|
|||
|
|||
|
 |
|
|
ING NEW YORK CITY MARATHONNovember 2, 2008Abdi AbdirahmanMarilson Gomes dos SantosAbderrahim GoumriDaniel RonoNEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK RICHARD FINN: We have our No. 1, 2 and 3 men's finishers here, plus our top American finisher, Abdi Abdirahman at No. 6. We're just going to start at the left. Abdi, if you could have a couple comments about your race today, then we'll go to Daniel, then we'll go here to Abdi Goumri, and then we'll go to our champion Marilson. Abdi? ABDI ABDIRAHMAN: My race today was a great race. Just I run the way I want to run it. Unfortunately I got a side stitch about the 13th mile all the way to 17th mile, I wasn't feeling good and I lost contact with the leaders basically. So I was disappointed because I knew I was in good shape, well prepared for this race, and I thought this was my chance to get to the podium. Unfortunately I got a side stitch. But at the same time, I'm happy with my performance and the way I run, and I'm happy for these great athletes today. They put on a great show. DANIEL RONO: I'm happy to be with you at this hour like this. I have to say thank you very much to all of you and all who invites me to this race. I have been very much awaiting this day, and now I'm finished, and I'm very happy to be in the top-three position. It's very great. And also to honor the day that I've come to New York, because it's a very great race. I like it. I was telling my manager, I need to go to participate in the New York Marathon. And I'm very happy to say that the race was very nice. I enjoyed it. It was very challenging, the course, and also to run without pacemaker. It's a very nice race. It's challenging. It has given me lessons on how to run a big race like this compared to other races I've run in. ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: For me I am so happy for today, for my result today. I promised yesterday that I should be the winner, but I did some mistake. I think second place, it's good, too. For second time in New York Marathon, I was two-time second, and I'm so happy. I hope I can come back again and I win another day. RICHARD FINN: Our second champion returning, Marilson? MARILSON GOMES DOS SANTOS: I'm very happy with my win today. It was a hard race, a difficult race, a very strong field. I enjoy running New York. The people give me the feeling that gets me going. As I said at the press conference on Friday, I was prepared to run in front, and I proved that. I thank the organizer for inviting me back. Q. Abderrahim, could you talk about what the mistakes were that you made, and when he passed you we thought it was a combination of him running out of gas and you picking up. Were you basically just running out of gas at that point? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah, I said on Friday I should go after 30K, but today I went before 30K. And the problem, it was that I missed my waters. I didn't drink much. I didn't see the bottles in the street. It was a mistake for me today. I didn't drink. It was cold, and I think the problem was the sugar, it's down in my body. The last two miles I feel I am not as strong as I can climbing the hills. I think that's the way I lose this race today. Q. Did you hear or feel or sense Marilson coming behind you? And did you think that there was any way you could withstand that? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah, when I was together with Marilson, I think it's in the 1st Avenue we were together, I just -- you know, I said I can win today, just enjoy -- after I pass Marilson, and I think I give him almost 10 seconds, 15 seconds, I said, it's my day. But when it's finishing a marathon, I just turned back and I saw Marilson come back. I said, I think he's going to win today. Q. You thought that in the park when I turned around? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah. Q. Marilson, you were, I think, seven or eight seconds behind coming onto Central Park South. Did you think you had enough time to catch Abderrahim? MARILSON GOMES DOS SANTOS: The marathon is a difficult event. I have seen many marathons that are decided at the last minute, so you never lose hope. You have to keep trying, and I kept pushing even though it was six, seven seconds behind. I got focused, and that's why I could pass him and win the race. Q. Abdi, I noticed at one point the Americans were running together up front, and then when there was a big break you fell back to tenth and they were all behind you, but you ended up sixth, seventh, eighth and tenth. Did you sort of regroup and were you working together with Josh and Jason and were picking people off in those last few miles? ABDI ABDIRAHMAN: There wasn't any such a teamwork thing. I was running my own race. I was in it to win the race first and foremost. It didn't go my way, but when I fell from the lead group, my main focus was just trying to feel comfortable again racing. But I didn't feel comfortable racing until the 18th and 19th mile. That's when I felt comfortable. But at the same time, when I couldn't see the leaders, I didn't seen anyone to go after. But when Jason and Josh, when they came next to me, I said, oh, some people to run with, and I run with them. Then we got to Central Park and I saw two of the guys from Kenya in front of me, and I said, okay, time to make my move, and I might be able to finish higher. So that's when I made my move, trying to beat those two other guys. It was a great thing, Josh ran a great race and he followed me and caught those two other guys, too. I thought we ran a great race, not the way I wanted to win, but I think it was good fortune and I'm happy with the way I ran. RICHARD FINN: Just a note about the Americans, four American men in the top ten today, Abdi at sixth, Josh Rohatinsky at seven, Jason Lehmkuhle at eight and Bolota Asmerom. That's the most American men here in the top ten here in New York since 1987 when we had three American men in the top ten. Q. Any idea how far behind you were at your biggest deficit? MARILSON GOMES DOS SANTOS: I had no idea how far ahead he was, but I was looking at him and I know that the distance wasn't that difficult of a gap to close up. Q. This is the third time in two years now you got caught at the end and finished second. Is your confidence shaken that you can win? