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ING NEW YORK CITY MARATHON

November 5, 2010

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK

MARY WITTENBERG: I want to call out our executive vice president Ann Crandall who is here and leads our development efforts and is key to that. I also want to thank today, again, it's a huge team with everybody working really hard, 120 staff. But I especially want to thank our pro athlete coordinators. With Bob Laufer with the wheelchair race, to David Monte and Sam Rockwell on the running races, they are the forces every day that pull these fields together.
Okay, welcome, we're going to begin and first talk about the wheelchair race. There is a lot to the ING New York City Marathon. One of the things new this year is over $100,000 prize purse for the wheelchair race. This is the tenth anniversary of our professional wheelchair race. Bob and our team have done a phenomenal job making this the world's best.
We're always trying to catch up to Boston. I think we finally have you when it comes to wheelchair racing. We want to begin with a tribute to our wheelchair race, so if you take a look at the videos.
In addition to a phenomenal terrific wheelers, we have really great international field this year with our running athletes around the world. We're really sad, if you haven't heard, to have lost Werknesh Kidane from the field. We're excited to see what her husband Gebre Gebremariam's will do with the whole family pressure on him now. In addition to having Gebremariam representing that exciting duo, we're excited to have some of Europe's, Australia's and Africa's best representing our international field. So let's take a look ahead at some of the Europeans and the Africans in the field for Sunday.
Now to the ladies. Shelly Woods, current British national record holder over 5,000 meters. Shelly's also a two-time Olympian and medalist at the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing and a real force on the wheelchair racing scene. We're happy to have you, Shelly.
Salina Kosgei, not only do you remember Salina as 2009 Boston champion, she's been on our podium before. I think we all cringed last year. We held up the start of the men's race for a minute because we heard there had been a fall on the course, and sure enough, unfortunately Salina and Yuri Kano had quite the collision on the course last year. Salina went down hard and still finished fifth which I thought was really a remarkable performance. We welcome you back, Salina.
Next step, Inga Abitova. This may be Inga's coming-out party. Second in London, and not only does she have the strength and endurance to be second in London in the 2:22, but she's really fast. A two-time European medalist at the 10,000 meters. She's fresh off a silver medal this summer. We welcome you, Inga.
Next we have Ana Dulce Felix, she goes by Dulce. Dulce has excelled in all our running disciplines, from cross-country to track on the roads. I've had the pleasure the last two years of watching Dulce run at the Great North Run at the half marathon distance. I think we've got a natural marathoner in Dulce. And this is her debut marathon, so we welcome you as well.
Edna Kiplagat, as you saw, our L.A. champion. Edna's one of the strongest year-in and year-out road racing runners in the world. From Kenya, Edna, we welcome you.
Last but far from least, our Oxford graduate, a career diplomat. I think someone who probably understands what are all the benefits of life as a professional runner more than any professional running athlete, having seen the other side. We welcome Britain's second-fastest runner ever, again, a woman that year in and year out gets better and better. It was a real thrill for us to see Mara had a really great run this year at our New York City half. She took down the course record. That is running faster than Paula Radcliff and several other top women have run on our course with a 69:25 on the New York City half with the Hills of Central Park, Mara, we've been looking forward to getting you to the marathon for several years. So I think it's a good luck charm that you're here and you're healthy and you're ready to go. So we welcome all of you ladies.
RICHARD FINN: Thank you, Mary. What I'm going to do is ask each of the ladies to make an opening comment, and we'll start with Shelly. Your thoughts about Sunday's race and the competition here?
SHELLY WOODS: Yeah, I'm really excited about Sunday. I think for the women's wheelchair races is going to be a really exciting race. There are quite a few girls who could really challenge for that first spot. So for me I'm just going to do my best and see if I can -- well, I'm going to make it as hard as possible for them and put up a good fight and see what happens.
RICHARD FINN: Thank you. We'll go to Salina. Your thoughts about Sunday's race and returning here?
SALINA KOSGEI: I would like to thank the organization of the New York Marathon for inviting me back again. I'm very happy. I'll try my best on Sunday to run as fast as I can.
RICHARD FINN: Thank you. Inga, your first time here in New York. Do you feel the excitement growing already for Sunday?
INGA ABITOVA: I think I will be very well-prepared this Sunday, and I think I will show the best that I can do.
RICHARD FINN: Dulce, you've run a lot, on the cross-country, on the track, on the roads. First time on the marathon, excited or a little nervous?
ANA DULCE FELIX: Good afternoon, everybody. I thank you very much for inviting me to be here in New York. I'm very proud to be here participating in one of the biggest marathons in the world.
It's my debut here, and I hope I can do my best.
RICHARD FINN: Edna, you're one of the more consistent, you've run consistently well throughout the year. It must give you confidence for Sunday's race. Are you feeling good for Sunday?
EDNA KIPLAGAT: Yeah, I am honored. I'm happy to come to New York. This is my first time to come to run, and I thank you for having me here in New York.
RICHARD FINN: Mara, you came here in March. You won here in March. You've had success here in New York. Your thoughts looking ahead and maybe talking about the field that's been assembled and how tough this race might be Sunday?
MARA YAMAUCHI: My Portuguese and Russian isn't very good, so forgive me for answering in English. It's my first time in New York for the marathon, and I'm really excited about Sunday.
I showed what snatching victory from the jaws of defeat is like in the half marathon. Well past the 12-mile mark just managed to sneak into the lead, so I think the hills of Central Park are the perfect place to do that. With a bit of luck and "en-shala" as one of the men said to me yesterday. Hopefully that might be me.
It's a really tough field this year on both the men's and the women's. Loads of fantastic athletes here. So whoever wins will have to put up a really special performance. But I'm ready to give it my best and I'm looking forward to Sunday.
RICHARD FINN: No man or woman has won both the New York City half and the marathon in the same year, so Peter Kamais is here today running our men's champion, and Mara's our women's champion. So that is a little extra special award and honor that awaits if either of those two win on Sunday. Any questions?
Mara, you had a tough time in London. Some travel issues and things like that. You didn't let that happen this time. Could you just relate that little story about your preparation? I think all the lady's take special preparations, but that is a little story that you might tell.
MARA YAMAUCHI: For anybody that doesn't know in April, we left Albuquerque ten days before the London Marathon, about three hours after the volcano in Iceland started erupting. It took us a week of planes, trains and automobiles to get to London.
I was exhausted in mind and body by the time I got there, but I made the start line.
Anyway, this time mainly thanks to the New York Road Runners, we arrived in good time, trouble-free travel, and spent a week in Princeton, New Jersey last week tapering at sea level. So we had a very uneventful one-hour train ride to New York, compared to a week of halfway around the globe. It was very easy this time.
RICHARD FINN: Uneventful train ride on New Jersey Transit; that doesn't always happen.

