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Friday, February 04, 2000
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Record marathon field eyed
By Royce Feour
Review-Journal
The Las Vegas international Marathon events will have a record field of 8,000 runners this year despite a much smaller purse, said executive director Al Boka.
The marathon and half-marathon are scheduled for Sunday, and a 5K is set for Saturday.
Boka said he expects about 4,000 runners for the half-marathon, 3,400 for the marathon and 600 for the 5K. The field could go slightly higher than a total of 8,000, he added.
"That is quite an increase over prior years. This year we are on a pace for, and will have, an all-time record," Boka said.
Last year's races attracted 6,000 runners.
Boka said there will be entries from all 50 states and 35 countries, including 100 from France.
Despite the increased entries, Boka said this year's purse is down to $23,000 from last year's $50,000. The men's and women's winners will receive $3,000 each, down from $5,000 last year.
"We lost our $100,000 sponsor (National Sports Service) from last year," Boka said.
Boka also said all expenses for the race are up, including traffic control.
Although the payout has been reduced, Boka said the quality of the event will be better because the marathon is a qualifying race for the U.S. Olympic Trials.
"We have more elite runners this year than ever before," he said. "We have at least 80 guys who have run well under (two hours, 30 minutes). They are all coming here to qualify for the Olympic Trials. They need to run a sub 2:22."
Boka said Eddy Hellebuyck, a native of Belgium living in Albuquerque, N.M., is the favorite in the men's marathon even though four-time defending champion Zoltan Holba of Hungary is back in the field.
"(Hellebuyck) has the fastest personal best of anyone in the field," Boka said. "Eddy wants to run faster than his personal best."
Hellebuyck, a 1996 Olympian for Belgium, has a personal best in the marathon of 2:11:50 in Antwerp, Belgium, in 1994. He also ran a 2:11:53 in London in 1996.
Hellebuyck, 39, became a U.S. citizen last year and will be trying to qualify for the U.S. Olympic Trials. He represented the U.S. in last year's World Championships in the marathon and finished 26th in 2:20:12.
He has entered the Las Vegas marathon only once, dropping out with cramps in 1998.
Other contenders in Sunday's race are Orlando Velazquez of Argentina and Beeja Ram of India.
Holba won last year's Las Vegas marathon in 2:16:42. His three previous winning times in the 26.2-mile event were 2:16:10 in 1996, 2:14:23 in 1997 and 2:14:15 in 1998.
Boka said the three favorites in the women's marathon are Joanna Gront of Poland, the 1998 Las Vegas winner in 2:43:32; Agnes Jacob of Hungary, who was third last year in 2:38:34; and Elvira Kolpakova of Russia, who has a 2:34:22.
Saturday's 5K is scheduled to start at 6:30 a.m. behind the Imperial Palace on Winnick Avenue.
On Sunday, the half-marathon is scheduled to start at 6:30 a.m. in Sloan and the full marathon is set to start at 7:30 in Jean. Both the half-marathon and marathon end at Sunset Park.
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Printable version of this story
Men's favorite Eddy Hellebuyck addresses the media at the MGM while Las Vegas marathon executive director Al Boka watches.
Photo by John Gurzinski.
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