Ethiopia's Gebre Gebremariam won the men's race on his marathon debut and Kenya's Edna Kiplagat took the women's title in her first New York race at the 2010 ING New York City Marathon on Sunday.
Gebremariam had never run a marathon before, but that didn't stop him from handling the distance, the challenging course, and perhaps the deepest professional field in New York City Marathon history to become the race's 2010 champion in a time of 2:08:14 - the sixth fastest in race history.
With Gebrselassie out of contention, Gebremarium burst ahead of the rest of the field with two miles to go as the leaders headed for the finish line in Central Park, and having edged seven seconds ahead of his Kenyan rival with a mile to go and did not look back.
Kenyans Emmanuel Mutai (2:09:18) and Moses Kigen Kipkosgei (2:10:39) finished second and third respectively.
After the race he said: "I can't believe it. I am so happy.
"It's my first marathon, and I wasn't sure I could win, but now I'm sure.
"New York is New York - it's so special for me just to finish."
The women's race was won by another debutant, Kenya's Edna Kiplagat, who crossed the line in 2:28:20, 20 seconds ahead of America's Shalane Flanagan, who finished second on her debut. Kenya's Mary Keitany was third.
Selected Results
Men
- Gebre Gebrmariam 02:08:14 Ethiopia
- Emmanuel Mutai 02:09:18 Kenya
- Moses Kigen Kipkosgei 02:10:39 Kenya
- Abderrahim Goumri 02:10:51 Morocco
- James Kwambai 02:11:31 Kenya
Women
- Edna Kiplagat 02:28:20 Kenya
- Shalane Flanagan 02:28:40 United States
- Mary Keitany 02:29:01 Kenya
- Inga Abitova 02:29:17 Russia
- Kim Smith 02:29:28 United States