Here’s a rundown of the Top 5 Men in this year’s field:
1. Robert Cheruiyot (KEN), 2:05:52 (CR)
$175,000 (includes $25,000 course record bonus)
2. Tekeste Kebede (ETH) 2:07:23
$75,000
3. Deribe Merga (ETH) 2:08:39
$40,000
4. Ryan Hall (USA) 2:08:41
$25,000
5. Mebrahtom Keflezighi (USA) 2:09:26
$15,000
12:26 p.m.: Need some incentive to get off the couch and start running? Well, here is a list of the Top 10 women, along with their times and payouts.
1. Teyba Erkesso (ETH) 2:26:11
$150,000
2. Tatyana Pushkareva (RUS) 2:26:14
$75,000
3. Salina Kosgei (KEN) 2:28:35 $40,000
4. Waynishet Girma (ETH) 2:28:36 $25,000
5. Bruna Genovese (ITA) 2:29:12
$15,000
6. Lidiya Grigoryeva (RUS) 2:30:31
$12,000
7. Yurika Nakamura (JPN) 2:30:40
$9,000
8. Weiwei Sun (CHN) 2:31:14
$7,400
9. Nailya Yulamanova (RUS) 2:31:48
$5,700
10.Albina Mayorova-Ivanova (RUS)2:31:55
$4,200
12:16 p.m.: Paige Higgins, from Arizona, is the top American woman, as she strolled past the line in 13th place.
12:11 p.m.: Keflezighi comes in just moments after Hall, meaning it’s two Americans finishing in the top five this year.
12:10 p.m.: Hall can’t catch Merga as the American finishes fourth overall in the men’s group.
12:09 p.m.: Hall is making his way down the final stretch and making the most of the spotlight as he takes his time waving to the crowd.
12:07 p.m.: Cheruiyot takes the 2010 Boston Marathon in style as he takes the record with an unofficial 2:05.50 finish.
12:03 p.m.: Cheruiyot’s pace is 43 seconds below the Boston Marathon record, meaning he will most likely break it with about a mile to go.
I know what you’re thinking, but no, the 21-year-old Kenyan is not related to Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot or Evans Cheruiyot.
12:01 p.m.: It’s Erkesso holding on for the win, but Pushkareva gave her a good run down the stretch.
11:59 a.m.: Cheruiyot made his move through Cleveland Circle and is building a sizable gap on Merga.
For the women, Erkesso is nearing victory as she’s down the home stretch.
11:54 a.m.: Erkesso is hauling toward Kenmore Square with Pushkareva less than 100 yards behind.
11:52 a.m.: Keflezighi is running in fourth place and has created a small gap over Moses Kigen. Hall meanwhile, has fallen back and is now a minute off the lead.
11:49 a.m.: Erkesso is getting some company as Pushkareva of Russia is closing in.
11:43 a.m.: Merga is three yards ahead of Cheruiyot on Heartbreak Hill.
11:39 a.m.: Erkesso, who just replenished with some water, was holding her stomach and appeared as if she was going to get sick heading through Cleveland Circle.
Anyone that has been to Mary Ann’s can vouch that getting sick in Cleveland Circle isn’t necessarily out of the ordinary.
Anyways, she’s running strong and holding onto her huge lead.
11:36 a.m.: American hopefuls Hall and Keflezighi are well behind leaders Merga and Cheruiyot.
11:30 a.m.: Erkesso, leading the women’s pack by almost a minute and a half, just finished Heartbreak Hill.
11:25 a.m.: The men’s pack is withering away as there are just seven lead runners approaching the Newton line.
The pack is Robert Cheruiyot, Tekeste Kebede, Deriba Merga, Meb Keflezighi, Moses Kigen, Abderrahim Goumri, and Gilbert Yegon.
11:20 a.m.: Merga is back in front of the men’s pack while Keflezighi is at the back. Hall fell behind once again.
11:18 a.m.: With less then eight miles to go, Erkesso has a solid lead, and on pace to finish in 2:27.
11:06 a.m.: Hall just made a strong push to regain the lead and did so in style, as he fired up a crown of young co-eds by pulling a running “Hulk Hogan.”
Well done, sir.
11:03: Wakako Tsuchida just captured her fourth crown in the women’s wheelchair event.
11:02 a.m.: Van Dyk’s latest victory wasn’t just given to him as the men’s wheelchair champ admits this one may have been the toughest.
“They made No. 9 the hardest,” he laughed.
What about reaching double-digits in wins in 2011?
“Nine, 10, 11, 12 — I’m still young, you never know.”
11 a.m.: Wakako Tsuchida of Japan, last year’s wheelchair champ on the women’s side, continues her domination, passing the 35K mark in Chestnut Hill in 1:27:04.
