John Korir is now four-time champ; Millicent Gathoni claims women’s title
GREEN BAY—A record-breaking 15,149 people registered and competed in the 32nd annual Bellin Run held earlier today in Green Bay, a race won by three-time defending champion John Korir of Kenya. Fellow Kenyan Millicent Gathoni won the woman’s division handily.
The race set a record for total registrants for the fourth straight year, outpacing last year’s total by 2,241 people, for a grand total of 15,149 participants in 2008. The total includes all runners, walkers, wheelchair and handcycle racers and children’s run participants.
Korir and John Yuda, of Tanzania, pulled away from the field at the 2-mile mark and remained neck and neck until the Webster Avenue home stretch. Korir, known for his strong finishes, won the sprint to the finish line by a mere 0.45 seconds with a time of 28:47. Korir joins Joseph Kimani as a four-time Bellin Run male champion. Kimani set the standing course record of 27:46 in 1997 and also bested the field in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Ed Eyestone is the only five-time champion, winning in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1995.
For Yuda, he once again came up just short of tasting victory at the Bellin, finishing within the same second as Korir with a time of 28:47. In his two previous Bellin Run performances, in 2003 and 2006, he was a mere two seconds off the winning pace finishing in 3rd place and 2nd place, respectively.
Charles Munyeki of Kenya finished 3rd with a time of 29:20, followed by Edward Kimosop of Kenya in 4th and Luke Humphrey of Sidney, Mich., at 29:57, rounded out the top five. The top local men’s finishers were Jason Ryf of Oshkosh, 6th place, Tyler Sigl of Seymour, 7th place, and Mark Manz of Kiel, 10th place.
In the women’s race, Gathoni took a commanding lead and never looked back, claiming the title with a time of 32:51, a new age group course record. Gathoni, 21, is relatively new to U.S. road racing, claiming her first victory outside of her native Kenya over Memorial Day weekend with a win at the Bolder Boulder 10K in Colorado.
Romanian Adriana Pirtea finished 2nd with a time of 34:58. Impressively, she was followed by Joan Samuelson in 3rd place. Samuelson, 51, of Freeport, Maine, is a four-time Bellin Run overall women’s champion, winning in 1986, 1988, 1991, 1992. Samuelson’s 36:46 broke the female 50-54 age division record – a record she set last year with a time of 38:20.
Top local women’s finishers were Sue Pierson of Neenah, 5th place, Jenny Graef of Lena, 7th place, and 12-year-old Anna Miller of Green Bay in 10th place with a time of 39:34, a new course record for female 10-12 division.
Tegla Laroupe holds the women’s mark with a time of 31:48 which she ran in 1999.
Other elite runners invited by the Bellin Run had the following times:
Dan Held, Pewaukee, Wis., 33:54
Bill Rodgers, Boston, Mass., 45:41
Frank Shorter, Boulder, Colo., 50:20
Kyle O’Brien, Danville, Ill., 31:23, 8th overall
Uta Pippig, Boulder, Colo., 43:27
All results are preliminary. Official results will be posted on-line.
Weather conditions were near perfect for the start of the 8 a.m. race with sunny skies, light winds and a temperature of 65 degrees.
Corporate sponsors of the 2008 Bellin Run were XL Athletic Performance from Bellin Health, Shopko, KI, Schreiber Foods, Pepsi, Aramark, Oneida Casino, The Konop Companies, The BLR Agency and The Elite Group. Complete Bellin Run results are available through the Bellin Run website at www.bellinrun.com.
