Marathon, Women

The women’s marathon began at 7:30 in the morning but the temperature was still 23° C. (75° F.) with 73% humidity at the start. The contenders went out very slowly, concerned about the weather, and the pack stayed together for the first hour. The halfway mark was finished in 1-15:11, when Romania’s Constantina Dita decided to push the pace. The pace seemed fast and the other favorites, notably Kenyan Catherine Ndereba, did not go with her. By 35K she had opened a 70-second lead. Britain’s Paula Radcliffe, the world-record holder, had gamely hung on early, but injuries had her well below her best and she barely finished, placing 23rd. In the last few kilometers, the chase group closed somewhat on Dita, but she was never in any trouble, winning by 22 seconds over Ndereba, to become the oldest Olympic marathon champion ever, man or woman. Chinese runners Zhou Chunxiu and Zhu Xiaolin closed quickly to finish 3-4.