Boch and Dattke added to Frankfurt field

Last year’s men’s champion Brimin Misoi renews his rivalry with runner-up Samwel Mailu, the latter arriving in Frankfurt with recent outstanding form.

Among the challengers to both Kenyans should be Guye Adola. The Ethiopian has a personal best of 2:03:46 which makes him among the fastest ever lining up for the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon.

A close contest is also in prospect in the women’s race with five contenders showing personal bests of under 2:23:00. The latest additions to the line-ups are homegrown with Simon Boch joining the men’s field and Miriam Dattke, fourth in the European Championships in the women’s event last year, both among Germany’s top distance performers. They have every intention of making good use of Frankfurt’s historically fast course in seeking qualification for the Olympic Marathon in Paris next year.

Taking into account all events held in conjunction, the organizers of the 40th Mainova Frankfurt Marathon expect around 25,000 participants. Among them will be 13,000 for the marathon. The Mainova Frankfurt Marathon is an Elite Label Race of World Athletics, the sport’s governing federation. Entries are still available at: www.frankfurt-marathon.com

“With these strong elite fields we hope to see a thrilling race once again. Frankfurt has often been a successful venue for German top runners. And with Simon Boch and Miriam Dattke now on the start list this tradition will hopefully continue,“ said Jo Schindler, the Race Director of the Mainova Frankfurt Marathon.

One of the leading contenders, Samwel Mailu, has shown brilliant form in the build-up to Frankfurt. The Kenyan sprang a surprise in winning the bronze medal at the World Half Marathon Championships at the beginning of October, improving his best to 59:19. This performance suggests that he is ready for a fast race beside the River Main. His rivals such as Guye Adola (2:03:46 pb), defending champion Brimin Misoi (2:06:11) and Ethiopia’s Mulugeta Uma (2:06:07) will have to be on their best form to beat him.

Simon Boch could well cause a surprise by securing one of the three places on Germany’s men’s team for the Olympic Marathon. He has made a big improvement this year, running 2:09:25 in Linz.

Visiline Jepkescho of Kenya is the fastest woman in the field with a personal best of 2:21:37 but there are another six rivals who have similarly strong claims for the title. Among them is the reigning champion of the Vienna City Marathon, Magdalyne Masai, whose best is 2:22:16, as well as her Kenyan compatriot Agnes Keino, who broke the course record in Munich a year ago with 2:23:26. Also to note is the excellent form of Winfridah Moseti of Kenya who has run 2:23:38 and ran 66:40 at the Copenhagen Half Marathon, a performance over the shorter distance which promises much for the marathon.

Two more strong contenders are in the women’s race: European silver medallist Matea Parlov Kostro from Croatia (2:25:45 pb) and Britiain’s Steph Twell (2:26:40). Four years ago in Frankfurt, the latter ran the Olympic qualifying time for Tokyo. The latest addition is Miriam Dattke who has shown the potential to improve still further at the marathon. She proved this at last year’s European Championships in Munich where she narrowly missed the bronze medal, finishing fourth as the best German runner. Her current best is 2:26:50 but many consider the 25-year-old capable of running considerably faster.