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December 2009
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European women take top two places in Boston Marathon |
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17.04.2007 |
 European 10,000m silver medalist, Lidia Grigoryeva (RUS) won
her first Boston Marathon in 2:29:18 at the 111th running of the Boston
Marathon yesterday while Latvian Jelena Prokopcuka, the 2006 runner-up and
two-time New York City Marathon champion took the runner-up spot in 2:29:58.
Held in windy, squalid conditions, the lead group got
smaller by each kilometer and after the 30 km mark, only three women were still
in contention, including Prokopcuka,
Mexico's Madai
Perez, and Grigoryeva.
"At 35 km, I understood that I had the power to win the
race," said Grigoryeva. "I had to slow some for the wind, but from
there I knew I could do it."
Prokopcuka agreed. "The most important part of the race
was the Heartbreak Hill, and the last 7 km. It's hard to run them well when
your legs don't have the strength left."
Grigoryeva pulled away with just over a mile remaining,
winning in the slowest time since Lisa Weidenbach in 1985, due mainly to the
windy conditions.
Prokopcuka held on for second in 2:29:58, her second
consecutive runner-up performance here; Perez was third in 2:30:16. Jeptoo took
fourth in 2:33:08, over two minutes ahead of Kastor in fifth.
"No runner likes the rain and wind," said
Prokopcuka after the race. "I tried to make the pace, but nobody supported
me. I was disappointed, because it's hard work to run into the wind. I had to
run alone and make the pace, because I don't like jogging, and when I was
behind someone else, I was just jogging."
Grigoryeva won US$100,000 for the victory.
In the men's race, Italian Ruggero Pertile, who has a best
of 2:10:12 set in Rome
three years ago, lead the Europeans home in 8th place with 2:16:08.
Leading European Results:
Men
7. Ruggero
Pertile ITA 2:16:08
Women
1 . Lidiya
Grigoryeva RUS 2:29:18
2. Jelena
Prokopcuka LAT 2:29:58
7. Lyubov
Denisova RUS 2:38:00
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