Fagan & Gebre Win 3M Half Marathon

January 26, 2009 from press release (AUSTIN, TX) Martin Fagan of Ireland bested a competitive elite field to take first place in the 2009 3M Half Marathon and set a new event record with a final time of 1:01:05, shaving 11 seconds off the previous record set by Mexico's Andres Espinoza in 1999. Making his road race debut, distance runner Monder Rizka of Belgium placed second in the men's open division with a time of 1:01:47. Last year's winner and Fagan¹s training partner, Andrew Lemoncello of Scotland, placed third with 1:01:52. Late entrant Eric Chirchir of Kenya kept the elite field competitive and placed fourth just one second behind Lemoncello.

Belaynesh Gebre of Ethiopia took the women¹s open division with a time of 1:11:17, nearly two minutes over the record 1:09:35 set in 2008 by Jacqueline Nyetipei. In second, Elizabeth Chelagat of Kenya came in at 1:11:48, followed by 2007 winner Kathy Butler of Great Britain with a time of 1:12:12.

Start time weather conditions for the race were cloudy with temperatures about 37 degrees (Fahrenheit) with east/southeast winds of about one mile per hour; humidity was 79 percent. This was the second largest 3M Half Marathon ever, with more than 5,000 runners registered for the three events: a 13.1 mile half marathon; two-person half marathon relay (legs of 6.4 and 6.7 miles), and kids non-competitive fun run. The previous high water mark was set just last year, with more than 5,300 registrants.

In the female masters division, Russia's Albina Gallyamova won her third consecutive 3M Half Marathon with a time of 1:17:19. Also from Russia, Sergey Kaledin won the men¹s masters division in 1:08.36. Brad Ray of New Mexico, was the overall male wheelchair division winner for the second consecutive year at 53:04. The winner for the overall female wheelchair division for the sixth consecutive time was local favorite Kristen Messer, with a time of 1:33:02. The total cash purse was $18,250 in prizes and bonuses.

More than $30,000 was donated to Any Baby Can Child and Family Resource Center of Austin. Any Baby Can¹s mission is to ensure that the youngest, the sickest and the poorest children in our community reach their potential through education, therapy and family support services.

For more information on the race, please visit: www.3mhalfmarathon.com