Courtesy: event press release

One hour before the start of the Freescale Austin Marathon, torrential rains fell and lightening lit up the Austin skyline. More than 10,500 runners warmed up while keeping one eye on the sky, hoping for a break in the weather. By race time, the temperature was sixty degrees and cloudy, but the rain had stopped. The 14th running of the Freescale Austin Marathon (formerly known as the Motorola Austin Marathon) was on. Mikhail Khobotov, 32, of Russia emerged as the male victor, with an elapsed time of 2:12:38. Azat Rakipov, 36, of Belarus finished second (2:14:00), followed by Eulid Kering, age 30, of Kenya in third (2:15:10). Top American Clint Verran, 29, of Rochester Hills, Michigan, finished fifth overall at 2:17:14.

Returning female champion Tatiana Borisova, 28, of Kyrgyzstan, who won last year's race in her debut marathon and set a course record, broke the tape at 2:31:01. Finishing a strong second was 35-year-old Halina Karnatsevitch of Belarus (2:34:48), with Marina Bychkova of Russia, 29, with a time of 2:42:24, bringing home third place.

The first American female to cross the finish line was Erin Breitenbach, 35, of Phoenix, Arizona, who finished fourth with a time of 2:54:20.

The Wheelchair division winner was Jan Mattern of Arlington, Texas, who finished with a personal-best time of 2:05:36. Michigan's Paul Aufdemberge finished first in the Master's division (age 40-49), with a time of 2:22:33, while Dennis Kurtis of San Jose, California, was the first finisher in the Seniors division for ages 50-59 (2:47:26). Michael Preece of Aboyne, GBR, won the Veterans division (age 60-69), with a winning time of 3:11:49. Three American women - Helen Shekerjian of New York, and Gillian Brewer and Noella Silberberg, both of Texas - were winners in these divisions.

"The Association of Road Race Statisticians has rated the Freescale Austin Marathon as having the fastest course in the world for the past two years," said race director John Conley." Each year we see interest in the race increase, as runners travel thousands of miles to test their endurance and try to best their personal records. This year's field included elite runners from 40 countries including Poland, New Zealand, Russia, Canada, Kenya, and the United States."

Race conditions were less than ideal. From a beginning temperature of 60 degrees with a light drizzle, the temperature soared to the mid-seventies by the time the last runner crossed, and the sun was shining brightly. "This is a challenging course," said Pat Finerty of Chicago, Illinois, "but it was a little hot. I'm not used to the heat, as I've been running in 25-degree weather. A lot of legs are hurting right now."

Prize money for the 2005 Freescale Austin Marathon totaled $60,000. As an incentive to encourage faster times, race officials instituted a new bonus structure this year, with a total of $40,000 in cumulative bonuses to be awarded for new division records and new Texas state records (current records stand at 2:10:04 for men and 2:27:51 for women). An additional bonus was available for the first man under 2:09 or the first woman under 2:26. Due partly to the wet course, coupled with rapidly changing temperatures, no records were set this year. Bonus money will roll over to next year.