Marathon/Running News: 2/12/08 - 2/19/08

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News From: Tuesday, February 19, 2008
	Boston Marathon
		Training/ Health
		Think spring! Don't get down on winter (Metrowest Daily News) As the heart of winter approaches, many New Englanders are feeling the worst of the season as a few are affected by Seasonal Affective Disorder, a form of depression. Many advise to take a trip to a warm weather destination, to enjoy the outdoors with winter activities such as skiing, light therapy or by gearing up for a big race like the Boston Marathon.
	London Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Chester man's marathon in memory of baby leukaemia victim (Evening Leader) Steve Banks will compete as part of the Mr Men and Little Miss team running to raise money for the organization Children with Leukaemia. At 58 years of age, Banks has decided to run his first marathon to raise money for a cause to fight the disease which took his nieces life at less than one year of life.
	Marathon des Sables
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Australians Take On the Sahara Challenge (The Epoch Times) Paul Gladwell and Martin Edwards, two IT workers from Melbourne, Australia who have both lost close family members to cancer, have been logging 180km a week for a one of the most grueling races in the world. The 23rd Marathon des Sables scheduled for March involves a seven-day 240km run across the Sahara Desert in 104 degree temperatures during the day to 41 degrees at night, sandstorms and grueling physical pain. The participants are required to carry their essentials in their back pack sleeping bag, food and clothing while the race organizers provide a tent and water.
	Milo Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Multi city Milo is marathon success for Nestlé (The Manila Times) For over 30 years Swiss diary giant Nestlé has promoted the Milo Marathon. This year the marathon race will be held simultaneously in Manila, Tarlac, Cebu and Davao for the first time ever. The 32nd edition of the Milo Marathon is expected to draw 60,000 participants for the four cities races.
	Napa Valley Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Samuelson to Give Keynote Address at Napa Valley Marathon (Race Results Weekly) 1984 Olympic Marathon gold medalist, Joan Benoit Samuelson will give the 2008 Napa Valley Marathon's keynote address one day prior to race day. Six to ten female marathoners are looking to qualify for the 2008 USA Olympic Team Trials - Women's Marathon at the race. The Napa Valley Marathon will be celebrating its 30th anniversary.
	Odds And Ends
		Human Interest Story
		Brighton to host marathon with 10,000 runners (The Argus) Tim Hutchings, a former Olympic athlete and the bronze medalist in the 5000 meter at the 1986 Commonwealth Games , hopes to have a carnival like atmosphere at the Brighton marathon event. Organizers are expecting numbers that could reach 30,000 participant in the London-like race.
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Kenya retains the GROE marathon title (Kenya Broadcasting Corporation) As the 2008 Greatest Race on Earth (GROE) Series concludes, Kenya has once again won the marathon relay series title for the fourth consecutive year. The Kenya team is awarded a total of 23.8 million shillings by the title sponsor Standard Chartered. The GROE consists of finishes at the Nairobi, Singapore, Mumbai and Hong Kong Marathons.
		Human Interest Story
		Greg Meyer: Running man, money man (Grand Rapids Press) Greg Meyer is best known for his world records in the 15K and national records in varying distances wins of the the 1980 Detroit Marathon, the 1982 Chicago Marathon and the 1983 Boston Marathon. Meyer who is in the marketing and fundraising industry may help Aquinas College build a proposed sports and fitness center.
		Comeback Queen Radcliffe is Snubbed (Daily Express) Marathon World Record Holder and 2008 champion of the New York City Marathon Paula Radcliffe was snubbed here when her award was pulled from the televised Laureus Sports Awards. Radcliffe won won the Comeback of the Year trophy having returned to high levels of competitive racing less than one year after giving birth but the organizers of the event that is known as the Oscars of sport dumped her whole section. It is the first time in the nine years of the awards that a whole section has been dropped, with Laureus blaming the fact that the event was over-running. not the fact that Radcliffe who was not present at the awards ceremony.
