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ATHENS, Greece -- Samuel Kalalei has won the Athens Marathon, beating Milton Rotich by just over two minutes in a Kenyan sweep of the top five. Kalalei broke away from the pre-race favorite Rotich after the 35-kilometer mark to win the hilly course in 2 hours, 12 minutes and 17 seconds. Rotich placed second in 2:14:18 and Jonathan Kiptoo was third in 2:16:08. Two more Kenyans rounded out the top 5, continuing their dominance of the race in recent years. The women's race was much tighter, with 18-year-old Ethiopian Bedaru Badane winning in 2:34:18, beating Kenya's Alice Kibor Jepkemboi by four seconds. Last year's winner, Nancy Arusei of Kenya, was third in 2:34:51. A record 18,500 runners from 100 countries started the race Sunday morning.
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