10:54 a.m.: Hall, who was setting the pace for the majority of the run, has fallen behind in the men’s pack.
Among the men’s leaders are Abderrahim Dmytro Baranovskyy, Robert Cheruiyot, Merga, Stephen Kiagora, Keflezighi, David Mandago, Moses Kiegn, Chala Dechsae and Elijah Keitany.
10:51 a.m.: Teyba Erkesso of Ethiopia takes the lead in the women’s pack with Tune following closely behind.
10:45 a.m.: There was a great battle for the top spot in the men’s wheelchair race with Van Dyk edging past Krige Schabort down the home stretch.
That’s a record nine wins for the South African.
10:38 a.m.: Russia’s Tatyana Pushkareva giving both Jia and Nakamura some company out in front of the women’s pack.
10:34 a.m.: The men’s wheelchair leaders have completed Heartbreak Hill and just took a left at Cleveland Circle. They’re about four miles out from the finish. Roger Puigbo of Spain took the lead from Van Dyk.
10:23 a.m.: Hall just regained the lead in the men’s pack while both Nakamura and Jia are holding the No. 1 and No. 2 spots in the women’s pack.
It’s Jia’s first Boston Marathon while it’s Nakamura’s third.
10:14 a.m.: Ernst Van Dyk is well on his way to a record nine Boston Marathon wins as he is leading the men’s wheelchair pack.
Van Dyk has won the last two in a row and set the record in the 2004 Boston Marathon, which he finished in 1 hour, 18 minutes, 27 seconds.
10:06 a.m.: Nakamura just ran the Elite Women’s pack to a 17:10 in the first 5K. Last year it was a 18:58.
10:02 a.m.: The Elite Men are off. As noted earlier, the weather couldn’t be more cooperative but there is a stiff headwind here at the start.
The last American man to win in Boston was Greg Meyer in 1983. Other American hopefuls are Jason Lehmkuhle, Antonio Vega and Josh Rohatinsky (who finished seventh last year).
10 a.m.: Nakamura took the pack through the first mile in 5:21. Last year it was a 6:28 first mile. Yup, that’s pretty fast.
The Elite Women pack began at 55 and was whittled down to 11 in Mile 1.
9:53 a.m.: The flyover whizzes above the field and those waiting to take off. Boston residents should hear the fighter jets echo through the city momentarily.
I had nice flyovers thanks to Logan when I ran around Castle Island in Southie last week. Kind of the same thing, right?
9:50 a.m.: In the wheelchair races both defending champs, Ernst Van Dyk and Wakako Tsuchida, have strong leads while the women are being led by Yurika Nakamura of Japan.
9:37 a.m.: The Elite Women are off and running. Keep an eye on Salina Kosgei of Kenya and Dire Tune of Ethiopia.
What, these names don’t sound familiar? Last year it was these two that gave us the most dramatic finish the Marathon has seen in quite some time as Kosgei edged Tune by a second at the finish line.
The Elite Men and Wave 1 will begin at 10 a.m. followed by a 10:30 a.m. start for Wave 2.
9:23 a.m.: Keep tabs on Americans Ryan Hall and Meb Keflezighi — these two are favorites to bring the crown back to the States.
Even Marathon director Guy Morse is excited to see them compete.
“They’re going to lend another level of excitement to this event —
if that’s possible — especially if they’re in contention,” Morse said. “It’s really going to be a special year in that regard.”
9:11 a.m.: Don’t have anyone to cheer on today? Here’s a group everyone can be proud of: Tedy’s Team, which was founded by former Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi, is running to raise money for stroke awareness.
9:06 a.m.: Look out Framingham, Natick, Wellesley, Newton and Brookline — the competitors are fast-approaching. Mobility Impaired Division kicked off at the top of the hour with the Push-Rim Wheelchair Division at 9:17 a.m. and the Handcycles at 9:22 a.m. They’ll be hitting Copley Square in no time.
9:02 a.m.: And we’re off! The Marathon just began with the and weather conditions are nearly perfect. The forecast is calling for partly cloudy skies and temperatures in the 50s.
7:34 a.m.: It is the best day of the year in Boston. It is Marathon Monday.
This year looks to be as good as ever, with the 114th running of the Boston Marathon getting under way on Monday morning, and NESN.com will have updates all day long.
The wheelchair race begins at 9:17 a.m., the elite women leave the starting line at 9:32 a.m. and the elite men starting at 10 a.m.
Of course, the Red Sox will also play the Tampa Bay Rays at 11:05 a.m., and NESN will have that one covered as well.
The elite field can be found here, and it includes three Americans. Michelle Frey will race with the women while Ryan Hall and Meb Keflezighi will be in the men’s race.
Check back leading up to the race and throughout the day for more updates.
