James Koskei of Kenya regained his winning form Sunday, albeit at a longer distance than in his younger days.

Koskei, 39, had made a name for himself on America's roads, winning major titles in 2001 and 2002. When younger, faster guys started beating him, he began preparing to run longer distances.

His training paid off Sunday at Wellstone's Dallas White Rock Marathon at Victory Park.

"This is my big win," said Koskei, who placed fourth in Boston in April. "I was very happy to see I was the winner. I haven't won a marathon."

The men's field was the deepest and strongest in race history, officials said. Elite coordinator Larry Barthlow said he anticipated a pack of seven or eight runners through the halfway point. Six runners stuck together through 21 miles. Even at Mile 23, there was a pack of four.

In the end, Koskei outkicked the others to capture the title in 2 hours, 15 minutes, 9 seconds.

Koskei enjoyed a nice payday, capturing $10,000 for being the men's winner and the $25,000 bonus in the Cooper Complete Gender Challenge.

He said the money would help support his family in Eldoret, Kenya. He lives there with his wife and four children, ranging in age from 11 to 5.

"It means a lot," he said. "This gives me money to help. There are a lot of children that need money for school."

Koskei had success in the early 2000s, winning big races including Bay to Breakers 12K and Bolder Boulder 10K. He said he used to make as much as $70,000 in three months in those days.

"He's been working so hard," said Peter Tanui, a representative of KIMbia, the company that coaches Koskei and manages his career. "He's still in great shape."

The victory was a big boost for KIMbia, which represents some of the world's top distance runners. The group has sent runners to Dallas the last two years, but victory had evaded them.

On Sunday, the men ran as a group, popping five-minute miles or faster throughout the race's second half. They caught and overtook women's winner Emily Samoei and the other women who had received an 18-minute, 35-second head start.

But Koskei said he wasn't worried about the women or the challenge. He wanted to win the men's title. Runner-up Edward Kiptum ran a personal best but finished two seconds behind Koskei.

Defending champion Moses Kororia edged Stephen Biwott for third place in a photo finish (2:15:33). The top five finished in under 2:16, and 45 seconds separated first and fifth.

ELIZABETH M. CLAFFEY/DMN

James Koskei made a name for himself on America's roads, winning 12K and 10K titles in the early 2000s.

"Larry has put together a well-matched field," said Scott Robinson, an agent with AmeriKenyan Running Club. AmeriKenyan had the men's fifth-place finisher, Mathew Koskei (2:15:54).

Koskei arrived in Dallas on Wednesday, directly from Kenya. He spent the last two months preparing to run a strong race in Dallas. He had trained to run a 2:09 marathon in Chicago in October. A painful blister forced him to drop out of the extremely hot Chicago race at the 35-kilometer point.

The men's times were off last year's record-setting 2:12:04, but temperatures in the 40s and 13-mph winds contributed to the slower times.

"If it had been a bit warmer, we could have run faster," Koskei said.