Westchester Track Club Men, Nike Central Park Track Club Women Take Team Titles at NYRR Championships
Ketema and Endale of WTC win 5-mile races in a breeze
[Women's Photos] [Men's Photos] [Event Photos] [Video]
New York, August 18, 2007—Autumn-like temperatures and a cool breeze led to fast times today at the NYRR Team Championships in Central Park. And once again, no runners were faster or stronger than those from the Westchester Track Club (WTC), who captured both individual races.
WTC took the men’s team title for the seventh straight year, and the Nike Central Park Track Club (CPTC) edged the New York Athletic Club (NYAC) by two points to break WTC’s five-year dominance of this race.
WTC’s Atalelech Ketema broke away in the first mile and won the women’s race in 27:59. The top 18 women ran the five-mile course in under 30 minutes, and the top 32 finishers ran times under 32:00.
Abiyot Endale led a pack of seven WTC men who crossed the finish line first, taking the race in 23:45. The top 15 men finished faster than 25 minutes, and 38 men bettered 26:00.
“I thought there was no faster runner than me today,” said Ketema, who used an early burst to subdue the women’s field. “When I went to the front, I don’t know why they were not coming with me. But I said, ‘O.K., I’ll just go by myself.’”
Ketema, who lives in the Bronx, made winning look easy despite having a cold and a sore right leg.
“I was trying to close the gap on her, but I just couldn’t,” said Aileen Conlon of CPTC and Hoboken, NJ, who finished second in 28:19. “But that’s O.K. Our team really stepped it up this year and did great.”
So the did the WTC men, who turned their race into a tempo run, with Endale taking a slight lead after two miles and maintaining it throughout. “I trained very hard to prepare for this race,” he said. “I’m happy to win, but it was very important for us to be the best team.”
Following Endale to the finish line were teammates Demesse Tefera, Stephen Chemlany, Deresse Deniboba, Worku Beyi, Genna Tufa, and Solomon Too. Abraha Hadush Asefa of West Side Runners (WSX) was eighth, trailed by Chris Raabe of The Running Company and Brian Dalpiaz of the Warren Street Social & Athletic Club.
“There’s no team barring the shoe company teams that Westchester couldn’t beat,” Warren Street coach Rick Pascarella. “Westchester is, by far, the class of the New York area, and maybe even nationally.”
“Westchester is intimidating because they have such a strong pack of athletes who have running as their No. 1 priority,” said Karl Dusen of the Manhattan Track Club, who came in 21st in 25:15. “I like having them around because they set the bar so high. They give the rest of us a standard to shoot for and goals to achieve.”
For Dusen, who will compete in the U.S. Olympic Team Trials – Men’s Marathon in Central Park on November 3, the goal Saturday was to run well and without pain in his first race since tearing his left calf muscle in June.
“Without my teammates, I wouldn’t be here,” he said, gesturing toward his black-shirted MTC cohorts. “These guys are my support system. My team means the world to me.”
It’s a sentiment shared by runners from all 74 teams represented. Shouts of encouragement during the race, congratulatory hugs and back-slaps for teammates at the finish line, and festive scenes under the individual team banners exemplified what the NYRR Team Championships are all about.
Leading the way among women’s open teams were CPTC, NYAC, WTC, Moving Comfort New York, and The Running Company. The women’s masters titles went to WTC (40+), with New York Harriers finishing second; CPTC (50+), which nipped New York Flyers by three seconds; and Millrose Athletic Association (60+), with Mercury Masters placing second.
The men’s top five men’s open teams were WTC, The Running Company, MTC, WSX, and CPTC. Capturing the masters titles were WTC (40+), which beat Warren Street by less than a minute (2:14:45 to 2:15:41); Taconic Road Runners (50+), with CPTC second; and the Greater New York Racing Team (60+), which held off Taconic RR by 13 seconds.
The race-time temperature was 60 degrees with 52-percent humidity and a 17-mph wind.
[Men's Results] [Women's Results]
Westchester Track Club's Atalelech Ketema en route to her victory at the NYRR Team Championships on Saturday, August 18.
