with Keter some 50 meters after the eight-mile mark.
They would run together around the only flat part of the course, the Inner Harbor section. The wind began to rear its ugly head as the course took the field past the Under Armour headquarters at the 11-mile mark and right into the headwind circling back toward the Inner Harbor.
Keter and Reta were flying, with Keter seeming to force the pace and Reta seeming to tag along. When they clicked out a half-marathon time of 1:03:01, it was evident they had gone out too fast.
"I go through the first half too fast," said Reta, who ran 2:12:33 at the Santiago Marathon in Chile six months ago and was looking for a 2:10 today. "Julius pushed the pace too much." The half split was not much off Reta's career half-marathon best of 1:01:38.
Way back - a minute and 44 second back - were the next runners, a solid pack of six which included Rutoh.
But Keter and Reta continued to press the clock, leading through Little Italy and other neighborhoods of Baltimore, back into the hills and fighting strong headwinds at times.
Then Reta broke Keter some 1 hour 29 minutes into the race and by 19 miles as the course circled Lake Montabello, Reta commanded nearly a mile lead over Keter.
Soon, disaster would strike Keter first, then Reta. Keter dropped out and Reta was slowing fast. And a pack of five runners were bearing down on him.
"After 30K, I had a right hamstring cramp," said Reta, veteran of six marathons. "At 22 miles, I am leading, after that I stopped." He said he saw the pack coming behind him.
By 23 miles, with Reta out, Rutoh emerged from that pack of five and quickly jutted into the lead which he would never relinquish. Juan Cardona of Colombia pursued as did Kennedy Kemei of Kenya but neither could reel him in. Cardona ended second in 2:13:29 and Kemei was third in 2:13:43.
Max King from Bend, OR was top U.S. finisher in 2:15:34, good for sixth overall.
As has become tradition here, runners from Kenya filled seven of the top 10 places.
Kenya also took four of the top 10 women's positions, but it was a Ukrainian who unseated defending champion and 2008 Beijing Olympian Arkhipova.
The big threat came from Denisova, a Russian who trains in Florida making her first trip back to Baltimore since winning the CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Half Marathon here in 2005. She has run 2:25 and placed second at New York in 2002. Denisova, however, said she never felt strong in the early going and pulled out at the half, relegating herself to Russian interpreter.
After American Nan Kennard, a two-time all-America in the steeplechase at Brigham Young University in 2003, led for the first few miles, a pack of nine women swallowed her up. What emerged by the Inner Harbor by the halfway mark was three women - Shurkhno, Everlyne Lagat from Kenya, and Yunilesh Delelecha of Ethiopia.
Shortly after the half - passed in 1:16:03 - only Lagat, who is the sister of U.S. Olympian Bernard Lagat, could hang close to Shurkhno. Running in black forearm sleeves, gloves, a white cap, and an intense focus ahead on the road, Shurkhno started to gap Lagat after 15 miles, as the course climbed hills into a stiff headwind. The margin grew to nine seconds by Mile 16 as Arkhipova moved up into third.
After 18 miles, Arkhipova surged into second and took aim on the leader, just 18 seconds ahead. When they entered the mile-plus loop around Lake Montebello, the lead was 13 seconds. A quarter-mile after completing the loop, Arkhipova moved along Shurkhno's side.
Neither said a word.
"After 12 miles, my right hamstring started to hurt," said Shurkhno, 32-year-old mother of a boy. "Then seeing her next to me made me nervous I wouldn't win."
It did not last for long as Shurkhno pressed on an uphill near the old Memorial Stadium and by 22 miles she clung to a two-second lead.
Arkhipova, instead of leading the way for the last miles downhill into downtown as she did in smashing the course record last year in 2:32:09 - also in windy conditions - could only watch from 35-seconds behind as her Ukrainian friend won her biggest cash prize of her 15-marathon career.
"I am happy with second," said Arkhipova, sitting with Shurkhno who she met six months ago and roomed with in Baltimore prior to today's race. "I told her to come here and run Baltimore."
Grabbing third was Kennard, who stayed steady the entire marathon and nailed a nine-minute personal best 2:35:49 and an Olympic marathon trials qualifier.
"An Olympic Trials qualifier was my goal and I even got the A standard (2:39)," Kennard said. "I just started training with Darren De Reuck and the Running Republic of Boulder and that has been a great help. I went out more conservatively from mile 4 through 20 and I just kept passing people. At Mile 23, I finally moved into third place."
Two-time Baltimore champion Ramilya Burangulova, a 49-year-old Russian who trains in Gainesville, FL, took top masters honors in 2:41:06 while David Doherty of Towson, MD was top master in 2:44:17, ending in 20th place overall.
Sean Sharpe of Cockeysville, MD scored a 25-second triumph in the CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Half Marathon with a time of 1:14:51. Shawn Duffy of Bryn Mawr, PA followed in 1:15:16 and Edi Turco of Arlington, VA was third in 1:16:55.
Mary Kelly of Broomall, PA, outran Jennifer Sober of Deep Creek Lake, MD by 25 seconds. Kelly ended in 1:27:03 to Sober's 1:27:28. Suzanne Hurst of Baltimore, MD rounded out the top three with a 1:28:37.
