Wardian, Ely Win 8th ING Miami Marathon
Young, Armstrong half-marathon champions; event record of more than 18,000 entrants

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Posted Tuesday, 2 February, 2010

From Ryan Lamppa, Running USA

MIAMI - (January 31, 2010) - Veteran marathoner Michael Wardian, who arrived in South Florida less than 24 hours before the race after working an 80-hour week as a shipping broker, outclassed the field at the 8th ING Miami Marathon on Sunday morning.

Wardian covered the scenic 26.2-mile course in 2 hours, 28 minutes, 39 seconds, which gave him a comfortable seven-minute, 24-second victory margin over 38-year-old Brazilian Cesar Martins. Columbia, S.C. clinical therapist Orinthal Striggles was third (2:38:43).

Wardian is a 35-year-old father of two who has completed more than 100 marathons. He finished fourth three weeks ago in the Disney Marathon. An international shipping broker for Potomac Maritime LLC, Wardian, who lives in Arlington, Va., has been busy handling shipments to earthquake-stricken Haiti and was concerned he might not be in peak form for the race.

"I ran wire-to-wire," said Wardian. "I was able to dictate the pace, although it was a little humid and slowed down my time a bit. I was able to run a fairly good race given the conditions and having to work a lot. But I love my job a lot and what I do so it's a sacrifice that I can happily make. I was able to make a good showing for my sponsors and family and that's what it's all about."

Wardian's biggest client is the largest container carrier in the world. "It's been quite busy with trying to get cargo to Haiti. I've been working all weekend and we have to actually get back to the office tomorrow," he said.

Brett Ely, a Natick, Mass. native running under the umbrella of Team Strands, captured the women's title in 2:45:36 that met the 2012 Olympic Marathon Trials "B" standards for women. Belarusian Alena Vinitskaya was 2:26 behind at 2:48:02. Yolanda Mercado of Puerto Rico was third (3:00:12).

Ely, a research physiologist for the U.S. Department of Defense, struck gold Sunday in just her sixth career marathon.

"I would love to see the photo of me coming across the finish line," she said. "I was so thrilled. When I saw that finish line tape come up, well, the feeling of the tape across my chest felt so good."

In the half-marathon, Bloomington, Ind. runner Justin Young (1:05:57) beat Team Strands teammate Michael Aish (1:06:38) of Arvada, Colo., while Meghan Armstrong of Richfield, Minn. totally outclassed the women's division with a time of 1:17:50.

The event was run under cloudy skies in Miami that gave the record 18,321 runners some relief from the typical South Florida heat. But humid conditions kept course records from being broken.

8th ING Miami Marathon & Half Marathon
Miami, FL, Sunday, January 31, 2010

MEN
1) Michael Wardian (VA), 2:28:39, $2000
2) Cesar Martins (BRA), 2:36:03, $1000
3) Orinthal Striggles (MI), 2:38:43, $500

WOMEN
1) Brett Ely (MA), 2:45:36, $2000
2) Alena Vinitskaya (BLR), 2:48:02, $1000
3) Yolanda Mercado (PUR) 3:00:12, $500

8th ING Miami Half Marathon
MEN
1) Justin Young (IN), 1:05:57
2) Michael Aish (CO), 1:06:38
3) Patrick Rizzo (CO), 1:07:31

WOMEN
1) Meghan Armstrong (MN), 1:17:50
2) Gabriella Trana (CRC), 1:22:20
3) Marta Jimemez Portillo (ESA), 1:24:06

For complete results and more, go to: www.INGmiamimarathon.com

Related info:
Running USA

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