William Kipsang wins the 2008 Fortis Rotterdam Marathon (© John de Pater)
The organisers of the 29th edition of the Fortis Marathon Rotterdam at a press conference this morning have announced an impressive starting field for their event on Sunday 5 April 2009.
The Fortis Marathon Rotterdam is an IAAF Silver Label Road Race.
Director Mario Kadiks proudly announced that Rotterdam will have elevens athletes with a sub 2:10:00 personal best.
“We are proud to have back William Kipsang, who set our course record last year with a personal best of 2:05:49,” commented Kadiks. “William Kipsang wants to come back to run a faster time.”
Kipsang however is not the fastest man in the field. This honour is held by his compatriot James Kipsang Kwambai who finished second (2:05:36) to Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie, who bettered the World record in Berlin on 28 September last year with 2:03:59.
There are three other athletes with personal bests inside 2:07:00 on the starting list. They are the Kenyans Richard Limo (2:06:45), Abel Kirui (2:06:51) and the very experienced William Kiplagat (2:06:50), the 2003 edition winner of Rotterdam with 2:07:42.
Duncan Kibet (Kenya) and Deressa Edae Chimsa (Ethiopia) are the sub 2:08:00 runners with personal bests of respectively of 2:07:53 and 2:07:54. The latter ran his fastest time in Dubai on 16 January finishing second to compatriot Gebrselassie, who clocked the fastest marathon in 2009 so far with 2:05:29.
Jackson Kobut Kipkoech (Kenya, 2:08:07), Chala Dechase (Ethiopia, 2:08:31), Mariko Kipchumba Kiplagat (Kenya, 2:09:03) and Mesfin Adamasu (Ethiopia, 2:09:4) are others below 2:10 in their careers.
A man to watch is Ethiopian Dereje Tesfaye, who finished third in the Fortis City-Pier-City Half Marathon in The Hague last Saturday (14) in a personal best of 60:02 behind Sammy Kitwara and Haile Gebrselassie. Dereja Tesfaye's personal best on the marathon is 2:11:42 (Dubai January 16th in 2009).
A dark horse in the race is Patrick Makau Musyoki of Kenya, the 2007 and 2008 World Half Marathon silver medallist, who is the second fastest half marathoner of all-time (58:52). The 24-year-old African has run the half marathon six times inside sixty minutes.
“We expect a lot of Makau Musyoki,” commented Kadiks. “He is a very clever runner who can read a race and wait for his chance We are very happy to have in Rotterdam. He knows our fast course very well after finishing first (2008, 59:29) and second (2007, 59:19) in the Fortis Half Marathon, which is always held in September.”
Makau’s Kenyan compatriots Robert Kipchumba and Joseph Maregu are also running their first marathons.
Also on the starting list are: Dickson Marwa Mkami (Tanzania, 2:12:53), Ahmed Ezzobayry (France, 2:11:18), Ignacio Caceres (Spain, 2:12:44), Dutchman Koen Raymaekers (2:13:02) and Luis Feiteira (Portugal, 2:13:37).
The women's field is not as broad as the men's line-up. Lydia Cheromei of Kenya is the fastest woman with the personal best of 2:25:57 which she ran on 19 October last year winning the ING Amsterdam marathon. Her strongest opponents should be be Romanian Adriana Pirtea (2:28:52), Nailya Yulamanova (Russia, 2:30:17) and Briton Sue Harrison (2:36:13).
Wim van Hemert for the IAAF
