In her fifth appearance at the Carlsbad 5000, 23-year-old Meseret Defar of Ethiopia became the first woman to successfully defend her title in the race that has seen 16 world records broken in its 22-year history. She won in a time of 15 minutes, one second over the five-kilometer course, falling short in her attempt at also breaking the world record for the second year in a row. In the men's race, a new champion was crowned. In his first race on American soil, Kenyan Simon Ndirangu, 26, won in a time of 13:28.
In 2006, Defar broke the world record at Carlsbad, shattering the previous record by five seconds when she ran 14:46. She had hoped to run 14:40 this year.
“I felt good, I felt strong,” Defar said of her performance. “Sometimes, it's just like this.”
According to the men's winner, racing conditions were “perfect.”
“I liked the course,” said Ndirangu. “After mile two, I knew I would win the race.”
American Jen Rhines, 32, finished second, in front of Ethiopian Aheza Kiros, who was third in 15:25.
Henry Rono, 55, marked his return to racing as he placed second in his age division (55-59) in a time of 17:48.
“This was a very uplifting experience,” Rono said. “I let my body lead me. It is good to be back.”
A husband and wife team, Dennis and Michelle Simonaitis, from Draper, Utah claimed the top spots in both the men's and women's masters races, finishing in 14:55 and 17:03 respectively.
More than 9,000 runners and walkers participated in the Carlsbad 5000 and 4,120 kids, ages 12 and younger, raced in the North Island Credit Union Junior Carlsbad March 31.
In 2006, Defar broke the world record at Carlsbad, shattering the previous record by five seconds when she ran 14:46. She had hoped to run 14:40 this year.
“I felt good, I felt strong,” Defar said of her performance. “Sometimes, it's just like this.”
According to the men's winner, racing conditions were “perfect.”
“I liked the course,” said Ndirangu. “After mile two, I knew I would win the race.”
American Jen Rhines, 32, finished second, in front of Ethiopian Aheza Kiros, who was third in 15:25.
Henry Rono, 55, marked his return to racing as he placed second in his age division (55-59) in a time of 17:48.
“This was a very uplifting experience,” Rono said. “I let my body lead me. It is good to be back.”
A husband and wife team, Dennis and Michelle Simonaitis, from Draper, Utah claimed the top spots in both the men's and women's masters races, finishing in 14:55 and 17:03 respectively.
More than 9,000 runners and walkers participated in the Carlsbad 5000 and 4,120 kids, ages 12 and younger, raced in the North Island Credit Union Junior Carlsbad March 31.