Russians top winners in Twin Cities Marathon

ST. PAUL (AP) -- Spectators at Sunday's 2000 Twin Cities Marathon saw a 25-mile chess match give way to a NASCAR-like final lap.

Russian Sergei Fedotov broke out of a 10-man lead pack on the 26th mile and outkicked five runners to the finish line to capture the first marathon victory of his career.

Fedotov's winning time of 2 hours, 12 minute, 40 seconds beat runner-up Ezael Tlhobo of South Africa by a mere three seconds. Just 13 seconds separated the first six placers in the tightest group finish in the event's 19-year history.

Joshua Kipkemboi (2:12:46), Pavel Andreev (2:12:48), Elias Chelanga (2:12:49) and Elly Rono (2:12:53) took third through sixth place. Their sub-2:13 times bettered the winning time posted in seven of the last eight Twin Cities Marathons.

The first 16 men's finishers included four Russians, six Kenyans, two Spaniards and one runner each from South Africa, Poland and the United States.

Adding to the drama, Kipkemboi came within 14 seconds of breaking a Masters (40-and-over) world record. The 41-year-old Kenyan's time of 2:12:46 barely missed Kjell-Erik Stahl's 1986 record of 2:12:33. Kipkemboi broke his TCM Masters record set in 1999 by 2:00.

The $20,000 winner's payday was the biggest ever for Fedotov, who was making his TCM debut and running just his fourth career marathon.

"I was nervous coming in," Fedotov admitted. "I just started running marathons a year ago. I hurt my Achilles in August and didn't train much in September. Early in the race, it was really tough for me just hanging with the lead pack. I was just holding on to their tails. I didn't want to be left alone."

But the race eventually played right into the hands of the 27-year-old Fedotov, the youngest runner in the front pack and a former track & field standout at 5,000 meters. "When I saw there was 200 meters left, I knew it was mine," said Fedotov.

A pilot in the Russian army, Fedotov admitted that "I don't even know how much $20,000 is. It will be a nice present for my wife and 5-year-old daughter."

There's only been one smaller winning margin in TCM history -- in 1991, when Australian Malcolm Norwood (2:12:10) won by just two seconds over Twin Cities native Bob Kempainen (2:12:12).

Fedotov beat a solid field that included runner-up Tlhobo, who has twice run under 2:10, and three-time defending champion Andrew Musova of Kenya, who settled for 10th in 2:14:25.

The men weren't the only ones posting a thrilling finish. The women's race was decided by a mere six seconds -- the closest winning margin for that division in the TCM. Russian Zinaida Semenova's time of 2:29:37 edged fellow Russian Irina Suvorova (2:29:43).

Semenova, 38, who also won $20,000, made it 2-for-2 in Twin Cities Marathon championships. The Moscow native, who skipped the 1999 TCM, won her debut here in 1998 by a more comfortable margin.

More than 8,000 runners competed on the 26.2-mile course that began at the Metrodome in Minneapolis and finished at the State Capitol in St. Paul. Runners didn't face strong winds, although the unofficial temperature was a crisp 33 degrees at the start.

Marathon results

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) -- Top finishers Sunday in the Twin Cities Marathon:

1. Sergei Fedotov, 27, Russia, 2:12:40.

2. Ezael Tlhobo, 36, Port Elizabeth, South Africa, 2:12:43.

3. Joshua Kipkemboi, 41, Kenya (Concord, Mass.), 2:12:46.

4. Pavel Andreev, 30, Moscow, Russia, 2:12:48.

5. Elias Chelanga, 36, Kenya (Concord, Mass.), 2:12:49.

6. Elly Rono, 34, Kenya (Chapel Hill, N.C.), 2:12:53.

7. Stephen Ndungu, 33, Kenya (Concord, Mass.), 2:13:03.

8. Yosuke Osawa, 32, Japan (Boulder, Colo.), 2:13:13.

9. Fedor Ryjov, 40, Moscow, Russia, 2:13:45.

10. Andrew Musova, 30, Kenya (Albuquerque, N.M.), 2:14:25.

11. Juan Torres Ruiz, 41, Spain (Ossining, N.Y.) 2:16:39.

12. Andrey Kuznetsov, 42, Russia (Rockville, Md.), 2:17:43.

13. Pablo Sierra, 31, Spain (Oxford, Miss.), 2:18:17.

14. Wierslaw Perske, 40, Poland, 2:18:50.

15. Daniel Kihara, 33, Kenya (Philadelphia, Pa.), 2:21:24.

16. Steve Wilson, 41, Layfayette, Ind., 2:22:20.

17. Jacques VanRensburg, 32, South Africa (Conifer, Colo.), 2:22:56.

18. Patrick Kiptum, 29, Kenya (Stillwater, Okla.) 2:23:55.

19. Bob Schweim, 41, Philadelphia, Pa., 2:25:40.

20. Alfredo Vigueras, 37, Woodland, Calif., 2:27:11.

21. Kurt Keiser, 27, Omaha, Neb., 2:27:39.

22. Dallas Allaire, 38, Red Rock, Pa., 2:30:11.

23. Charlie Andrews, 43, Rochester, N.Y., 2:30:52;

24. Charles Hubbard, 39, Bloomington, Minn., 2:31:19.

25. Kevin Haas, 42, St. Louis Park, Minn., 2:31:33.

Women:

1. Zinaida Semenova, 38, Moscow, Russia, 2:29:37.

2. Irina Suvorova, 28, Moscow, Russia (Rockville, Md.), 2:29:43.

3. Olga Kovpotina, 29, Russia (Rockville, Md.), 2:33:32.

4. Tatyana Podznyakova, 45, Vinnitza, Ukraine, 2:35:43.

5. Ramilia Burangulova, 39, Russia (Tampa, Fla.), 2:35:58.

6. Margaret Kagiri, 32, Kenya (West Chester, Pa.), 2:37:21.

7. Alena Peterkova, 39, Czechoslovakia, 2:38:10.

8. Svetlana Tkach-Shepelev, 31, Moscow, Russia (Rockville, Md.), 2:42:44.

9. Kim Kauls, 31, Forest Lake, Minn., 2:44:07.

10. Bev Docherty, 42, St. Paul, Minn., 2:44:47.

11. Marie Boyd, 40, Albuquerque, N.M., 2:46:56.

12. Maria Trujillo de Rios, 40, Los Gatos, Calif., 2:47:28.

13. Mary Sweeney, 40, Atlanta, Ga., 2:49:04.

14. Nancy Hylden, 36, Duluth, Minn., 2:51:19.

15. Gillian Horovitz, 45, New York, N.Y., 2:52:13.

16. Staci Bennett, 31, White Bear Lake, Minn., 2:52:54.

17. Jennifer Brower-McNutt, 30, Austin, Tex., 2:54:36.

18. Claudia Kasen, 43, Orlando, Fla., 2:55:37.

19. Marina Jones, 48, Palm Desert, Claif., 2:56:11.

20. Sonya Anderson, 34, Minneapolis, Minn., 2:57:15.

21. Vicki Ostendorf, 35, Stillwater, Minn., 2:57:32.

22. Donna Moore, 40, Silver Spring, Md., 2:57:32.

23. Kate Davis, 34, Woodbury, Minn., 2:59:15.

24. Karen MacKenzie, 42, Toronto, Canada, 3:00:02.

25. Judy Meyer, 40, New Brighton, Minn., 3:00:57.