Q. Shelly, you've been second here three times. Each time you're a different person. I notice when I was working on your bio for the media guide that you beat that person the next time every year. So this year the person that's won the race is not here anymore. You're also known as "Ms. Uphill," so a little more recklessness on the downhills this year maybe? Do you have a shot?
SHELLY WOODS: I think so. I'm feeling good. I've come second here three times, so I'm definitely hungry for it.
I think there will be a few people that will really challenge you. And all I can do is have answers to everything that they do and maybe more. So I'm really looking forward to it.
You know, I love this race. It's fantastic. And if there was one race I could win a major marathon, I'd choose New York. So it's something that I really want to do.
But I'll just give it my all and see what happens.
MARY WITTENBERG: David Weir, come on up. David from the UK. Really happy to have you. David is a six-time Paralympic medalist. Currently holds the British record at all track distances up to 5,000 meters. He's fast. As well as on the road to the 10K half marathon, half-marathon and marathon, we welcome you.
Next, four-time defending champion, one of the most dominant athletes in the world in wheelchair racing, your record is simply astounding, Kurt Fearnley, no one tackles the course with the same grit and determination as you do. I just want you to stay away from those finish line posts like you were on the right side of it last year there. But that was quite a race. So really excited to hear your perspectives coming into this year, Kurt.
From Spain, Rafael Botello, we're really happy to have you. Another major force on the wheelchair racing scene, we welcome you.
Among our runners, I will start on the end with Peter Kamais. Peter, one of the fastest 10K runners on the road with 27:09, I believe. Peter came in, you saw it, he ran away with this New York City half this past March, and we're really looking forward to Peter's debut here from Kenya.
Next up, Viktor Rothlin from Switzerland. The Swiss national record holder at 2:07 or so out of Tokyo. Best known as one of Europe's best for many, many years. He's a big, big Star in Switzerland. We went over to announce him this year running the marathon, and had a room full of journalists, TVs, writers, the whole deal. Victor has reached another pinnacle of success and awareness and popularity within Switzerland with his Gold Medal run at the European championships at the marathon this summer on a really hot day. He's had a mere six or seven weeks of more intense training coming into the marathon, so we're thrilled to welcome you back, Victor.
Next up, we took a break last year after two years, I don't know. What's it called? A groomsman, I guess? Abderrahim Goumri comes back, after being so close to that first position in New York couple times before. We're really glad to have you back, Goumri. We missed you last year, welcome back.
Finally, last but far from least again, this is, I think one of the most significant debuts our sport has seen, Gebre Gebremariam, one of the best track runners and one of the fastest ever with a 26:52 back in the day. Fourth place in the Olympic games. Fast on the track. Supercross country runner having won the title of world cross country champion in 2009. I think we've seen just a glimpse of what's to come this Sunday over this past summer where Gebre has run really, really well. He won our Healthy Kidney last May, our 10-K, and then he was on a tear, saw at Beach to Beacon, Joan Benoit's race, where he just cruised to victory at the end with a kick that is really something.
So I think if Gebre's in the park and Gebre's on that final straightaway, these gentlemen need to be nervous. So we welcome you Gebre Gebremariam. Welcome, gentlemen.
RICHARD FINN: We'll ask each of the athletes to make an opening comment about his thoughts. Rafael will be available at the round tables. We'll start with David.
DAVID WEIR: Yeah, hi, I've been waiting for about five years to come back. 2005 was my last New York Marathon. I wasn't a marathon specialist then, so I came in about fifth. Every year since that I've either been ill or been so tired from the track season. But this year I've trained so hard since Great North. I done well in Great North, so to come back to New York, because I think it's one of the greatest marathons in the world and London Marathon, obviously, it's just great to be back, and hopefully I can pull out a win on Sunday.
