American Deena Kastor, 31, from Mammoth Lakes, Calif. executed a near perfect race to earn the bronze medal in the Olympic Marathon on Sunday evening. Japan's Mizuki Noguchi held off Kenya's Catherine Ndereba to win the gold medal in 2:26:20.

The race started in Marathon - the event's namesake - at 6:00pm with temperatures in the mid-80s, plenty of sun and 50% humidity. Along with the brutal weather conditions, the point-to-point course was also a challenge as the first 32K of the course is essentially one long uphill. As a result, careful pacing and smart racing were needed to run well.

A pack of 10 including Noguchi, Ndereba and race favorite and world record holder Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain led the first half of the race with a half split of 1:14:02. At the mid-point, Kastor, a Team Running USA athlete, was 12th in 1:15:40.

At the 25K mark (1:28:05), Noguchi, the 2003 silver medalist at the World Championships, made the first major push to break the contenders as she clocked 5:20-5:30 uphill miles. Only Ndereba, Radcliffe and Ethiopia's Elfenesh Alemu could stay within striking distance. At 36K, Radcliffe dropped out under duress.

As Noguchi neared Panathinaiko Stadium, site of the first modern Olympics, Ndereba whittled her lead down to 12 seconds, but could get no closer as Noguchi went to the tape unchallenged to win the second consecutive gold medal for her country in the event. Ndereba, the 2003 world champion and 2004 Boston Marathon champion, crossed the line in 2:26:32. Both were spent.

Meanwhile, Kastor, the U.S. marathon record holder and the 4th fastest woman in the field, patiently worked her way thru the field; at 25K she was 11th, at 30K 8th and at 35K 6th. Two hours, 23 minutes and 25 seconds into the race, she decisively passed Alemu to move into third.

As Kastor neared the finish line, she had a look of disbelief and then, the Arkansas grad broke out into tears of joy. Her finishing time was 2:27:20 (second half in 1:11:40).

Kastor's bronze medal was the first U.S. medal in the Olympic Marathon since Joan Benoit's 1984 gold medal victory at the inaugural women's Olympic Marathon in Los Angeles. In addition, Kastor's hardware was the first Olympic distance medal for the U.S. since Lynn Jennings' 1992 bronze medal in the 10,000 meters in Barcelona.

"I'm thrilled. It was almost a perfect race for me. Yes, it was hot, but I felt strong. I'm so sweaty and so happy," said Kastor, a two-time silver medalist at the World Cross Country Championships. "When I entered the stadium, I didn't know if I was in fourth place or third. When I heard the announcer say third, I burst into tears. I couldn't control myself. With the course and the history, it's all just wonderful."

Also for the USA, Jen Rhines (Ardmore, Pa.) was 34th in 2:43:52 and Trials champion Colleen De Reuck (Boulder, Colo.) was 39th in 2:46:30. Sixteen of the 82 starters did not finish.

Olympic Marathon - Women's
Hilly, point-to-point course
Marathon to Athens, Greece
Sunday, August 22, 2004

1) Mizuki Noguchi (JPN), 2:26:20, Gold
2) Catherine Ndereba (KEN), 2:26:32, Silver
3) Deena Kastor (USA), 2:27:20, Bronze
4) Elfenesh Alemu (ETH), 2:28:15
5) Reiko Tosa (JPN), 2:28:44
6) Olivera Jevtic (SCG), 2:31:15
7) Naoko Sakamoto (JPN), 2:31:43
8) Lyudmila Petrova (RUS), 2:31:56
9) Svetlana Zakharova (RUS), 2:32:04
10) Bruna Genovese (ITA), 2:32:50
34) Jen Rhines (USA), 2:43:52
39) Colleen De Reuck (USA), 2:46:30

For complete results, go to:
http://www.nbcolympics.com/results/5001146/detail.html