In the United Way of Central Maryland 5K, Matt Straughm of Glendale, MD and Cara Wettlaufer of Nottingham, MD earned top honors, finishing in 15:46 and 19:32, respectively. Tristram Thomas of Baltimore and Michael Pfarr of Jarrettsville, MD made it a close race, closing in 15:51 and 15:54. Sara Cimino of Cockeysville, MD and Rebecca Parks of Reisterstown, MD were second and third women in 19:37 and 19:44, respectively.
Some 3,353 runners completed the marathon, 8,034 completed the half and another 2,681 completed the 5K. Thousands more participated in the Legg Mason team marathon relay.
"This was an incredible day for Baltimore," Corrigan Sports Enterprises and Event Director Lee Corrigan said. "We had a record field, an amazing duel for the men's Under Armour Baltimore Marathon title that ultimately went to a long shot and ideal weather aside from the wind. Our 10th anniversary has to go down as the best Under Armour Baltimore Running Festival ever."
2010 Under Armour Baltimore Running Festival
Top Male Under Armour Marathon Finishers
1. David Rutoh, Kenya, 2:13:11
2. Juan Cardona, Colombia, 2:13:29
3. Kennedy Kemei, Kenya, 2:13:43
4. Joseph Mutinda, Kenya, 2:14:31
5. Edward Tabut, Kenya, 2:14:46
6. Max King, Bend, OR, 2:15:34
7. David Tuwei, Kenya, 2:15:51
8. Benson Cheruiyot, Kenya, 2:16:33
9. John Crews, Raleigh, NC, 2:16:46
10. Paul Ngeny, Kenya, 2:19:56
Top Female Under Armour Marathon Finishers
1. Olena Shurkhno, Ukraine, 2:32:17
2. Iuliia Arkhipova, Krygyzstan, 2:33:52
3. Nan Kennard, Westminster, CO, 2:35:49
4. Salome Kosgei, Kenya, 2:36:26
5. Yumilesh Delelecha, Ethiopia, 2:37:06
6. Everlyne Lagat, Kenya, 2:38:47
7. Alice Ndirangu, Kenya, 2:39:13
8. Ramilya Burangulova, Russia, 2:41:06
9. Truphena Jemeli, Kenya, 2:43:54
10. Elena Orlova, Russia, 2:49:50
Top Male CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Half Marathon Finishers
1. Sean Sharpe, Cockeysville, MD, 1:14:51
2. Shawn Duffy, Bryn Mawr, PA, 1:15:16
3. Edi Turco, Arlington, VA, 1:16:55
4. Andrew Jacobson, Arlington, VA, 1:17:44
5. Patrick O'Rourke, Timonium, MD, 1:17:59
6. Luke Holman, McLean, VA, 1:18:49
7. Charles Edwards, Towson, MD, 1:19:12
8. Sam Williams, Baltimore, MD, 1:21:45
9. Zack Flores, Towson, MD, 122:02
10. Scott Coon, Bel Air, MD, 1:22:03
Top Female CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Half Marathon Finishers
1. Mary Kelly, Broomall, Pa, 1:27:03
2. Jennifer Sober, Deep Creek Lake, MD, 1:27:28
3. Suzanne Hurst, Baltimore, MD, 1:28:37
4. Angie Meerdink, Pikesville, MD, 1:29:30
5. Amanda Luksetich, Richmond, VA, 1:30:01
6. Jaclyn Truncellito, Baltimore, MD, 1:30:29
7. Anastasia Mukhina, Towson, MD, 1:30:57
8. Meagan Ryan, Pasadena, MD, 1:31:44
9. Terri Cook, Exton, MD, 1:32:08
10. Amanda Poppleton, Baltimore, MD, 1:33:22
Top Male United Way of Central Maryland 5K Finishers
1. Matt Straughm, Glendale, MD, 15:46
2. Tristram Thomas, Baltimore, MD, 15:51
3. Michael Pfarr, Jarrettsville, MD, 15:54
4. Thomas Worob, Denton, MD, 16:13
5. Richard Harris, Silver Spring, MD, 16:17
6. Charlie Schindler, Pasadena, MD, 16:19
7. Cory Smith, Philadelphia, PA, 16:28
8. Clarke Saylor, Baltimore, MD, 17:58
9. Ty Subhawong, Baltimore, MD, 18:07
10. Michael Moore, Lackawanna, NY, 18:28
Top Female United Way of Central Maryland 5K Finishers
1. Cara Wettlaufer, Nottingham, MD, 19:32
2. Sara Cimino, Cockeysville, MD, 19:37
3. Rebecca Parks, Reisterstown, MD, 19:44
4. Sheryl Kline, Arnold, MD, 19:45
5. Shari Gorga, Germantown, MD, 20:36
6. Cyndi Crowl, Stroudsburg, PA, 21:03
7. Renika French, Ellicott City, MD, 21:17
8. Whitney Jamison, Baltimore, MD, 21:44
9. Casey Deak, Bethesda, MD, 21:45
10. Christa Wagner, Baltimore, MD, 21:46