Boston Marathon 2007

Dominance? Did I hear someone say "dominance"? That would be an improvement. What the Kenyans have done to the Boston Marathon, and a few other marathons, is establish a tyranny that certainly should be a very big embarrassment to the rest of the running world. Boston Marathon men's division winner Robert Cheruiyot of Kenya at the finish line at the 111th Boston Marathon in Boston, Massachusetts April 16, 2007.

Cheruiyot won for the 2nd year in a row and third time overall in an official time of 2 hrs, 14 mins and 13 secs to lead an all-Kenyan podium but was well shy of the race record he set last year of 2:07:14.

James Kwambai was 2nd, 20 seconds behind, with 2006 New York Marathon runner-up Stephen Kiagoro third in 2:14:47.

I was confident, Cheruiyot said. I was very strong. I had trained enough. I didn't fear anybody. Also the race was too slow. We were very cautious not to go too fast.

Lidiya Grigoryeva won in an official time of 2:29:18. Latvia's Jelena Prokopcuka was 2nd for the 2nd year in a row, losing by 40 seconds, with Mexico's Madai Perez 3rd, exactly one minute behind the winner.

Kenya's Rita Jeptoo, the 2006 Boston winner, was 4th in 2:33:08 with 2006 London Marathon winner Deena Kastor, hoping to be the 1st US man or woman to win at Boston since 1985, taking fifth in 2:35:09.

Cheruiyot, who also won here in 2003, became the 15th Kenyan man to win in the past 17 editions of the epic 26-mile classic.

Cheruiyot and Kwambai battled for several miles together late in the race but at a final water stop, Cheruiyot surged ahead as Kwambai reached for water and was never caught again.

Japanese athletes won the wheelchair events with Masazumi Soejima taking the men's race and Wakako Tsuchida claiming the women's crown.

Each winner received 100,000 dollars from a total prize money pool of 575,000 dollars.

A lot has changed for the Boston Marathon since its first run in the spring of 1897. Today, what is certainly the oldest and most revered marathon in the country, perhaps the world, began as a vision by the Boston Athletic Association (BAA) founders, after witnessing the first-of-its-kind race at the 1896 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.

18 men leaped from the starting line in front of Metcalf's Mill in Ashland . The starting official had no gun; he simply shouted "Go!" to start the BAA marathon.

In the early years, runners endured the narrow and dusty dirt roads winding their way to Boston. Today, of course, the roads are wide and paved.

The race sure has come a long way in all these years.

This medal is what the 1st place winner received in 1897. ----->