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WHAT’S UP WESTSIDE ..................PAGE 2 MY WRITE ........................................PAGE 4 EARTH TALK ....................................PAGE 5 KNOW BEFORE YOU GO ................PAGE 6 MYSTERY PHOTO ............................PAGE 11
MONDAY
02.15.16 Volume 15 Issue 77
@smdailypress
Santa Monica Daily Press
Kirui, Lehonkova prevail in the fog in Los Angeles BY TIM LIOTTA Associated Press
Maybe off-the-rack running shoes were what Weldon Kirui of Kenya needed all along. Second in 2012 and fourth in 2013, Kirui pulled away late and won the Los Angeles Marathon on a foggy Sunday in his third try. After flying from Nairobi through Amsterdam, Kirui arrived Wednesday in Los Angeles, only to find his luggage containing all his gear had been lost by the airlines. His bags arrived a day later, but Kirui already liked his new shoes better.
“The new shoes were very comfortable,” said the 27-year-old Kirui, who raced shoulder-to-shoulder with Willie Koitile until making his surge over the final mile, winning in a time of 2 hours, 13 minutes, 7 seconds. “Two days ago I used them. They were very nice.” Kenyan men swept the top three spots. “The pace was very slow,” Kirui said. “We were talking to each other, saying, ‘Let’s go faster.’” Nataliya Lehonkova of Ukraine led almost the entire way and won the women’s race in 2:30:40.
“I was trying to run my best time,” Lehonkova said. “I did a lot of speed work and a lot of long runs every week.” Kirui and Lehonkova won over a course starting at Dodger Stadium downtown, winding through West Hollywood and Beverly Hills before finishing near the Santa Monica Pier. Kirui and Koitile pulled away as a pair with four miles remaining. Koitile was second in 2:13:24 after an injury flared up late. “I just didn’t have enough energy,” he said. “I have a pain in my leg after 20 miles. It was very difficult.” Defending champion Daniel
Limo finished third in 2:13:52. “My body was resisting, and I was not able to keep up,” Limo said. “Everyone came here in great shape. I was in a tough position to defend.” Serkalem Abrha of Ethiopia finished second to Lehonkova in 2:32:24, with Julia Budniak of Poland third at 2:44:44. The 33year-old Lehonkova pulled away from Abrha with five miles to go. The elite field started early under cool, ideal conditions in an effort to complete the race before temperatures got too hot. Kirui and Lehonkova each earned $100,000.
smdp.com
Local exec judging entrepreneur awards contest BY JEFFREY I. GOODMAN Daily Press Staff Writer
Whether he’s working in real estate, technology or health care, Mark Stagen has always held the same job title: irrational optimist. It’s the position he assumed when he ran a comic book store at the age of 15, and it’s one he’s kept as an entrepreneur over the last two decades. “If you work hard enough, it’s going to work out,” he said. “There are stumbles along the way, but I like to think that if you’re a good person and you work hard and you have a good head on your shoulders, it usually works out OK.” Stagen, a Santa Monica resident for about 15 years, is familiar with the challenges of starting a business and running a company. It’s why he’s signed up as a judge for Ernst & SEE ERNST PAGE 8
An effort to strike out DUI Local baseball stars promote SMPD campaign BY JEFFREY I. GOODMAN Daily Press Staff Writer
Photos by Matthew Hall matt@smdp.com
THE FINISH LINE: Weldon Kirui of Kenya won the 2016 Los Angeles Marathon on Sunday, Feb. 14, with a winning time of 2 hours, 13 minutes, 7 seconds. Nataliya Lehonkova of Ukraine won the women’s race with a time of 2 hours, 30 minutes, 40 seconds. Kirui and Lehonkova each earned $100,000 for their triumphant journey through the cool fog.
Local products Tyler Skaggs and Lucas Giolito have hurled thousands of pitches during their respective baseball careers, but the ones they threw at Memorial Park earlier this month weren’t aimed at a catcher’s mitt behind home plate. These were pitches of the promotional variety, made not SEE DUI PAGE 7
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