Neither the years nor the serious accident he had in 2020 have diminished him. Geoffrey Kamworor returned to the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon thirteen years after his senior winning debut here; and won again, in 58min 14sec, 40 seconds faster than in 2013.
The oldest man in the elite field by far, at 33, the Kenyan showed the youngsters how to do it. Of course it helps to have a plan, AND to have a pal as the pacemaker. But it was an object lesson in how to dominate a race, and let your opponent’s know that if they’re going to beat you, they’ve got to run out of their skin.
Accordingly, Kamworor followed training partner Edwin Kipsaisak through a series of kilometres whose times ranged between the first in 2min 44sec, and the next half dozen between 2.45 and 2.49 – fast enough to discourage the young pursuers from trying to dislodge Kamworor from the shoulder of one of his training partners. When Kisaisak dropped off the pace after 8k, the damage was done; Kamworor was always a step or two ahead of the field, passing 10k in 27.42; and when he put the boot in with a 2min 42sec between 16 and 17k, the race was determined.
Birhanu Balew, an Ethiopian representing Bahrain, and debutant Kenyan Gideon Rono held on long enough in his slipstream to finish second and third respectively, in 58.23 and 58.38.
‘Actually, I knew I was going to win around 14k,’ Kamworor said afterwards. ‘I knew I’d prepared well; I came here wanting to run a fast time, and Edwin did a great job of pacing. It’s great to come back and win even faster’.
A second part to his illustrious career looked unlikely six years ago, when Kamworor was struck by a motorbike while on a solo training run in the dark, and had his tibia shattered. The man who had won three consecutive world half marathon and two world cross titles, and threatened to dislodge another of his training partners, Eliud Kipchoge from being the best distance man in the world, was on and off the operating and physio tables for the next three years.
‘I’m satisfied that I’m fully recovered now,’ said the man who also won two New York Marathons prior to his accident. He also finished second in London in 2023, after his resurrection; and that’s his next objective. ‘It’s very satisfying to win here again. Now I shall go home and prepare for London in April. It will be very tough competition, but that’s what I like. My personal best is 2.04, but I believe I can go faster’.
The ultimate aim is the Olympic marathon in Los Angeles 2028; by which time he’ll be verging on 36. But, as we pointed out yesterday, another man whose career was interrupted by injuries, but who maintained the impetus to return to the top, Carlos Lopes won the Olympic marathon at 38.
The women’s race dispensed with a pacemaker, but Tanzanian Magdalena Shauri was happy to do the job, and probably sacrificed her chances of victory by doing so; because with two kilometres to run, she was passed by the Ethiopians Melknat Wudu and debutante Asmerech Anley. As Anley said later, ‘I realised I could win with a kilometre to go. The times would have been much faster with a pacemaker, but it doesn’t matter because I won’. A former African junior 3000 metres champion on the track as recently as 2023, she dismissed the idea of a marathon any time soon, saying, ‘This was my first half-marathon. I want to do some more before I even think of a marathon. Wudu was second and Shauri third.
LEADING RESULTS
21KM MEN
1. Geoffrey Kamworor KEN 58:14
2. Birhanu Balew BRN 58:23
3. Gideon Rono KEN 58:38
4. Jemal Mekonen ETH 58:55
5. Samwel Masai KEN 58:59
6. Benjamin Ratsim TAN 59:56
7. Jirata Dinki ETH 59:57
8. Yismaw Dillu ETH 60:05
9. Brian Kibor KEN 60:07
10. Mao Ako TAN 60:20