On a day in which Meb Keflezighi became the first American man to win the New York City Marathon in 27 years, 2006 Ironman Hawaii runner-up Desiree Ficker ran 2:39:30 and placed 10th overall and second American woman in the Big Apple’s big footrace today.

Ficker won $500 and topped her 2:40:28 PR for the distance set while finishing second overall at the 2007 AT&T Austin Marathon. Ficker finished second American, behind 2008 Olympic marathoner Magdalena Lewy Boulet, who finished 6th in 2:32:17. Ficker also outpaced the 52-year-old US legend Joan Benoit Samuelson, who finished 17th in 2:49:09 and Lisa Hutthaeler of Austria, banned from triathlon since October for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs, who ran 2:49:33.

In an upset, Derartu Tulu of Ethiopia, the 1992 and 2000 Olympic 10,000-meter gold medalist, won $130,000 and her first marathon title since London in 2001 with a time of 2:28:52 while women’s marathon world record holder and heavy favorite Paula Radcliffe of Great Britain, fighting tendinitis in her left knee, crossed the line holding her left leg in agony while finishing 4th in 2:29:27. This was Radcliffe’s only third loss in 11 marathon tries.

In the men’s race, Keflezighi scored a comeback win in 2:09:15 after missing the US men’s 2008 marathon squad while suffering from a stress fracture in his hip. Keflezighi, who emigrated to the US from Eritrea and became a US citizen in 1998, won silver in the 2004 Olympic marathon in Athens. With his 41-second margin over runner-up Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot of Kenya, the 34-year-old Keflezighi earned his first major overall marathon title. The USA’s Ryan Hall placed 4th in 2:10:36 while countryman Jorge Torres finished 7th in 2:13:00 in his very first marathon effort.

Ficker, who ran a 2:48:11 at the 2008 US Olympic women’s marathon trials, has had a resurgence in her triathlon career recently after some off form races following her 2006 Kona breakthrough. In the past two years she won the Austin Triathlon and the 2008 Ironman South Africa 70.3, finished 2nd at the 2008 Boise 70.3 and the 2009 Rhode Island 70.3, and placed third at the 2009 editions of Eagleman 70.3 and Augusta 70.3.

In shorter running events, Ficker placed third at the 2007 3M Half Marathon in Austin in 1:14:07 and this year won the Austin Statesman Capitol 10k in a time of 34:56.

2009 New York City Marathon results
November 1, 2009
R 26.2 mi.

Men

1. Meb Keflezighi (USA) 2:09:15 -- $130,000
2. Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot (KEN) 2:09:56 -- $65,000
3. Januad Gharib (MOR) 2:10:25 -- $40,000
4. Ryan Hall (USA) 2:10:36 -- $25,000
5. Abderrahime Bouramdane (MOR) 2:12:14 -- $15,000
6. Jendrick Ramaala (RSA) 2:12:30 -- $10,000
7. Jorge Torres (USA) 2:13:00 -- $7,000
8. Nick Arciniaga (USA) 2:13:46 -- $5,000
9. Abdi Abdirahman (USA) 2:14:00 -- $2,000
10. Jason Lehmkuhle (USA) 2:14:39 -- $1,000

Women

1. Derartu Tulu (ETH) 2:28:52 -- $130,000
2. Ludmilla Petrova (RUS) 2:29:00 -- $65,000
3. Christelle Daunay (FRA) 2:29:16 -- $40,000
4. Paula Radcliffe (GBR) 2:29:27 -- $25,000
5. Salina Kosgei (KEN) 2:31:53 -- $15,000
6. Magdalena Lewy Boulet (USA) 2:32:17 -- $10,000
7. Buzunesh Deba (ETH) 2:35:54 -- $7,000
8. Serkalem Biset Abrha (ETH) 2:37:20 -- $5,000
9. Yuro Kano (JPN) 2:39:05 -- $1,000 *
10. Desiree Ficker (USA) 2:39:30 - $500 *
* Places 7 through 10 reduced by 50 percent for times slower than 2:39:00 (women), including U.S finishers.