Olivera Jevtic wins women's race at the 2008 Vidovdan 10k (© organisers)
Isaac Macharia of Kenya won the 12th Vidovdan 10k Road Race in Brcko, in the self-governing administrative unit in northeastern Bosnia and Herzegovina on Saturday (28) while local favourite Olveria Jevtic of Serbia won the women’s race for the third straight year.
Macharia, runner-up to the great Haile Gebrselassie in the Dubai Marathon earlier this year won in 28:38 in warm conditions. Sammy Karanja, also of Kenya, winner of the Berlin 25km in May, was second, while Mirko Petrovic of Serbia ran an aggressive race to finish third and split the other Kenyans, among whom six-time Honolulu Marathon winner, Jimmy Muindi, in his first short road race for years, was seventh.
European Marathon silver medallist Jevtic won the women’s race by over a minute, but Lucia Kimani, the former Kenyan, continues to improve with personal bests from 3000m to the marathon this year. Her participation in Vidovdan was in preparation for the Olympic Games, where she’ll represent Bosnia and Herzegovina in the marathon. One week earlier, she won the European Cup (Second League, Group B) 5000m, and was second in the 3000m in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia. Third in Vidovdan was twice former winner, Sonja Stolic of Serbia.
The elite athletes may have been the main feature but the 5000 children participating in the series of races from 400m to 5k were certainly the highlight!
Zane Branson for the IAAF
RESULTS
Men
1 Isaac Macharia KEN 28:38
2 Sammy Karanja KEN 28:50
3 Mirko Petrovic SRB 29:00
4 Willy Mwangi KEN 29:00
5 Boniface Mbuvi KEN 29:30
6 Wilberforce Talel KEN 29:33
7 Jimmy Muindi KEN 30:23
8 Dariusz Kruczkowski/POL 30:27
Women
1 Olivera Jevtic SRB 32:04
2 Lucia Kimani BIH 33:13
3 Sonja Stolic SRB 33:53
4 Ana Subotic SRB 34:27
5 Zivile Balcinaite LIT 34:50
6 Beata Rakonczai HUN 35:59
7 Ida Kovacs HUN 36:58
8 Snezana Kostic SRB 37:04
