08.25.07
Men’s marathon team fourth
OSAKA, Japan - Team USA’s men’s marathon team finished fourth in World Cup competition while most American athletes expected to move on their qualifying rounds did so Saturday morning during opening-day competition at the 2007 IAAF World Outdoor Track & Field Championships. Competition continues Saturday evening.
The marathoners withstood brutal conditions in the meet’s opening event. With a start time of 7 a.m., the race finished with temperatures in the mid-80s, humidity at 63 percent, and a bright sun. Employing conservative running early on, Americans steadily moved up in the field throughout the race. Top finisher was Mbarak Hussein (Albuquerque, N.M.), 21st in 2:23:04. Mike Morgan (Rochester Hills, Mich.) was 23rd in 2:23:28, Kyle O’Brien (Shelby Township, Mich.) was 32nd in 2:28:28, with Fernando Cabada (Bloomington, Ind.) 50th in 2:35:48. Simeon Sawe (Santa Fe, N.M.) did not start.
Luke Kibet of Kenya took the individual gold in 2:15:59, with Mubarak Hassan Shami of Qatar second in 2:17:18 and Viktor Rothlin of Switzerland third in 2:17:25.
Team placings were determined by combined time for the top three finishers. Team USA posted a team time of 7:15:00 for fourth, behind Japan in first (6:54:23), Korea in second (7:12:08) and Kenya in third (7:12:33). Ethiopia was fifth, well behind Team USA, in 7:19:08.
