Kenyan Samuel Chelanga and Susan Kuijken of The Netherlands ran to impressive victories at the NCAA Pre-National in Terre Haute, Indiana, USA on Saturday.

Competing for Virginia's Liberty University, Chelanga sauntered over the 8000m course in 22:51 to tak the White Division, winning by more than 44 seconds over another Kenyan, Felix Kibioywo of Auburn University. A 13:24 runner for 5000m last June, Chelanga is a younger brother of 2:07 marathoner Joshua Chelanga.

Kuijken, a student at Florida State, ran away with the women's White Division contest, covering the 6000m course in 19:48.2. A year ago the Nijmegen native, who took European junior silver in the 3000m in 2005, finished third at the NCAA Cross Country Championships. Nicole Edwards, a Canadian student at the University of Michigan, was a distant second, 32 seconds behind Kuijken, with Ugandan Janet Jesang of Western Kentucky University third.

In the women's Blue Division race, Brianna Felnagle of North Carolina notched a big win in 20:02, 11 seconds ahead of Auburn's Hollie Knight. Canadian Kendra Schaaf, running for the University of Washington, was third. Schaaf was among the most experience internationals in the field. The NACAC junior cross country champion last fall, she was 20th in the junior race at the World Cross Country Championships and more recently, seventh in the 5000m on the track at the World Junior championships in July.

In the men's Blue Division, Kenyan Tyson David from the University of Alabama edged David McNeill of northern Arizona by less than a second in 23:30. Hassan Mead, a junior (b 1989) from the University of Minnesota, was third, another two-and-a-half seconds back.

In all, 1100 runners contested the four races.

Kipyego debuts

In another major collegiate weekend race, twice defending NCAA champion Sally Kipyego made her season's debut an auspicious one. The Kenyan, who attends Texas Tech University, took a comfortable 16 second victory at the Chile Pepper Festival in Fayetteville, Arkansas, clocking 19:26 over the 6 kilometre course. Tasmin Fanning of Virginia Tech was second in 19:42.

Kenyans went 1-2 in the men's race. Samuel Kosgei of Lamar University took a lopsided victory of his own covering the 10 km course in 29:05. Shadrack Songok of Texas A&M was second in 29:16.

Bob Ramsak for the IAAF