Li kicked hard to pass Onesmus Kilonzo of Kenya in the final stage to win the race with a time of 2 hours, 13 minutes and nine seconds.

Kilonzo, whose personal best is 2:11:45, finished one step behind in 2:13:13, ahead of his compatriot Elias Chebet, 2:13:20.

Kenya's Nelson Nedrew, who had won the Beijing Marathon title twice, failed to do big again, just finishing a distant 7th.

The women's race was dominated by Chinese runners, who swept the top six places.

Wei clocked a fast time of 2:20:22, improving her personal best nearly three minutes. Sun Yingjie, winner of the 5,000 and 10,000 meters at the Asian Games early this month, cruised home second in 2:21:21, followed by Zhang Shujing, 2:23:17, Zhu Xiaolin,2:23:57, Hu Yuanyuan, 2:24:39, and Sun Weiwei, 2:25:15.

The men's race was fought toughly throughout. Li Zhuhong, whose personal best is 2:10:46, placed himself among the leading group, while Andre Ramos of Brazil, the pre-race favorite with a 2:8:26 personal best, led the pace in the first half of the 42.195 km race.

Li didn't make his final move until he and Kilonzo entered the stadium. It was Li who found some reserve left and beat the Kenyan by one step.

"The weather is very good, I am not satisfied with the time, but satisfied with the placing," said Li Zhuhong.

After winning the women's race, Wei said: "I am very happy to improve my personal best. It is my third time to be here. One month ago, I could not take part in the Asian Games because of a leg injury. I was very upset then. I feel great now. I lost something before, but I got this title today. God is fair."

Beijing Marathon, one of the major 10 marathons in the world, changed its route this year. It started from the Tian'anmen Square and ended at the Olympics Center.

More than 21,000 runners participated in the men's and women's events including 5km, 10km, half marathon.

Results for Men:

1. Li Zhuhong, China, 2:13:09

2. Onesmus Kilonzo, Kenya, 2:13:13

3. Elias Chebet, Kenya, 2:13:20

4. Zheng Yunshan, China, 2:13:27

5. Zhu Ronghua, China, 2:13:29

6. Kil Jae Son, DPR Korea, 2:13:41

7. Nelson Nedrew, Kenya, 2:13:55

8. Bai Zengquan, China, 2:14:10

9. Luke Kibet, Kenya, 2:14:44

10. Fidaku Degafu, Ethiopia, 2:14:58

Results for Women:

1. Wei Yanan, China, 2:20:23

2. Sun Yingjie, China, 2:21:21

3. Zhang Shuying, China, 2:23:17

4. Zhu Xiaolin, China, 2:23:57

5. Hu Yuanyuan, China, 2:24:39

6. Sun Weiwei, China, 2:25:15

7. Jong Yong Ok, DPR Korea, 2:16:12

8. Li Helan, China, 2:26:59

9. Jo Pun Hui, DPR Korea, 2:27:36

10. Lu Zui, China, 2:27:37

(People's Daily October 20, 2002)