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		Wanjiru returning to The Hague (IAAF) Half Marathon World Record Holder Sammy Wanjiru plans to return to the 2008 Fortis City-Pier-City Half Marathon. Wanjiru who broke his own world record at last year's race with a 58:33 finish will be joined by London Marathon and New York City Marathon winner Martin Lel. Patrick Makau Musyoki, Francis Kibiwott and Deribe Merga will also be joining the field.
		Human Interest Story
		Lorraine Moller on life and the Olympics (TV3) Champion marathoner Lorraine Moller will be inducted into the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame. Moller is a three time medalist at the Commonwealth Games and the third New Zealand woman in Olympic history to win an athletics medal at the 1992 Barcelona Games, not to mention she was thirty-seven years of age at the time. Moller also has career wins at esteemed marathons in Japan, London and Boston.
		Training/ Health
		Treadmill Desks: Put the 'work' in 'work out' (Ocala.com) Having been fed up trying to lose ten pounds for the past ten years, Jay Buster of Boulder, Colorado has built a treadmill desk. Rather than being sedentary eight hours per day buying Japanese securities online or arbitrage, Buster has lost sixteen pounds and loves his new lifestyle. Others are following in his figurative footsteps, the Mayo Clinic recently released what it calls "the office of the future" treadmill desk.
		Beijing says no events will be postponed for pollution (International Herald Tribune) Beijing Olympic organizers have no plans to postpone events because of pollution, but the marathon and other endurance sports could be postponed by severe heat, humidity and heavy rain. Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee, has said he may reschedule endurance events to protect athletes from poor air quality. Beijing officials have said pollution will not be a problem by the time the Games start on August 8.
	Tokyo Int'l Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		Eco Friendly Tokyo Marathon owes much to volunteers. (Daily Yomiuri) Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara has made the Tokyo Marathon very popular for most citizens. The eco-friendly race boasted nearly 12,000 volunteers in all. Power for the race was generated a solar powered generator and paper cups originated a kenaf plant
		Humor
		Tokyo marathon runner solves mystery of sore nipples (Reuters) Banker Brian Jones ran his second marathon having returned to the 2008 Tokyo Marathon. With memories of 2007 and his experience with bleeding nipples, Jones combated strong winds and leg cramps. His trick was staying focused and thinking about anything to take his mind off the pain.
		Human Interest Story
		Chilling tale of life on the run for Tokyo Champion Rothlin (Daily Yomiuri) Victor Rothlin returned home to Eldoret Kenya after winning the Tokyo Marathon and setting a new personal best race. His homecoming was anything but celebratory. The civil unrest in the city of Eldoret and the Rift Valley, where Rothlin has been training, was filled with burning buildings and talk of more death.
News From: Monday, February 18, 2008
	26.2 with Donna: The National Marathon to Finish Breast Cancer
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Runaway winners in inaugural 26.2 for Donna race (Florida-Times Union) Alene Reta of Ethiopia and Mariska Kramer-Postma of Netherlands won the inaugural 26.2 with Donna the National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer. Reta finished in a 2:21.57. Kramer-Postma won the women's race in 2:45.42. While Reta was able to run to the finish line with a police escort, Kramer-Postma had to dodge through many runners competing in the half-marathon which was a bit of a challenge for her.
		Human Interest Story
		26.2 for Donna Marathon impressive in turnout, support (Shorelines) Thousands participated in the inaugural 26.2 With Donna National Marathon to fight breast cancer. Many participants were breast cancer survivors like event founder Donna Deegan or friends and family members of those with the disease. $800,000 was raised to help find a cure for cancer.
	Austin Marathon
		Human Interest Story
		From fat to fit: An officer's path to the finish line (Killeen Daily Herald) Iraq War veteran Capt. William F. Woods dropped one hundred and thirty pounds one year ago. Fed up with his weight, he began walking it off and took up step aerobics. This quicky led to his love of fitness and participation in various 5K and 10K races in Baghdad. He finished the 2008 Austin Marathon in 3:30.
		Humor
		No cheating: Madrazo races in Austin marathon (Austin-American Statesman) Disgraced former Mexican presidential candidate Roberto Madrazo ran the 2008 Austin Half Marathon without cheating. Madrazo first made headlines in the running community by cheating at the 2007 Berlin Marathon. He had taken a shortcut shaving nine miles from his race winning his age group award (55+) and making a display of his win. Once officials realized of the cheating, they stripped him of his trophy.
