CAROLINE KILEL – Kenya – Bib #41

PRONUNCIATION:   CARE-oh-line Kuh-LEL
AGE:   31 (March 21, 1981)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   31:36
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
An experienced marathoner, Caroline Kilel has placed well at several world class marathons. On October 31, 2010, she won the Commerzbank Frankfurt Marathon in 2:23:25.

The following spring, she came to Boston to compete in the 115th Boston Marathon on April 18, 2011. Kilel traded the lead with American Desiree Davila several times down Boylston Street before ultimately earning the victory by 2 seconds. Her time of 2:22:36 remains her personal best.

At the ING New York City Marathon in November of 2011, she placed 6th in 2:25:57. Kilel returned to Boston in April to defend her Boston Marathon title, but did not finish the race.

Caroline Kilel is the defending B.A.A. 10K champion, winning last year’s race in 31:58 over Kim Smith, of New Zealand. She set her 10K personal best of 31:36 in 2009 in Groesbeek, the Netherlands.

SHARON CHEROP – Kenya – Bib #42

PRONUNCIATION:   SHAR-on CHER-op
AGE:   28 (March 16, 1984)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   32:43 (32:03.0 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Another marathon specialist, Sharon Cherop notched two very impressive 3rd place finishes in 2011. At last year’s Boston Marathon, she placed 3rd in 2:22:42, just 6 seconds behind the champion, Caroline Kilel, of Kenya. On August 27, 2011, she won the bronze medal at the IAAF World Marathon Championships in Daegu, South Korea, placing 3rd in 2:29:14.

At the Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon on January 27, 2012, she placed 7th in a new personal best time of 2:22:39. At this year’s Boston Marathon, Cherop surged ahead of her friend and rival, Jemima Jelagat Sumgong as they turned onto Boylston Street. Cherop held off Sumgong’s final sprint, winning the Boston Marathon in 2:31:50.

Cherop set her 10K personal best of 32:43 in 2008 at the Azalea Trail Run in Mobile, AL. She is married to Matthew Bowen, who is a 2:10 marathoner, and the couple has a daughter named Natalia.

KIM SMITH – New Zealand – Bib #43   ** B.A.A. Distance Medley participant – 5 seconds behind leader after B.A.A. 5K

PRONUNCIATION:   Kim Smith
AGE:   30 (November 19, 1981)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   31:23 (30:35.54 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Kim Smith is a veteran competitor on the track and on the roads, competing internationally for her native New Zealand. In 2007, she placed 5th in the 10,000 meters at the IAAF World Championships, running 32:06.89. She placed 9th in the 10,000 meters at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, finishing in 30:51.00. At the IAAF World Championships in 2009, she placed 8th in the 10,000 meters in 31:21.42.

On the roads, she has excelled at distances from 5K to the marathon. At the 2010 Virgin London Marathon, she set a national record of 2:25:21. In the 2011 Boston Marathon, she set the early pace and established a sizeable lead, before eventually dropping out. On September 18, 2011, she won the Rock ‘n’ Roll Philadelphia Half Marathon in a personal best time of 1:07:11.

At the 2012 NYC Half Marathon, Smith placed 2nd in 1:08:43. She placed 3rd at the B.A.A. 5K in April, running 15:26. She currently trails Ethiopia’s Aheza Kiros by 5 seconds on the B.A.A. Distance Medley Leaderboard.

Kim Smith graduated from Providence College in 2005 and currently resides in Providence, RI. She set her 10K personal best of 31:23 in 2010.

AHEZA KIROS – Ethiopia – Bib #44   ** B.A.A. Distance Medley participant – Current leader after B.A.A. 5K

PRONUNCIATION:   Ah-HEE-zah KEE-ros
AGE:   30 (March 26, 1982)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   32:09 (31:06.93 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Aheza Kiros set a handful of personal bests over the last 15 months. On March 6, 2011, she placed 3rd at the Paris Half Marathon, setting a personal best of 1:09:10. A month later, she won the Carlsbad 5000, setting a 5K personal best of 15:13. On June 11, 2011, she placed 2nd at the New York Road Runners (NYRR) New York Mini 10K in 32:09.  

This year, she set yet another personal best, running 2:33:21 to claim 15th place at the 2012 Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon. In April, she placed 2nd at the B.A.A. 5K. Her time of 15:21 gives her a 5-second lead over Kim Smith, of New Zealand, in the B.A.A. Distance Medley Leaderboard.

On June 1, 2012, she ran 32:03.85 for 10,000 meters, placing 9th at the Prefontaine Classic. A week later, she placed 2nd at the NYRR Mini 10K, running 32:18. 

JELLIAH TINEGA – Kenya – Bib #45   ** B.A.A. Distance Medley participant – 39 seconds behind leader after B.A.A. 5K

PRONUNCIATION:   GEL-ee-ah Tin-AY-gah
AGE:   26 (October 10, 1985)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   32:27
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
At the 2009 B.A.A. Half Marathon, Jelliah Tinega placed 2nd in 1:11:43. This time remains her personal best in the half marathon.
In the spring of 2010, Tinega set 4 new personal bests. She started off her spring with a 52:39 effort to place 2nd at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run. On June 5, 2010, she placed 6th at the Freihofer's Run for Women 5K, running 15:48. A week later, she won the Bellin Run 10K with a time of 32:27. On June 19, 2010, she ran a personal best of 20:17 at the Steamboat Classic 4 Mile Run.

In 2011, she collected wins at the Credit Union Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run (54:02) and the Bellin Run 10K (32:34).

