Kongin and Chelimo win Cardiff Half
Boniface Kongin and Joan Chelimo made it a Kenyan double at the Lloyds Bank Cardiff Half Marathon on Sunday.
Kongin, who was third last year, clocked 62:02 to finish 11 seconds outside of the course record set in 2013 by Loitarakwai Lengurisi who this year finished just over a minute behind his compatriot to claim the runner-up spot with 63:06.
There was a Kenyan one-two in the women's race, too, as Chelimo ran 72:26 to pip Perendis Lekapana who was given the same time. It wasn't just the top two that was a close result, either, as the top five athletes all finished within 14 seconds of each other.
Emma Stepto was third over the line with 72:29 to secure the British half marathon title in a personal best time, while the men's title went to Ryan McLeod, also with a personal best of 64:57. The event hosted the penultimate stage of the Run Britain Grand Prix.
Over in Glasgow at the Bank of Scotland Great Scottish Run and Stephen Mokoka of South Africa won a men's race which saw the withdrawal of Ethiopian long distance great Haile Gebrselassie in the early stages, while Kenya's two-time world marathon champion Edna Kiplagat won the women's race in an event record time.
Gebrselassie, who had been looking to retain his title having last year set a Scottish all-comers' record when clocking 61:09 for victory, had trouble with his breathing and dropped out around 18 minutes into the race. He later tweeted: "Today in Glasgow again problems with my lungs; excercise induced asthma. But I am still enjoying running so much!!!"
Mokoka surged on as part of a group of four also featuring Kenyans Stephen Chemlany, Mark Kiptoo and Charles Cheruyot. He later dropped the trio and crossed the line in 61:25 for his second fastest half marathon, seven seconds ahead of Chemlany. Callum Hawkins was the top Briton, clocking 63:06 for sixth on his debut at the distance.
In a women's race missing European 10,000m champion Jo Pavey who had suffered heel problems in the run up to the event, Kiplagat clocked 67:57 for the new course, which features what organisers describe as "some rollercoaster hills" through the city centre in the opening stages, to take almost a minute off the event record set by her fellow Kenyan Joyce Chepchumba in 2000. Their compatriot Caroline Kilel ran 68:53 for the runner-up spot as Ethiopia's Olympic marathon champion Tiki Gelana was third in 70:37 and Susan Partridge was first British female, crossing the line in 72:12.
British athlete Simon Lawson and Jade Jones won the wheelchair races in respective times of 23:39 and 29:10, while Sean Fontana and Laura Dunn won the 10km events.
» See the October 9 edition of Athletics Weekly magazine for much more in-depth coverage of these events together with reports from other road race action
