On the eve of chasingKIMBIA Season Three, the road racing crew got things started with great results. At the CVS Downtown 5K in Providence, Rhode Island, Simon Ndirangu outkicked teammate and defending champion Richard Kiplagat for the win. “It was quite an exciting race,” said Tom Ratcliffe. “There were still a half-dozen athletes in the race approaching the final hill. That’s when Simon and Richard made their move.” It’s the same spot where Richard made his move last year to defeat Anthony Famiglietti and Fasil Bizuneh. Unofficially, Simon ran 13:40.

Further south at the Philly Distance Run Half Marathon, Tom Nyariki and John Yuda were in the hunt until the last stretch. Julius Kibet (who is James Koskei’s brother) had the faster closing kick on this day, pulling away from Nyariki and Yuda to win in 62:01. Nyariki ran 62:04 and Yuda 62:05. Charles Munyeki had a solid race, finishing 6th in 62:28. On the women’s side, Edna Kiplagat finished 3rd in 1:10:11. Pamela Chepchumba was the winner in 68:45.

Be sure to tune into Season Three of chasingKIMBIA starting tomorrow.

Better late than never…Labor Day Weekend produced two KIMbia victories. At the Rock ‘n Roll Half Marathon in VA Beach, Edna Kiplagat continued her dominant 2007 road season with an 8-second win over Akane Wakita. It was Edna’s second win in as many years at VA Beach. Tom Nyariki cracked the top-five of the men’s race, finishing 3rd in 1:02:30, just ten seconds off of winner Haron Toroitich.

Further south, at the U.S. 10K Classic in Atlanta, Simon Ndirangu got back to his winning ways with a 4-second win over teammate Luke Kipkosgei – 29:56 to 30:00. Richard Kiplagat finished 4th in 30:17.

This coming weekend five athletes will travel to the Philadelphia Distance Run Half Marathon. Nyariki, John Yuda, Charles Munyeki, and Gilbert Koech will face a tough men’s field in the city of brotherly love. On the women’s side, Edna Kiplagat will be looking to take the second step towards the $25,000 Triple Crown bonus, awarded to an athlete who wins all three fall half marathons put on by Elite Racing (Rock ‘n Roll VA Beach, Philly Distance Run, and Rock ‘n Roll San Jose). Edna finished 2nd in Philly last year and will face a strong field on Sunday.

Rock ‘n Roll Results
U.S. 10K Classic Results
Philly Race Preview