BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – St Lucian veteran Victor Ledger brilliantly paced himself to a sixth victory in the Powerade Marathon yesterday to highlight the closing of the annual Run Barbados Series.

Ledger clocked two hours, 32 minutes, 29 seconds for the only Caribbean triumph of the two-day series.

He won ahead of Kenya’s Simon Sawe, with St Lucian Zepherinus Joseph third.

Penina Sawe, of Kenya, won the women’s 26.2-mile run in 3:13:34 to add to her 10K win on Saturday, while Kenya’s Philip Lagat and American Erin O’Mara emerged champions of the Scotiabank Half Marathon, which was run simultaneously.

In the Marathon event, Ledger was among the leading group from the start and shrugged off a sustained challenge from Sawe to move clear for an uncontested victory at the Bay Street finish in front of Government House.

Trinidad and Tobago’s Curtis Cox was fourth in 2:38:18 with defending champion and three-time winner Pamenos Ballantyne, of St Vincent and the Grenadines, fifth in 2:39:59.

Jamaican Andrew Gutzmore was sixth in 2:40.33.

Finishing 13th overall, Sawe was an unchallenged winner of the women’s race over fellow Kenyan Josiane Aboungono (3:26:18) with veteran ex-champion Kim Goff, of the USA, third in 3:43:18.

Barbadian Rosalind Adamson (4:08:02) was sixth and the first Caribbean finisher in the women’s race.

In the half marathon, Lagat, who won Saturday’s Nature Valley 10K, completed a fine double by landing the 13.1-mile event in one hour, seven minutes, and two seconds.

He won ahead of fellow Kenyan Robert Letting (1:09:41), a repeat of Saturday’s 10K top two finish.

T&T’s Richard Jones was third in 1:10:50 and Guyana’s Cleveland Forde fourth.
Forde, who was also fourth in Saturday’s 10K, clocked 1:12:05 in yesterday morning’s half marathon and his teammate Kelvin Johnson (1:15:43) was fifth.

O’Mara, runner-up to Sawe in Saturday’s 10K, went one spot better to capture the women’s Scotiabank half marathon in 1:26.45 ahead of Guyana’s Alika Morgan (1:33:06).