Posted: March 19, 2006

Athletics: McCann Gets Dramatic Win In Commonwealth Marathon

From David Monti

© 2006 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved RaceResultsWeekly.com

MELBOURNE (19-Mar) -- Home country favorite Kerryn McCann defended her Commonwealth Games marathon title in dramatic fashion here today, while Samson Ramadhani took the men's marathon gold in what turned into a showdown between the traditional African rivals of Tanzania and Kenya. Theirs were the first gold medals as the athletics program at the 18th Commonwealth Games opened today.

Off of a very slow early pace --just 18:45 through the first 5 km-- the 38 year-old McCann remained patient and was unperturbed when the young Tanzanians, Josephine Akunaay (formerly Deemay) and Sarah Majah, launched a few surges. The pack easily withstood those efforts to disband it, and through the 20 km mark (1:12:23) ten women were still in contention: McCann and her two Australian teammates Kate Smyth and Lauren Shelley, Hellen Cherono of Kenya, Lioudmila Kortchaguina of Canada, Mamoroallo Tjoka of Lesotho, Tracey Morris of Wales, Hayley Haining and Susan Partridge of Scotland, and Akunaay of Tanzania.

The early slow pace was fine with McCann. "I just wanted to run with the group, with the pack, and see what happens after that," McCann said later.

McCann picked up the pace just after 20 km and the pack stretched out a bit through half-way (1:16:23), but ten women were still within striking distance of the lead. McCann felt it was time to cut the group down to size. Surging again, she shed six of her rivals. Now, only she, Cherono, Yelling, and Akunaay remained in contention.

"I spoke to my coach and my manager (Nic Bideau) beforehand and he said I wasn't allowed to do anything until halfway," McCann recounted after the race. "I wanted to kick it along a bit just to see what would happen."

McCann remained in control, gently pressing the pace. Soon, the plucky Tanzanian had fallen back, and McCann, Cherono and Yelling were running single file through 30 km. But Yelling was beginning to feel the effects of McCann's surges, and had to make a decision.

"I was just trying to keep myself going at a nice even rhythm," said Yelling who said that the pace had just gotten a little too fast. "Trying to keep it strong to the end instead of crawling into the stadium."

So, from 32 km to the finish, it would be McCann and the 22 year-old Cherono. The Kenyan fixed her gaze on McCann's heels and would not lead. The kilometers clicked by; the wait was excruciating.

"I wasn't really thinking anything, really," McCann said of those final kilometers. "I started getting cramps in my calves at 38 K and I was hoping they would hold out by the finish."

The pair passed 40 km in 2:23:23, and just a few meters later McCann grabbed a drink and began to press the pace again, taking a one-stride lead. But Cherono would not let her go, responding immediately. Moments later, they began to ascend the footbridge which spans the rail yards outside the stadium. McCann hit the crest of the bridge with a two-stride lead, but Cherono closed on the descent.

When they turned into the stadium with 300m to go, McCann had at most one stride on Cherono. Down the backstraight the sprint began, with McCann on the inside. Rounding turn-3, the Australian opened a small lead, but this time Cherono could not answer. Coming out of turn-4, the lead was perhaps three strides, and with the near-capacity crowd in the MCG roaring in approval, McCann reached a full sprint to cross the line in 2:30:54, following in the steps of Lisa Martin who had defended her title for Australia in 1990.

"I think it's probably the greatest victory I've ever had, the greatest race I've ever run," said McCann. "I've never had to sprint like that at the end of a marathon. It's some thing I'll cherish forever."

Cherono crossed just two seconds later, setting a personal best and clinching the silver. Yelling entered the stadium shortly thereafter, to nab her first international medal with a 2:32:19 effort.

"Awesome," said Yelling when asked to describe the feeling of getting a medal.

Isegwe Bolts To Fast Pace, But Never Saw Half-Way

Unlike the women's race, the men ran fast right from the gun. Led by World Championships silver medalist, Christopher Isegwe of Tanzania, the men did the first 400m in a snappy 73 seconds, a 2:08 marathon pace.

"It felt like a track race," said Andrew Letherby of Australia who said the runners were already jostling for position.

Isegwe slowed slightly out of the stadium to pass 5 km in 15:36, but upped the tempo significantly in the second 5 km (14:55) and refused to slow down. With Kenyan Fred Mogaka right on his tail, he passed 15 km in 45:25 (14:54) while Ramadhani was just 8 seconds back running alone.

"The pace was very hard from the beginning," said Ramadhani.

But after going through 20 km in 1:00:28 --a sub-2:08 pace-- Isegwe suddenly stopped. He sat down on the pavement, clutching the back of his left thigh, apparently struck by a hamstring injury. He was finished.

This left Mogaka to forge ahead alone, running at a pace that if sustained would see him break his personal best time by some seven minutes. Mogaka got through the halfway mark in 1:03:48, but without Isegwe to help with the pace, he began to slow down. That left the door open for Ramadhani to catch up, and 1:26:35 into the race (around 28 km), Mogaka was caught.

"I tried to pick up the pace at 29 km," said Ramadhani.

But the Kenyan did not fold his tent just yet. He managed to stay with the Tanzanian through 40-K when ascending the footbridge to the stadium, Ramadhani went into the lead for good. He entered the MCG alone and, because he didn't see a finish line tape stretched across the track, kept running even after he had earned the gold medal in 2:11:29.

Mogaka crossed next in 2:12:03, while Dan Robinson of England got the bronze in 2:14:50. He had emerged from a chase pack which included the three Australians, Scott Westcott, Andrew Letherby and Shane Nankervis.

"We had a bit of a group going with the Australians," said Robinson who is a physical education teacher. "We went through the half in 66:30 which was just about spot-on."

Robinson got into third at 32 km, getting by Kenyan Jacob Yator. He said that he had run a "sensible race."

"We thought that some of the African guys would go out pretty hard, and they did. We just expected a few of them to come back which, luckily, a few did."

Results:

MEN - 
 1. Samson Ramadhani, TAN       2:11:29    Gold
 2. Fred Mogaka, KEN            2:12:03 PB Silver
 3. Dan Robinson, ENG           2:14:50    Bronze
 4. Scott Westcott, AUS         2:16:32
 5. Andrew Letherby, AUS        2:17:11
[14 finishers total]

WOMEN - 
 1. Kerryn McCann, AUS          2:30:54    Gold
 2. Hellen Cherono, KEN         2:30:56 PB Silver
 3. Liz Yelling, ENG            2:32:19    Bronze
 4. Tracey Morris, WAL          2:33:13 PB
 5. Josephine Akunaay, TAN      2:36:27 PB
[19 finishers]

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