Posted: October 25, 2005

Athletics: Greatest Race on Earth competitor finishes first in Nairobi

Samson Barmao wins the 2005 Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon, the first leg of The Greatest Race on Earth, with time of 02:12:14. This takes Barmao’s team, Global Sports Communications, into the lead of The Greatest Race on Earth Main Team Challenge.

The 2005/06 Standard Chartered Greatest Race on Earth, a relay of four challenging marathons across four cities in Nairobi, Singapore, Mumbai and Hong Kong, kicked off to intense competition with double the participants as well as faster times.

The Nairobi Marathon was flagged off by Kenya’s Minister of Sports, the Hounourable Ochilo Ayacko, at the start near Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Harambee Avenue, early on Sunday morning. The high altitude of 1,600 metres above sea level in addition to the undulating nature of the marathon course make it a world class challenge for running enthusiasts from all over the world.

Last year’s winners, the Kenya National Team are set to do well again as their runner Edward Muge takes them into first place in the Overall Nations Team Challenge with a time of 02:18:23. Just under four minutes behind in second place are Zimbabwe with a time of 02:22:11. United Kingdom finished in third place with a time of 02:29:30 following an outstanding run by Ian Fisher.

Close behind the Global Sports Team in the Main Team Challenge are the Men’s Run for Peace Team and third are the Kenya Vikings Team, with a little over three minutes separating all three.

The Women’s Team Challenge is currently being led by Tegla Loroupe’s Run for Peace Team thanks to a great run by Irene Jerotich who finished second overall in the women’s section with a time of 02:37:54. Judy Kiplimo of Posso Women finished second with a time of 02:48:16.

Liu Xiaohuan of Team China, the only Asian female running in the race, finished in third position with a time of 02:50:13, and placed an impressive 10th place overall in the Nairobi Marathon. Xiaohuan says, “I was not satisfied with my results – I wanted to do better. But it was my first time running at such high altitudes.”

The Regional Challenges look set to be very close in this year’s series. Indonesia leads by 1 minute 25 seconds ahead of Thailand in the South East Asia category. Gusti Asem from Indonesia says, “It was very challenging and difficult. I’m quite happy overall, but in terms of time, I could do better.”

In the North East Asia Challenge, Taiwan is leading with a time of 02:41:57, with the Korea team in second place with a time of 02:49:26, and Hong Kong in third place.

India has taken the South Asia Challenge by storm with national representative Nathuram running in 02:30:27. This has placed India 14 minutes 21 seconds ahead of Pakistan.

Meshack Kirwa from Kenya is leading in the individual category in this year’s Standard Chartered Greatest Race on Earth after clocking the quick time of 02:18:40

Tens of thousands of spectators were on hand to cheer the runners at the starting and finishing points of the marathon. This year saw a total participation of over 12,000 runners, including participants from over 30 countries. The growth of the Nairobi Marathon since its inception in 2003 is testament to the popularity of long distance running that is a national passion in Kenya. This passion is obviously shared by many from across the globe.

The Greatest Race also promotes “Seeing is Believing”, through which Standard Chartered has committed to raise US$6 million before the end of 2006 to help restore one million people with visual impairment. In that spirit, two visually-impaired teams, from Taiwan and South Korea, took part in and finished the race.

Greatest Race on Earth Results (provisional) – Leg 1: Nairobi Marathon

Main Team Challenge (open to all teams)

Position	Name	Team Name	Time (hrs:min:sec)
1.	Samson Barmao	Global Sports Comms	02:12:14
2	Benjamin Itok	Run for Peace	02:14:20
3.	Julius Mutai	The Vikings	02:15:29
4.	Johnstone Chebii	Kensky 1	02:15:38
5.	Mitei Enock	Kapsabet	02:15:56
6.	Francis Kipketer	PACE	02:17:31
7.	Muge Edward	Kenya	02:18:23
8.	Shadrack Kemei	I.S.A. Two	02:18:33
9.	Meshack Kirwa	BMMAC (A)	02:18:40
10.	Emmanuel Kosgei	BMMAC (C)	02:19:33

Bonus Pool for Women’s Team

Nations Overall Challenge (Open to National Associations only)

Nations Regional Challenge (Open to National Associations only)

Individual Challenge

The Standard Chartered Greatest Race on Earth Marathons - 4 challenging marathons, 4 exotic cities, Largest prize pool in athletics

The Standard Chartered Greatest Race on Earth is a uniquely challenging team relay comprising four marathons in four exotic cities. A different competitor from each team will run in Nairobi, Singapore, Mumbai and Hong Kong. The team with the fastest cumulative time will be crowned champions. The four marathons that are part of the Greatest Race on Earth comprise:

Nairobi 23 October 2005 
Singapore 4 December 2005 
Mumbai 15 January 2006 
Hong Kong 12 February 2006 

The event has been praised by the current world marathon record holder Paul Tergat, who said: “The Greatest Race on Earth is an exciting new concept, which brings a breath of fresh air into the world of marathon running. I love the fact that teamwork will be crucial to winning the competition.”

The total prize pool for the 2005/2006 Greatest Race on Earth has been raised to US$1.575 million, making it the richest race in athletics today.

The prize categories of The Greatest Race on Earth will be as follows:

Prize Pool Summary (USD)
Main Team Challenge Women’s Team	$950,000 $175,000 $1,125,000
Nations Challenge – Overall	$145,000
Nations Challenge – Regional	$175,000
Individual Challenge	$130,000
Total	$1,575,000

The Greatest Race 2005/06 series

· The Main Team Challenge is open to any team of four runners – professional and amateur alike. Total prize pool of $1,125,000, including a new bonus pool of $175,000 for the top three all-women teams.
· The Nations Challenge – open to National Athletic Association teams only. Teams are divided into the following regions – Africa, Middle East, South Asia, South East Asia, North East Asia, Americas and Europe & Oceania. The regional prize pool is $175,000. The top three national association teams will also share a $145,000 overall prize. Nation teams are automatically entered into the Main Team Challenge and are eligible to win the associated prize money.
· The Individual Challenge – run all four marathons as an individual and compete for a prize pool of $130,000.

To find out more about the Greatest Race on Earth and to register online, visit the website www.thegreatestrace.com.

Standard Chartered – leading the way in Asia, Africa and the Middle East
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