2008_07_nychalf.gifWith less than two weeks to go until the Summer Olympics in Beijing, Kenya's Catherine "The Great" Ndereba came into today's NYC Half Marathon for a final tuneup. She walked away with her 2nd victory in the three-year event, (she was 2nd in 2007) finishing in a time of 1:10:18. 20-year-old Tadesse Tola of Ethiopia won the men's race in a time of 1:00:58, saying afterwards that it was his "best performance ever." Dathan Ritzenhein, running for the the United States marathon team in Beijing said that the conditions in today's race are similar to what he expects in Beijing. The 13.1 mile course began in Central Park, down 7th Ave through Times Square, west across 42nd St, and down the West Side Highway to a finish in Battery Park. For their winning efforts, Ndereba and Tola each walk away with $10,000.