Posted: October 25, 2004

Athletics: Kipkoech Over Goffi In Stride-For-Stride Battle At Venice Marathon

By Bob Ramsak, Track Profile

(c) 2004 Track Profile all rights reserved TrackProfile.com

VENICE, Italy -- After a stride-for-stride battle that stretched over the last nine kilometers, Raymond Kipkoech outkicked Danilo Goffi to grab a thrilling one-second 2:09:54 win on an overcast and hazy morning at the 19th Venice Marathon on Sunday.

"I am just happy," said the soft-spoken Kipkoech, who stunned the marathon world with his 2:06:47 win in Berlin two years ago, at the time, the 11th fastest ever performance. "We just pushed and pushed each other at the end." Slowed by a calf injury much of the past year-and-a-half, this was the 29-year-old’s first marathon win in five efforts since his 2002 Berlin race, and his fastest in more than a year.

"I was in very good form, but the inconsistent pace at the beginning really affected me at the end," said the 31-year-old Goffi, who began his marathon career in 1995 with a win here in his debut over the distance. "I probably would have had a 2:08." After a series of "superb" training sessions, "I was very confident prior to the race."

The early pacing, with kilometer splits ranging from 2:49 to 3:14, reduced the field to four just seven kilometers into the race: designated pace makers David Kipruto and Philip Rugut along with Kipkoech and Lawrence Saina, with Goffi about eight seconds back. With the pace steadying over the next 25 minutes, Goffi, course record holder David Makori and Isaac Kiprono caught up to the pack by the 15 kilometer point. Nothing changed when the rabbits reached the half in 1:04:18, well ahead of the requested 1:04:30.

With Kipruto calling it a day after 25 kilometers and Rugot after 30, Kipkoech and Goffi broke from the five-man pack in the 33nd kilometer just before reaching the Ponte della Libertà (Liberty Bridge), the five-kilometer bridge that connects Venice to the mainland suburb of Mestre. Goffi matched each of the Kenyan’s mini-surges as they approached the Island, with the two still even as they reached the temporary bridge that spans the Grand Canal -–the only time of the year that Venice’s main artery is closed. Kipkoech’s decisive move came less than a minute later. Building a two-step lead as they passed the Piazza San Marco –-and splashing through the tide washing the edge of the slowly-sinking square-- the win was sealed. With spectators watching from gently floating gondolas in canals and from sailboats lining the course, Goffi never relented, but couldn’t manage to make up the small gap as he powered after the Kenyan over the final bridge along the Riva dei Sette Martiri. For Goffi, a silver medallist at the 1998 European Championships, his 2:09.55 was his fastest performance since his 2:08:33 PB from Rotterdam in 1998.

Kipkoech, who trains most of the year at home near Kapsabet, said he didn’t realize he could fight off Goffi until he saw that the ramps over the 13 bridges on the course’s challenging closing stage were taking their toll on the Italian. "At 40K, I thought finally that I could win."

Goffi, who began training with Olympic champion Stefano Baldini’s coach, Lucio Gigliotti, about a year ago, said his new mentor has taught him to be more relaxed.

"Lucio has taught me to be more patient. And I’m really happy that Venice signals the restart of my career." Goffi ended his 2004 marathon campaign as the third fastest among Italians, boding well he said, for selection to next year’s World championships squad.

Nearly two minutes back, Laban Kipngetich finished a distant third in 2:11:38.

The "prima donna" on the day was Kenyan Jane Ekimat, who reached the line unchallenged to claim the win in 2:32:08.

Running her first marathon since her appearance in last year’s World Championships, local star Giovanna Volpato was runner-up in 2:33:57.

"I didn’t expect to win," said Ekimat, who has been running since 1994 and is now coached by Italian Renato Canova.

It was just the second marathon for the 30-year-old from Eldamaravine, near Eldoret. In April, she was third in Turin, clocking 2:36:41. In her lead up to Venice, she suffered a tendon injury two weeks ago, and didn’t train at all for the past ten days.

"I’m happy with second," said Volpato. "I expected to be faster –-but just a little bit-- but I was close to my personal best." The 29-year-old ran 2:33:23 at the Paris Marathon last year.

Volpato, Ekimat and Ethiopian Sisay Measso ran within a second of each other through the first third of the race, with the Italian taking a slight lead at the 15 kilometer point when the course winded through her hometown of Oriago. But Ekimat took command for good past the midway point, building a 23 second lead at 25 kilometers that would continue uncontested. Measso struggled in the latter stages, but held on for third in 2:36:51.

"I have come to like this distance," said Ekimat, beaming. "The first [marathon] was very hard, but today, today I finished well." After a brief break, Ekimat said she’ll begin prepping for a shot at a spot on the Kenyan team for the World Cross Country Championships.

The race set its informal limit of about six thousand entrant a few years ago when the city’s romantic coziness met head on with logistical reality. With space severely limited, Venice’s narrow confines preclude a finishing area that can accommodate more runners. For some entrants, it’s a finish they don’t want to see.

"At other marathons, many runners dread the last five kilometers," one runner competing here for the first time said. "Here, with the canals, the water, the bridges, the skyline, the final 5-K is beautiful. It’s a reward. I didn’t want it to end."