RICHARD FINN: We welcome you back, David. And wish you the best of luck.
Kurt, last year you did something not only special here on the course, but something special afterwards. Not sure what your plans are both for Sunday and afterwards, if it you'd like to say a couple words, Kurt?
KURT FEARNLEY: Yeah, last year I was able to propose to my girlfriend at the time. After this race, it's great to be back in New York. Hands down the best marathon on the planet. And it's also great to now be five weeks out from getting home and getting married and moving on to a different stage in life, I guess.
But it's always good to be here. I've been here for the last six years I'll be here for the next 56. So good to be here and I'll be here for a while.
RICHARD FINN: Geb, you've had a fantastic season so far. Can you sort of put the exclamation point and finish it off with a win on Sunday?
GEBRE GEBREMARIAM: Thank you, all of you. Especially Mary. Thank you very much. You support me just to get to the marathon.
It's marvelous marathon. I'm good in 5,000, I'm good in 10,000 too, even cross country. But I don't know in marathon. I hope I trained very well. Maybe I'm in a good shape, but I don't know what that means marathon means. I'll have to see on Sunday. I think I saw some green light in my training. But I'm happy to be here. I want to say thank you to you and to all of you.
RICHARD FINN: We're happy to have you here, too. And again, wish you the best on Sunday. You're no stranger to New York. You've been here many times. Your thoughts of coming back and running against this fantastic field of Meb, Nathan, Haile.
ABDERRAHIM GOUMRI: Thank you, everybody. And thank you to the organization to invite me again to New York Marathon. I'm so exciting to challenge again with a good field this year. And for me it's a dream. Because always I come here to do big things and to try and win. And I hope this year I'll do my best and charge again in New York.
RICHARD FINN: Viktor's had already a super year, winning in Barcelona the European championships. Maybe he can have a super autumn as well on Sunday with another strong performance or a win here in New York. Viktor?
VIKTOR ROTHLIN: Yeah, thank you very much. To be here is really great after five years coming back. Five years ago it was a normal marathon run, and now I'm back as the European champion. I'm looking forward to how it will be to run with the European champion through the city of New York, and I'm very proud to be in the race with the biggest athletes of the world, especially the guys around me and of course, Haile. I'm looking forward to this race. And I hope, again, I can do something special this year because after winning the European title, it was a short time to prepare, but I feel ready and I'm looking forward to a good race.
RICHARD FINN: Thank you, Viktor. Peter, very much like Mara, you won here in March over the half marathon. Do you feel good about winning over the full marathon distance here in New York? Your thoughts about running.
PETER KAMAIS: Thank you very much. I want to thank the organization for inviting me again to the marathon. I think for Sunday, I will not say anything because it's my first time to run marathon. So I think I'll do my best on Sunday.
RICHARD FINN: That's all we can ask, always everybody to do their best. Thank you, Peter. Any questions from the formal part to any of the athletes up here?

Q. Kurt, we're used to seeing you and Edith up there together but here's your chance. Yours would be consecutive, so are you looking for your fifth?
KURT FEARNLEY: Yeah, I was always one behind Edith, so kind of seeing Edith win her fourth and then her fifth, and here's my chance, I guess, to catch up to her. But it's going to be a tough race on Sunday. Everyone's here, and everyone's ready to race and everyone wants this. So we'll see. Sunday morning about 10:00 o'clock whether or not I can catch her. But she is missed. She's a legend on this course. Five New Yorks, she's missed this year, she just had a baby, but she'll be back. Tough as nails.

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