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By David Monti, Race Results Weekly
(04-Oct) — The biggest non-marathon cash prize in road running will be on the 
line on Sunday when the inaugural three-race B.A.A. Distance Medley concludes at the 12th B.A.A. Half-Marathon in Boston. The overall male and female series winners –determined by the lowest total time from the B.A.A. 5-K, B.A.A. 10-K and the B.A.A. Half– will each be awarded $100,000.
“In this, the B.A.A.’s 125th anniversary year, we are plesed to have been able to mark this milestone by offering a unique series which promotes the City of Boston and the sport of running,” commented Boston Athletic Association excecutive director Tom Grilk in a statement. ”In addition to the overall men’s and women’s champions, the B.A.A. Distance Medley includes more than 1400 participants who will have completed all three races.”
Four men –Ethiopia’s Ali Abdosh and Kenya’s Sam Chelanga, Allan Kiprono and Lani Rutto– are closely bunched on top of the leader board, separated by just five seconds. The first two men are tied with a total time of 42 minutes and 21 seconds. Abdosh was ninth in the B.A.A. 5-K last April and third in the B.A.A. 10-K last June, while Chelanga finished second and sixth, respectively. Kiprono is four seconds back in third, and Rutto is just one second behind Kiprono in fourth. Although Abdosh has a mediocre half-marathon personal best of 1:04:26, he boasts a 27:04.92 10,000m best. Chelanga ran 1:01:19 at the NYC Half back in March and is the fastest man in the field for the 21.097-kilometer distance.
The women’s contest has come down to just two athletes, New Zealand’s Kim Smith and Ethiopia’s Aheza Kiros. Smith, with a total time of 47 minutes and 2 seconds, has 16-second lead over Kiros by virtue of her third place finish at the 5-K (15:26) and her victory at the 10-K (31:36). Kiros was second at both events. Smith seems well-positioned for victory, given that the half-marathon is probably her strongest event. She holds the USA all-comers record of 1:07:11 set at the Rock ‘N’ Roll Philadelphia Half-Marathon in 2011. Kiros’s best time is 1:09:10.
In addition to the Distance Medley prizes, athletes will also be competed for a $38,000 prize money purse, with $5000 going to the winners. Kenyan athletes hold the course records: 1:02:20 by Thomas Nyariki (2007) and 1:10:52 by Caroline Rotich (2010). At last year’s event, organizers recorded a record 5179 finishers.
PHOTO: Kim Smith competing in the 2012 Olympic Marathon where she finished 15th in 2:26:59 (photo by Jonathan Cooper)
(c) 2012 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved, used with permission
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