... and we thought he is back after New Orleans! Get better Martin! By Simon Hart
Lel, who triumphed in the capital in 2005, 2007 and 2008, pulled out on Tuesday after suffering prolonged pain in his right shin during training.
Last year, the 31 year-old had to withdraw on the eve of the race after failing to recover in time from a hip problem, leaving the way open for fellow Kenyan Sammy Wanjiru to triumph.
Race director David Bedford said: “It is very disappointing to lose Martin for the second year in a row. He is one of the greatest marathon runners in the world and one of London’s great champions. We look forward to welcoming him back next year.”
Lel’s duel with Wanjiru had been one of the most eagerly anticipated clashes of this year’s race, which takes place on April 25 with Virgin as its new title sponsor.
Wanjiru, the Olympic champion, broke Lel’s course record to triumph in 2hr 5min 10sec last year but Lel scored a decisive victory over his compatriot in a half-marathon in New Orleans in February.
Despite Lel’s absence, Wanjiru still faces plenty of competition in one of the strongest men’s races ever assembled on the capital’s streets. In fact, he will go to the start line as only the third quickest athlete in the field, which means the course record is likely to come under attack again if the weather is conducive.
The two fastest men in the field, both also Kenyans, were little known a year ago but the pair rewrote the world order in an extraordinary race in Rotterdam last April.
Duncan Kibet won in 2-04.27 to become the second quickest marathon runner of all time behind Haile Gebrselassie while Abel Kirui was third in 2-05.04, making him the sixth fastest man in history. Kirui went on to win the world title in Berlin last summer.
Beyond the formidable Kenyan contingent, strong challenges are also likely to come from Ethiopian Tsegaye Kebede, who gave Wanjiru a fright on The Embankment last year before finishing runner-up 10 seconds behind, and Morocco’s Olympic silver medallist, Jaouad Gharib.
The women’s race features a rematch of last year’s battle between Germany’s Irina Mikitenko and Britain’s Mara Yamauchi, who took first and second place respectively.
Mikitenko will be chasing her third successive win in London but Yamauchi, who missed much of last year with a foot injury, signalled her return to form by winning last month’s New York Half-Marathon in a course-record 1-09.17.
In the absence of expectant mother Paula Radcliffe, Yamauchi has another opportunity to step out of the world record-holder’s shadow and cement her reputation as one of the world’s top marathon runners.
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