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Morgunova
shatters women's records
Muindi repeats as men's champion
 As
22,903 Honolulu Marathon runners bolted in darkness to the
concussion of a howitzer and the crack of aerial fireworks,
Lyubov Morgunova had no idea she would earn in one morning
about 20 times more than the average Russian worker makes
in a year: $40,000.
It
was for a feat few ever thought could be accomplished in
the Honolulu Marathon with its subtropic humidity, headwinds,
crosswinds and Diamond Head heartbreaker.
"Never
in my wildest dreams did I expect this," said race
director Jon Cross after Morgunova not only smashed Carla
Beurskens' 14-year-old course record but also became the
first women to ever break 2 hours and 30 minutes in a Hawaii
marathon with a stunning 2:28:33 victory.
For
her win Morgunova received $15,000, plus $25,000 more in
bonuses for setting the course record and matching various
time incentives never before approached on one of the world's
more ponderous courses.
"I
can't say I'm totally surprised," said Honolulu Marathon
Association president Jim Barahal, who earlier had huddled
with agents and coaches for the elite women to discuss a
strategy for a fast race led by a designated woman pace-setter.
"With
the field we had and the fact there was no wind Saturday,
I said let's shoot for 2:28:00," Barahal said.
Meanwhile,
Jimmy Muindi of Kenya also collected a $15,000 first prize
with his second consecutive win in the men's race. He led
the race's 22,636 finishers in a time of 2:15:19.
The
finishing figure (of 26,465 original entries) makes Honolulu
the sixth largest marathon in the world this year.
"The
weather was very good, no wind, just a little bit humid,"
said Muindi, who was running in his eighth Honolulu Marathon.
Unlike
the closest men's finishes of 1998 and 1999, Muindi dropped
his nearest rival, fellow Kenyan Philip Taurus, at mile
22.
The
top four finishers were Kenyans, with Eliud Kering 17 seconds
behind as runner-up.
Microchips
give fans chance to track competitors
For
the first time, microchips atached to runners' shoe laces
gave fans the chance to track the progress of competitors
in the race.
 According
to Holly Huber, co-owner and programmer for Island Infotech
(the company which created and operates the Honolulu Marathon
website), the new timing chips allowed marathon fans to
check on the progress of any member of the field as they
passed four different checkpoints: 10 kilometers, half marathon
(20 kilometers), 30 kilometers and the finish.
Computer
users were able to access information throughout the race
by typing in the name of any runner, his or her bib number,
country, city or state.
(text
excerpted from the Honolulu
Star-Bulletin, Monday, December 11, 2000)
The
28th Annual Honolulu Marathon was held on Sunday, December
10, 2000. There were 22,636 Finishers out of 26,465 Entrants.
It was the first year that a chip timing system was used
in the Honolulu Marathon.
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