Ndereba, Cherigat give Kenya sweep in Boston Marathon

<br>BOSTON (AP) _ Catherine Ndereba of Kenya won the Boston Marathon for the third time Monday, her 16-second margin of victory tying for the smallest in women's race history. <br><br>Timothy Cherigat

Monday, April 19th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

BOSTON (AP) _ Catherine Ndereba of Kenya won the Boston Marathon for the third time Monday, her 16-second margin of victory tying for the smallest in women's race history.

Timothy Cherigat won the men's race in 2 hours, 10 minutes, 37 seconds to complete a Kenyan sweep.

Ndereba, the world champion, finished her hot and historic victory in 2:24:27.

The women got a head start for the first time, leaving Hopkinton 29 minutes ahead of the men and the recreational field of 20,404. Ndereba and Elfenesh Alemu of Ethiopia ran side-by-side for 10 miles before they reached Kenmore Square with a mile to go.

That's when Ndereba sprinted into the lead, and Alemu, wilting in the 85-degree heat, did not have the energy to respond.

Ndereba's time _ the 11th-best for a woman at Boston _ was fast for a tough course and one of the hottest races in the event's 108-year history, though still cooler than the 96 degrees reached in the 1976 ``Run for the Hoses.''

Ndereba also won at Boston in 2000-01. Alemu, who is married to 2000 Olympic champion Gezahegne Abera, has won three marathons in her career and run under 2:25 seven times since 2000.

Defending champion Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot was among the lead pack of six men running side-by-side at the halfway mark. Soon after, he stopped for a time but later rejoined the race.

By midmorning, runners gathered by the hundreds at the starting line at the Hopkinton Common, some reading newspapers and magazines to kill time, others talking with family and friends. A few decided to take a quick nap on the town green.

It was 83 degrees in Hopkinton when the female contenders began at 11:31 a.m., leaving the traditional noon start for the men and the recreational field. At the finish line, the temperature was far above the average high of 57 for April 19 in Boston.

Race officials prepared for the heat with extra water at every mile marker, and additional medical personnel throughout the course. Spectators also helped by handing out water and spraying their garden hoses onto the streets as the runners went by.

The Red Cross had double the usual amount of ice _ 80 pounds at each of 26 spots along the route, said Bruce Kahn, station supervisor at the starting line.

``We've got lots of ambulances standing by,'' he said. ``If they don't cool off, it can be life threatening.''

Ernst Van Dyk of South Africa set a course record in the men's wheelchair division, finishing in 1:18:27 to break Heinz Frei's 1994 mark of 1:21:23 and win for the fourth straight year. Van Dyk is tied with Franz Nietlispach (1997-00) for the most consecutive victories in the men's wheelchair and needs one more win to match Nietlispach for most wins overall.

Cheri Blauwet of Menlo Park, Calif., won the women's wheelchair race in 1:39:53. Defending champion Christina Ripp dropped out at the 12-mile mark.