Skip to main content

Ongori 3rd in RAK Half Marathon

by Brett Larner

Team Hokuren's Philes Ongori, who ran the fastest women's half marathon in the world last year, set a new PB of 1:07:50 at the Feb. 20 Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in the UAE. Ongori ran among the leaders until the final kilometers when Ethiopia's Dire Tune broke away to a new national record of 1:07:18. Ongori was outkicked by Ethiopian Aselefech Mergia, settling for 3rd. Team Aruze's Julia Mumbi Muraga was a distant 10th in 1:09:40.

Men's winner Patrick Makau of Kenya ran 58:52, the second-fastest half marathon time ever recorded, breaking world record holder Samuel Wanjiru's course record by 1 second. Yamanashi Gakuin University's Mekubo Mogusu did not start the race after a recent car accident in Kenya, and his friend Daniel Gitau of Nihon University likewise failed to start.

A detailed recap of both the women's and men's races and a link to complete results are available here.

(c) 2009 Brett Larner
all rights reserved

Comments

Most-Read This Week

Endo, Nishikawa and Yamakawa Announce Corporate Team Changes

The SG Holdings men's corporate team announced on Oct. 1 that long-distance athletes Hyuga Endo and Yuichiro Nishikawa have joined its roster after leaving the Sumitomo Denko team. Endo, 28, won the Junior Olympics 3000 m while at Koriyama Nishi J.H.S. before going on to Gakuho Ishikawa H.S. where he was the the top Japanese placer in the 5000 m at the National High School Championships 2 years in a row. After graduating from Gakuho Ishikawa he joined the Sumitomo Denko team, winning the National Championships 5000 m in 2021. He won gold at the 2023 Asian Championships and represented Japan at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships. "I will give everything I have as part of the team and work hard toward helping it win the New Year Ekiden," he said of his new environment. Of his personal goals he said, "I want to focus on the 5000 m and reach new levels to compete internationally." Nishikawa, 28, was a member of Tokai University 's winning teams at the H...

3 Athletes Provisionally Suspended After Positive Drug Tests at Asian Games (updated)

The International Testing Agency announced on Oct. 2 that provisional suspensions have been imposed on two athletes, Kazakhstan's Aiana Bolatbekkyzy in track and field, and Tajikistan's Issamjon Sharifov in tennis, after they tested positive for prohibited substances at the Asian Games in Nagoya, Aichi. Bolatbekkyzy, 19, tested positive for the steroid drostanolone in a sample collected during an in-competition test at the Games. A diuretic drug was found in the sample collected from Sharifov, 23. Update:  On Oct. 3 a third athlete, kurash wrestler Yash Kumar Chauhan  of India, was provisionally suspended after an in-competition test detected the steroid metandienone, the metabolic modulator GW1516, and the stimulant mephentermine in his system. source article: https://www.sanspo.com/article/20261002-X4FJLT5MMZKFND6WXPOESAKETQ/ translated by Brett Larner