Catherine Ndereba
Home: Nairobi, Kenya
Age: 31
Personal best: 2:18:47 (Chicago, 2001)

A two-time Boston champion (2000 and 2001), "Catherine the Great" last summer became the first Kenyan, man or woman, to win a gold medal in the World Championship marathon, which she won in a championship record 2:23:55. Ndereba was also runner-up last year at London (2:19:55) and New York (2:23:04), earning her the designation as #1 Woman Marathoner of the Year from Running Times magazine. She has run under 2:20 three times: 2:18:47 in Chicago 2001, at the time a World Record; 2:19:26 in Chicago 2002, finishing second to Paula Radcliffe's world record; and 2:19:55 in London last spring, again placing second to a Radcliffe world record. She is still the second-fastest woman in history, and has already been named to the 2004 Olympic marathon team for Kenya. She is also a 5-time winner of the Beach to Beacon 10K, the race founded by Joan Samuelson.