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah, I hope I can come back one day, and I should win one day, no problem. I feel strong, I trained very, very well, and I think one day I can win, no problem. Q. You said you made mistakes today. You went through them already. Did you make mistakes the other two times, in London and here last year when Martin Lel caught you? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah, it's different races. It's not like -- New York Marathon and London, they go fast. It's something different. Q. Marilson, when you won in 2006 here, what did that do for your life and your career? MARILSON GOMES DOS SANTOS: Without a doubt, to win a great event like New York is great for anybody. I am very well known in Brazil. Everybody recognizes me. The young kids running now, they look up to me. There's a lot of new running groups in Brazil, and the people recognize who I am and what I did. Q. You had a parade in 2006, didn't you, when you came home in New York, and will you have another run? MARILSON GOMES DOS SANTOS: Probably, yes. Probably there will be a parade and a celebration, but it's going to have to wait a little bit, because I'm planning on going on vacation with my wife to Disneyworld for five days (laughter). Q. If I could take you back, even though the final decision was at 40 kilometers, it seemed to be set up at 35 to 38 kilometers. When you go to the 35K aid station, it looked like you were going, and then you missed it. But then after that is when you went up the hill, at 36, 37K. Marilson, made a big effort to try to catch him on the hill, but Abderrahim, you seemed to hit a very strong gear, but do you think that after missing your fluid and running on the hill, it set up a catastrophe? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah, as I told you, in marathon it's 42K and 195. If you don't drink, and in that weather, it's very cold, and you can -- lot a reserve for your sugar, it's getting down, and you can have a hard time in the last mile or last two miles. That's coming for me. I think if I drink -- because I drink two times or so, I just drank two of my waters, I missed almost three or four. That's my problem today. I think if I drink all, I was stronger, and I think I finish good. Q. Abdi, you didn't run the national championship this year, a month ago. I was told it may have been because of injury. Was there injury? Were you coming off an injury coming in today? Did it impact your race at all? ABDI ABDIRAHMAN: What national championships? Q. USA Men's Marathon Championships, a month ago. ABDI ABDIRAHMAN: No, I was preparing for this race actually, so I wasn't injured. But it was like a month before this race and I was getting ready for New York. MARILSON GOMES DOS SANTOS: For me the race was decided in the end. In the marathon you know you've won the race when you cross the finish line, not before. Q. There was a largely packed relatively slow opening act, but yet only these three guys negative splits today. Why do you think that is? ABDI ABDIRAHMAN: The reason there was a negative split is because they were like a big group together, and they were running like a -- four, five, six of them were going so fast, and the reason I did negative splits is because most of them I was by myself from like 13 miles all the way to the last mile. I was by myself. So that's the reason, because I was just running my own race, because I couldn't see who was in front. I thought these guys were in front of me. I thought they'd give me a two, three-minute gap. My main focus was just to stabilize and finish the race because I had a side stitch. I wasn't tired, to be honest. When I saw that two of the Kenya guys were right in front of me with about a mile and a half to go, that's when I made my move, and I said, I feel good, I can finish high, so that's when I made my move and I went after those guys. Q. If I can ask Goumri, what happened that caused you to miss your water bottles? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: I was focusing for the race. I didn't see the water bottles. Sometime myself I missed -- when it was at the second table, I was on the side street, I didn't see. That's why I missed. Q. You really missed then them; is that right? ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Yeah. Q. Daniel, is this your biggest accomplishment in your career? DANIEL RONO: I think this is the greatest race among the races that I've been running, among the top races. End of FastScripts |
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
About ASAP Sports •
FastScripts Archive •
Recent Interviews •
Captioning •
Upcoming Events •
Contact Us
FastScripts | Events Covered | Our Clients | Other Services | ASAP in the News | Site Map | Job Opportunities | Links |
|
ASAP Sports, Inc. | T: 1.212 385 0297
|