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Abitova wins Yokohama marathon

YOKOHAMA: Russia’s Inga Abitova defeated the Beijing Olympic gold and silver medallists to win the inaugural Yokohama international women’s marathon on Sunday. The 27-year-old Russian made a break away after passing the 30-kilometre mark and she never faced a serious challenge afterwards, crossing the finishing line in two hours 27 minutes 18 seconds.

Japan’s Kiyoko Shimahara came in second in 2:28:51, followed by Beijing Olympic silver medallist and two-time world champion Catherine Ndereba of Kenya third in 2:29:13. “It was not a race against the Olympic medallists, but a race against myself, which I won. Everybody prepared very well and ran a good race, but the fastest runner won it in the end,” said Abitova. Ten women formed a front-running group soon after the start, including Abitova, Ndereba and Olympic champion Constantina Dita of Romania. Dita started to slow down after passing the 22km point and then Japan’s Hiroki Miyauchi faded out. Abitova put on a spurt after the 30km mark, allowing only Ndereba to chase her from close range, but the Russian slowly and steadily outdistanced her for a comfortable solo run for the remaining distance. Shimahara, the winner in the Hokkaido marathon in August, caught up with Ndereba after the 36km point to take the runner-up place, while Dita finished a lowly 11th. afp

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