Berlin Marathon top contenders

The Berlin Marathon, Europe's largest marathon last year with 35,786 finishers, has been the site for seven marathon world records and four of the top-7 men's times in the history of marathon running. The flat course, with it's dramatic finish at the Brandenburg Gate, has seen 17 performances under 2 hours and 7 minutes, second only to the Virgin London Marathon which has 20.

Race director Mark Milde, who succeeded his father Horst who founded the race in 1974, has devised a successful format for his event with a clear focus on speed. His priority in recruiting athletes is to hand pick one or two top men or women, surround them with half a dozen pacemakers, and try to push them to the fastest times possible.

It's been a winning formula. In three of the last six editions of the race a man has set the world record. Kenyan Paul Tergat ran 2:04:55 in 2003, becoming the first man ever to crack the 2:05 barrier. Four years later, Ethiopian Haile Gebrselassie dropped Tergat's mark by 29 seconds to 2:04:26. Last year, Gebrselassie became the first man under 2:04 with his still-standing world record of 2:03:59.

Gebrselassie's success in Berlin has made him the face of the race. Both Gebrselassie and the real-,Berlin Marathon have adidas as sponsors, and that synergy has allowed the event to plaster the Ethiopian's image throughout their advertising and promotional materials. Indeed, a photo of Gebrselassie with arms raised in victory greets every visitor to the event's website.

For Sunday's race, Milde has brought back Gebrselassie, but a formidable Kenyan challenger makes a fourth consecutive Berlin victory by the 36 year-old double Olympic 10,000m champion less than certain. Duncan Kibet, who transformed himself from an all-purpose road racer to a marathon runner under the training program of Italian coach Dr. Gabriele Rosa, is the second-fastest marathoner of all-time with a 2:04:27 personal best, less than half a minute behind Gebrselassie. Kibet won last April's Rotterdam Marathon in a thrilling sprint finish over training partner James Kwambai. The pair finished less than one second apart.