FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Mainova Frankfurt Marathon:
Olympic Champion Stefano Baldini pays tribute to Frankfurt winner
Brimin Misoi
When the victory ceremonies in the Festhalle were well and truly over and
all of the 7,946 finishers had left the arena, Brimin Misoi, winner of the
men's title at the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon, received a surprise but
particularly welcome honour. In the lobby of the event hotel, the
Movenpick, the Kenyan was congratulated by the Olympic Marathon champion
from the Games in Athens in 2004, Stefano Baldini. This achievement,
naturally enough, made the latter a hero in his native Italy and the lustre
has lasted to this day. "Brimin ran a really strong race today in tough
conditions, it was an impressive performance," said Baldini as he reflected
on Misoi's performance in setting a personal best of 2:06:11 by exactly
two-and-a-half minutes. "Because of the high temperatures it was more like
a championship race in August. Anyone who can cope with such conditions so
well is well prepared to contest medals in peak summer."
Stefano Baldini was present at the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon in his role
as coach. One of the athletes in his group, Rebecca Lonedo, ran her debut
marathon and finished in 2:39:54. "We chose Frankfurt because of the fast
course and the normally good weather conditions. Unfortunately, that wasn't
the case today. Rebecca struggled with the high temperatures and suffered
stomach problems," said the 51-year-old Olympic champion of Athens, who
looks after a group of 25 runners. His most promising athlete at present is
Pietro Riva, who finished fifth in the 10,000m at the European
Championships in Munich. A week before Frankfurt he improved his personal
best for the half marathon to 60:30 in Valencia. "I hope that he will be in
the 10,000m at the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024," said Baldini, whose
21-year-old daughter Alessia is not part of his training group. She runs
200 and 400m and improved her best for the latter to 55.81 this year.
This year's men's winner of the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon has something in
common with the Olympic champion in that Brimin Misoi has also won on the
same classic marathon course from the town of Marathon to the heart of
Athens. The Kenyan won there in 2018.
When Stefano Baldini crowned his career with Olympic gold in 2004 he ran
2:10:55. The times are not really comparable, but they differ by just one
second. The Italian was running in the summer heat of Athens while Brimin
Misoi ran 2:10:56 there 14 years later in November. "The Athens course is
very tough. Anyone who runs well there has to be strong and deserves
respect," commented Baldini, who returned to the race in 2019 and ran the
highly respectable time of 2:57:07 as a 48-year-old. "That was the last
time I ran a marathon. But I keep myself fit and can still run 10k in 33
minutes." As far as personal bests are concerned, Brimin Misoi has
overtaken the Olympic champion in the world all-time list with his own best
mark of 2:06:11, although it has to be said, the Italian achieved his
without the aid of the new style of shoes which have boosted performance.
"The Frankfurt course is very fast," said Baldini, who these days works as
a TV commentator for Sky Sport Italia.
For Brimin Misoi, a victory in 2:06 is far from being the last time he
might be celebrating. "In future I would like to run times of 2:03 to 2:04.
I'll begin training again in December and may well run the Tokyo Marathon
in March. If possible, I would love to return next year to Frankfurt and
defend my title," said the Kenyan. On 29th October 2023 the Mainova
Frankfurt Marathon will celebrate its 40th edition.
More Information is available at: www.frankfurt-marathon.com
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