In 2012, she returned to the Cherry Blossom 10 Mile Run and took home the victory again, running the same time, 54:02. At the B.A.A. 5K in April, she finished in 8th place with a time of 16:00. On the B.A.A. Distance Medley Leaderboard, she trails women’s leader, Aheza Kiros, by 39 seconds. 

CHEMTAI RIONOTUKEI – Kenya – Bib #46

PRONUNCIATION:   CHEM-tie Rio-no-TU-kay
AGE:   25 (September 4, 1986)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   32:40
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
In 2003 and 2004, Chemtai Rionotukei represented Kenya in back-to-back IAAF World Cross Country Championships. Competing in the Junior Race, she placed 9th in 2003 and 5th in 2004.

She set her 10,000 meter personal best at a small meet in Eldoret, Kenya, running 32:40.5 on June 13, 2009.

KATE REED – Great Britain – Bib #48

PRONUNCIATION:   Kate Reed
AGE:   29 (September 28, 1982)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   31:52 (31:35.77 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
A 2008 Olympian, Kate Reed has enjoyed a successful competitive career. In 2004 and 2005, she competed in the Short Race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships in back-to-back years. She placed 34th in 2004 and 40th in 2005. She set her personal best for 5000 meters in 2007.

On the roads, she set her 5K and 10K personal bests in 2007, running 15:36 in London and 31:52 in Madrid. On May 4, 2008, she ran a personal best time of 31:35:77 for 10,000 meters at Stanford University’s Payton Jordan Invitational. That year, she went on to represent Great Britain at the Summer Olympics in Beijing. At those Olympics, she placed 23rd overall, running 32:26.69.

LINDSEY SCHERF – United States – Bib #49

PRONUNCIATION:   LIND-zee Shurf
AGE:   25 (September 18, 1986)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   33:13 (32:51.20 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Lindsey Scherf has been busy setting personal bests in 2011 and 2012. On September 18, 2011, she placed 11th at the CVS Caremark Downtown 5K in a personal best time of 16:33. That finish set her up for an impressive series of races in 2012.

Since this March, she has notched 4 new personal bests. On March 11, she placed 4th at the USA 15K Championships with a time of 51:08. A week later, she competed in the NYC Half Marathon, placing 14th in 1:11:45. She went on to place 2nd at the Fifth Third River Bank Run. Her time was 1:25:12 for 25K. On May 26, she posted an impressive victory at the Ottawa 10K. With a time of 33:13, she beat a talented field of Kenyans, Ethiopians, and Moroccans.

On June 9, she placed 9th at the NYRR New York Mini 10K in 33:26. On June 16, she ran 1:14:03 to finish 10th at the USA Half Marathon Championships.

Lindsey Scherf is a 2008 graduate of Harvard University, where she set a 10,000 meter school record of 32:51.20. She competed in graduate school for the University of Oregon, where she helped the Ducks to a runner-up finish at the 2008 NCAA Cross Country Championships. 

ESTHER ERB – United States – Bib #50

PRONUNCIATION:   ESS-tur Erb
AGE:   26 (April 20, 1986)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   34:23
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Esther Erb is a member of the North Carolina-based ZAP Fitness Team. An up-and-coming runner, she has set solid personal bests since 2011. That year, she set personal bests at 20K (1:14:02), 25K (1:34:02), and the half marathon (1:16:00).

Thus far in 2012, she has continued to run well and set personal bests. In January, she competed at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, where she placed 27th with a time of 2:37:21. On the track, she ran 16:45.62 for 5000 meters at the Raleigh Relays. She then made her way to Boston, where she ran 16:42, yet another personal best, at the B.A.A. 5K. Perhaps most notably, she notched the victory at the Broad Street Run in Philadelphia. Her winning time for the 10-mile race was 55:28.

Esther Erb set her 10K personal best of 34:23 this May in Cleveland, OH. She was a multi-time NCAA Division III All-American as a student-athlete at Case Western University in Ohio. She was the 2008 NCAA Division III national champion at 10,000 meters. 

JENNIFER DONOVAN – United States – Bib #56

PRONUNCIATION:   Jennifer DON-o-van
AGE:   30 (May 4, 1982)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   33:29 (34:26.09 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
A 2004 graduate of Boston College and a member of the New Balance Boston racing team, Jenn Donovan is well-known in the regional running scene.

In 2009, she set a personal best at 5000 meters of 16:10.31 at Raleigh Relays in Raleigh, NC. On the roads, she set a 5K personal best of 16:30 at the 2009 CVS Caremark Downtown 5K in Providence, RI. She set her 10K personal best right here in Boston when she ran 33:29 in October of 2009.

On the track, she holds personal bests of 4:52 in the mile, 9:15 for 3000 meters, and 10:04 for the 3000-meter steeplechase.

AVA HUTCHINSON – Ireland – Bib #57

PRONUNCIATION:   Ay-va HUTCH-in-son
AGE:   29 (March 30, 1983)
10K PERSONAL BEST:   33:23 (34:10.75 for 10,000 meters)
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Ava Hutchinson will represent her native Ireland in the Olympics this summer, where she will compete in the marathon. She achieved the Olympic ‘A’ Standard with her personal best time of 2:35:33 at the 2012 Chevron Houston Marathon this past January.

Last year, she set personal bests over 10K and the half marathon. She won the Trafford 10K in Manchester, UK, running 33:23 in March. In Waterford, Ireland, she set her half marathon personal best of 1:14:17.

Hutchinson is a graduate of Butler University in Indianapolis.