The Last Hurrah
American mile record-holder Alan Webb wins a close race; Canadian mile record-holder Carmen Douma-Hussar leads the ladies
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At the end of a long season, some of the world's top milers showed they still had some kick left at the Continental Airlines® Fifth Avenue Mile. American mile record-holder Alan Webb of Reston, VA, thrilled the uproarious crowd lining Fifth Avenue as he pulled away from the lead pack in the final meters, with defending champion Kevin Sullivan of Canada a close second and Jon Rankin of San Diego, CA, third. The women's winner, Canadian Carmen Douma-Hussar, ran the fastest time here since 1998 to upset defending champion Sara Hall of Big Bear Lake, CA, who finished third. Amy Mortimer of Providence, RI, was second.
A tailwind in the first quarter-mile of the race resulted in a conservative start from Webb, who was confident in allowing his DC Elite teammate, Chris Lukezic, to lead in the early stages. Lukezic maintained the lead to the half-mile (1:58), with former UCLA standout Jon Rankin in second. Webb patiently waited until the three-quarter mark before making a move, which Sullivan attempted to answer.
"I covered all of the moves that were made," Sullivan said. "I was lucky and I got on Alan's shoulder, and he's great to follow. For a bit in that last 100, I thought I might be able to sneak by him, but he had another gear." When they had 100 meters left, a spectator gasped that Webb might be celebrating prematurely, as Sullivan made a final surge to try to erase Webb's tiny lead. But, after a disappointing eighth-place finish at the IAAF World Championships 1500 meters in Osaka, Webb was determined to end his otherwise excellent season on a high note. He broke the tape in 3:52.7. Sullivan's chase ended in 3:52.9, and Rankin followed in 3:53.3.
"They put on a world-class event here. You can look at every guy in the field here, and he has a great résumé," Webb said. "To pull it out here was the perfect end to my year. I roomed with both Jon and Kevin this past summer, so I figured out all of their tricks—I used the Jedi mind trick on them."
In the fastest women's Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue mile in just less than a decade, there was no shoo-in. At the quarter-mile mark, Meskerem Legesse of Ethiopia and Molly Huddle of Providence, RI, were leading; at halfway, New Zealand's fastest female miler and 2006 Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile runner-up Kim Smith took the lead in 2:12, with 2005 champion Douma-Hussar in close pursuit. Hall joined the lead pack shortly afterward. With 200 meters to go, Douma-Hussar pushed the pace, with Smith one second behind. Douma-Hussar held off all attacks and prevailed in 4:22.8, and a last-moment shakeup saw Mortimer take second (4:23.6) and Hall third (4:24.1). "In that last 400, we were all just going really hard," Douma-Hussar said afterward. "If you're going to finish off the season, it's great to finish with a fun win in New York."
The top three finishers in the NYRR Road Mile Championships race were Stephen Chemlany of Westchester Track Club (WTC) in 4:05.6, Matt Deshane of Plattsburgh, NY, in 4:07.6, and Demesse Tefera of WTC in 4:08.1. The women's top three were Catha Mullen of the New York Athletic Club in 4:41.7, Atalalech Ketema of WTC in 4:42.8, and Natalie Gingerich of the Central Park Track Club in 4:43.7.
"Today we had close to 5,000 runners, and next year, we want to grow this race to 10,000 runners," said Mary Wittenberg, NYRR president and CEO. "We had a lot of fun today, with participation from all ages, from eight-year-olds to a 98-year-old. This race is like watching Derek Jeter play baseball. These are the best runners in our sport out here on the roads of New York today."
It was celebration time after the race, as illustrated by Webb picking up the finish-line tape and tossing it into the air. He joked to reporters that he was going to take a few weeks off, sit on the couch, eat potato chips, and watch football like everyone else before beginning training for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Continental Airlines Fifth Avenue Mile winners and American and Canadian mile record-holders Alan Webb (left) and Carmen Douma-Hussar (right) celebrate a glorious end to a long season.
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