Catherine Ndereba of Kenya holds off Australian Benita Johnson in New York (© NYRRC)
For the second time in the last 12 months the city streets provided the backdrop for a spectacular finish. Last year it was World record holder Paul Tergat holding off defending champion Hendrick Ramaala in the last stride to win the closest ING New York City Marathon finish ever.
On Sunday (27) at the inaugural NYC Half-Marathon it was 2003 World Marathon champion Catherine Ndereba of Kenya holding off the furious challenge of Australian Benita Johnson, the 2004 World Cross Country champion, to win by a step.
Both women were clocked officially at 1:09:43 on the 13.1-mile course that started in Central Park, ran through the heart of Manhattan and Times Square and then went down the west side along the Hudson River before finishing at the tip of the island with the Stature of Liberty off in the harbour welcoming more than 10,000 finishers.
For Ndereba, 34, it was her second career victory in New York, a total she will look to add to when she returns in November for the ING New York City Marathon against a field that will also feature American Deena Kastor. Ndereba had to work extra hard in the final stages today to claim the crown and the $10,000 first place purse as Johnson stalked her through the final mile.
"With a mile to go I thought maybe I could catch her," Johnson said of Ndereba, who has won four Boston Marthons and two Chicago Marathon titles along with the 2003 World Championships crown. "With 400 metres I thought I could catch-up but she responded which is the sign of a true champion."
Johnson, 27, who will run the World Marathon Majors series event the La Salle Bank Chicago Marathon this autumn, was already planning her strategy for next year's race.
"I will come back and maybe I will bring my training partner Buster (Craig) Mottram - World 5000m bronze medallist - with me to help," she said.
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34-year-old Kenyan veteran Thomas Nyariki continued his inspirational comeback from a horrific incident that three years ago left him without his right eye. Holding off a pair of United States stars Meb Kelfezighi and Abdi Abdiraham, Nyariki won in a time of 1:01:22. Keflezighi clocked 1:01:28 for second, and Abdiraham was in third at 1:01:34.
"It was a great first time at the half marathon distance and the race came down to the last 1K (kilometre) and you have to appreciate that," said Kefleizghi, who was making his debut at the half marathon distance. "We were moving pretty quickly and I was right on his heels with about 400 metres to go, but we were all hurting pretty badly at that point."
"This was a perfect opening act," New York Road Runners president and CEO Mary Wittenberg said of the first New York city street half marathon. "We had a barn burner of a women's race with Catherine and Benita sprinting to the finish tape and on the men's side not only did we have impressive half marathon debuts by our American stars Meb and Abdi, but what a feel-good heart warming win by Thomas as he continues on the road back from that horrific incident three years ago.
Richard Finn for the IAAF
