FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Inaugural World Marathon Majors Series Enters Home-Stretch Run
Boston on April 16, London on April 22, Open 2007 Season
A course record, nine national records, and some of the most exciting
finishes in recent memory highlighted the inaugural season of the World
Marathon Majors Series. Launched in 2006, the WMM united the world's most
prominent marathons—Boston, Flora London, real,-Berlin, The LaSalle Bank
Chicago, and ING New York City—in a two-year series. As the world's top
marathoners vied for the early WMM Series lead, 45 athletes earned
points—and positioned themselves for a run at their share of a $1 million
prize which will be split between the top man and woman following the 2007
ING New York City Marathon.
"The introduction of the World Marathon Majors Series has been a historic
development for our sport," says David Bedford, Race Director of the Flora
London Marathon. "Now that the second year is beginning, we are seeing that
our top athletes are embracing the idea of the World Marathon Majors, as
eight of the top nine women and seven of the top nine men will be competing
in Boston and London this month."
On the eve of the 2007 season, 26 athletes from the WMM Series leaderboards
are preparing to run one of the spring races, either Boston or London.
Included in that group are the current leaders, Robert K. Cheruiyot and
Jelena Prokopcuka, both of whom will be returning to Boston in hopes of
building upon their leads. Still other athletes are hoping to earn their
first WMM points.
"For 12 months the spotlight has been shining on these five races, and the
incredible athletes who compete in them," says Guy Morse, Executive
Director of the Boston Marathon. "We can't wait to see how the World
Marathon Majors story continues to unfold on April 16, whether it's Robert
and Jelena extending their leads, or new stars emerging to challenge them."
The women's field is the story in Boston this year, with three of the top
five athletes on the leaderboard scheduled to compete: Jelena Prokopcuka,
Rita Jeptoo, and Deena Kastor. Jeptoo beat Prokopcuka by 10 seconds last
year, in what was the closest finish in the history of Boston's women's
division. Prokopcuka evened the score in November, beating Jeptoo and
Kastor to capture her second straight ING New York City Marathon crown.
Boston won't be just a three-woman race, however, as Madai Perez Carrillo
returns to action after her Mexican-record 2:22:59 fourth-place finish at
The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon last fall.
Though Prokopcuka is the current WMM Series leader with 40 points, Jeptoo
(30 points) and Kastor (25 points) could quickly erase that lead with
strong Boston showings.
On the men's side, Cheruiyot and 2006 runner-up Benjamin Maiyo will reprise
their rivalry. Maiyo led for much of last year's race, pulling the pack
through 20 miles well under course record pace before Cheruiyot seized the
lead—and the 25 WMM Series points at stake. This year Maiyo will be joined
by his teammate Stephen Kiogora (second at New York last year), as they try
to chip into Cheruiyot's WMM lead.
Cheruiyot was, remarkably, the only male athlete to score in two WMM events
in 2006, as he also became the first man to win the Boston and Chicago
titles in the same year. Already in possession of a 25-point lead, a win in
Boston would put Cheruiyot in a commanding position heading into the fall
season.
Once Boston's champions have been crowned with the traditional olive
wreath, all eyes will turn to London where an impressive list of 17
athletes from the WMM Series leaderboards—including five 2006
champions—will be competing this year.
Berhane Adere, fourth in London last year before she won The LaSalle Bank
Chicago Marathon in the fall, leads the women's field. She currently sits
in second place on the WMM leaderboard, 10 points behind Prokopcuka.
Looking to challenge Adere—and gain ground on Prokopcuka—will be defending
Berlin champion Gete Wami, Chicago runner-up Galina Bogolomova, London
runner-up Ludmila Petrova, and Berlin runner-up Salina Kosgei. In search of
her first WMM points will be one of history's eight sub-2:20:00 women:
Chunxiu Zhou (2:19:51).
The men's field is led by three 2006 champions: Felix Limo (London), Haile
Gebrselassie (Berlin), and Marilson Gomes dos Santos (New York City), each
tied for second place on the WMM leaderboard. Martin Lel, second to Limo in
London last year, sits in fifth on the leaderboard, while Meb Keflezighi
(third in Boston last year) and Hendrick Ramaala (third in London last
year) are just five points back of Lel in 10th. Three of the most decorated
entrants in London this year have a lot of ground to make up if they are to
catch Cheruiyot: Current and former world-record holders Paul Tergat and
Khalid Khannouchi have 10 and five points respectively, while Olympic gold
medalist Stefano Baldini is in 20th place with one point.
Following Boston and London, the World Marathon Majors Series will resume
with four events in the summer and fall. The remainder of the 2007 season
is:
August 25 IAAF World Championships Men's Marathon (Osaka)
September 2 IAAF World Championships Women's Marathon (Osaka)
September 30 real,-Berlin-Marathon
October 7 The LaSalle Bank Chicago Marathon
November 4 ING New York City Marathon
While much will be determined on the roads of Boston and London, the
inclusion of the IAAF World Championships on the 2007 schedule adds an
additional element of strategy to the Series. For the first time, athletes
could be in a position to compete in three WMM events in a year.
Historically, this has been done before, most recently Catherine Ndereba in
2003 and Constantina Tomescu-Dita in 2005—but it's rare. In total, eight
women have placed among the top five in three WMM events in single year,
however no man has ever accomplished that feat.
Global Impact
While the success of the inaugural World Marathon Majors Series can be seen
on the leaderboard, the WMM events can be judged on other levels as well.
In 2006, the five WMM events boasted 154,596 finishers, 6.6 million
spectators, and a worldwide television audience of 250 million viewers.
Additionally, they combined for an overall financial impact of $400
million, while raising $110 million for charity.
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