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Sell runs to victory in Austin Half (Altoona Mirror.com) 2008 U.S. Men's Olympic Marathon Team Member Brian Sell won the AT&T Austin Half-Marathon in 1:04:11. His Hanson-Brooks teammates, Todd Snyder, Mike Morgan, Luke Humphrey, Michael Reneau and Patrick Moulton, finished second through sixth.
		London teacher Hassell hustles to 1st marathon win (The Austin-American Statesman) Biology teacher Lucy Hassell won the 2008 Austin Marathon's women's race in a 2:36:26. Runner-up Becki Michael qualified for the US Olympic Trials with a 2:43:42. Canada's Nicole Stevenson placed third in 2:44:46.
		Frey, Americans win in Austin Marathon men's race (The Austin-American Statesman) The 2008 AT&T Austin Marathon saw a tight finish in the men's race as Jacob Frey sprinted 600 meters to victory in a 2:20:38 becomin the first American to win since 1994. Mike Sayenko was runner-up in 2:20:42 and Kenya's Joseph Mutinda was third in 2:20:43. Lucy Hassell of Great Britain won the women's race.
	Birch Bay Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Birch Bay Marathon a hit (The Bellingham Herald) At the 2008 Birch Bay Marathon Jim Hulbert had incentive to run faster as a boxer dog at mile 11 gave a chase and nipped at his feet as he ran. Andy Martin won the race in a 2:35:24. Locals Dan Gallant and Jim Hulbert finished second and third respectively in 2:59:52 and 3:01:06. In the women's race Maria Amaya in 3:36:00. Runner-up Theresa Westfall finished in 3:36:29.
	Ft. Lauderdale A1A Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Roberts, Anderson win marathon debuts (Sun Sentinel) Both winners of the 2008 A1A Marathon win in their marathon debuts. John Roberts won in a 2:50:31 and Cindy Anderson in a 3:07:02 setting a course record. In the third year of the race also had a record turnout of 4,974 participants.
		AIA Marathon winners excel out of their environment (Miami Herald) John Roberts and Cindy Anderson won the men and women's races of the 2008 A1A Marathon. In a marathon debut Roberts who raced the 26.2 miles on a dare from his girlfriend finished in a 2:50:31. Anderson, also in her debut marathon, won the women's race in 3:07:02.
	Hong Kong Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Fukuoka and Kum-ok win Asian Marathon title in Hong Kong (IAAF) Japans Koichiro Fukuoka and the Koreas Kim Kum-ok were the winners of the mens and womens races at the 2008 Hong Kong Marathon which also doubled as the 11th Asian Marathon Championships. Fukuoka ended years of Kenyan dominance of the race with victory in 2:16.50. In the women's race Kim Kum-ok out-kicked Jong Yong-ok to win by a slight margin as both women were clocked in at 2:36:40.
		Best feet forward right to the very end (The Standard) The 2008 Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon in which a Japanese ended four years of domination by Kenyans. Koichiro Fukuoka from Nagasaki won the race in 2:18:10. The women's race was won by Kim Kum Ok of North Korea in 2:36:43. She crossed the finishline hand-in-hand with compatriot Jong Yong Ok who was ruled second by a judge.
	Myrtle Beach Marathon
		Post-Race Review/ Results
		Myrtle Beach Marathon: NY woman, NC man are winners (Myrtle Beach Online) Gayle White won the women's race at the 11th Myrtle Beach Marathon in 2:49:04. White was disappointed having missed the 2:47 qualifying standard for the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials. Runner up Lisa Tolley finished in thirteen minutes after White.
	Odds And Ends
		Pre-Race Review/ Lineup
		River Run Entries On Near Record Pace (News4Jax) 31st the Gate River Run has over 14,000 runners in the 15K event. Five-time champion Deena Kastor will be back to defend her title. Kastor will also be inducted into the 2008 Gate River Run Hall of Fame.