Gebremariam wins debut marathon in New York

New York: Ethiopian Gebre Gebremariam made a spectacular marathon debut on Sunday to win the New York City men`s race in an unofficial two hours eight minutes 14 seconds.

The 2009 world cross country champion ran with easy grace through the last hilly stretch in Central Park to pull away from Emmanuel Mutai of Kenya for a comfortable win. London marathon runnerup Mutai finished more than a minute behind in 2:09:18 with Moses Kigen Kipkosgei of Kenya taking third place another 81 seconds behind. Gebremariam, 26, became the first marathon debutant to win the New York race since New Zealander Rod Dixon in 1983. Pre-race favourite Haile Gebrselassie, the world record holder, pulled out after the halfway stage because of a knee injury.Bureau Report