Cherry Blossom

Kenyan, Russian win Cherry Blossom racesRichard Chelimo of Kenya pulled away from countryman William Koech in the final half-mile and won the Cherry Blossom 10-mile race in Washington yesterday. Chelimo, 19, finished in 47 minutes, 6 seconds, matching the third fastest time in the race's 20-year history. He beat Koech by nine seconds.The women's race was won by Albina Galliamova of Russia, in 53:44, the slowest women's winner since 1984.Track and fieldThe German Athletics Federation lifted its four-year suspension of sprinters Katrin Krabbe, Grit Breuer and Silke Moeller.

Spring arrives in Washington with the blooming of the Japanese cherry trees, an event that attracts over half a million visitors annually.It was in 1912 that the first trees were shipped to Washington from Japan as a gesture of friendship between the two countries. The first tree was planted by first lady Helen Herron Taft, and two decades later a festival was held to celebrate the blooming of the trees.This year's National Cherry Blossom Festival, which opens next Sunday and runs through April 12, commemorates the 80th anniversary of the gift of the cherry trees.

WASHINGTON -- More than 3,000 cherry trees are poised to blossom in Washington this week, just in time for the annual Cherry Blossom Festival.According to the National Park Service, the pink and white flowers are expected to start opening between Thursday and Saturday.But a weather change could move up -- or push back -- the date the flowers are expected to open so it's hard to make an exact prediction. Earle Kittleman of the National Park Service said the fragile blossoms last less than a week, and he warned that cold weather, high winds or heavy rains can ruin the flowers.

White-knuckle ride readying at Busch GardensA fearsome, serpentine creature awaits visitors at Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Va., when the park's newest roller coaster opens next month.Drachen Fire, based on the German word for dragon, is scheduled to be ready April 4, opening day of the 1992 season."Even the most avid roller coaster fan will find Drachen Fire to be a white-knuckled kind of experience," said Keith Kasen, Busch Gardens executive vice president and general manager.Drachen Fire will be one of the biggest steel coasters in North America, standing 150 feet tall with 3,550 feet of track.

* Saturday: MCRRC River Rumble 20K, Potomac, 9 a.m., 353-0200.* Sunday: RASAC Fox 5-K, Bel Air, 9 a.m., 638-2717; Jingle Bell Run for Arthritis 5K, Salisbury, 8:30 a.m., 494-8649; Tri-Maryland No Frills Biathlon, Columbia, 10 a.m., 882-6103.* Future book: BRRC Santa's Sack Race 6-miler, Dec. 21; RASAC Holiday Run 5K, Dec. 22; WRRC Dancer Dash 10K, Dec. 22; Annapolis Striders' 13th Anniversary 15K Run, Dec. 28; BRRC Father Time Frolic, Dec. 29; MCRRC Jingle Bell Jog 12K, Dec. 29; WRRC Winfield Mile, Dec. 29; RASAC 6-miler, Jan. 1; BRRC Frozen Finger 5-Miler, Jan. 5.* Marathon: Honolulu, Sunday.

Pat Santarone has passed his rake to Paul Zwaska, his successor as Baltimore Orioles groundskeeper, but Sunday at Memorial Stadium, the message was the same: Keep off the grass. That didn't matter to the 895 finishers in the third annual Oriole Advocates Home Run 8K, who came around the warning track for the finish along the first-base line.In the lead was Brad Uhlfelder, who had a 150-yard lead on Gerry Clapper en route to his 25 minute, 15-second finish in the Home Run."He's as hot as a firecracker," fifth-place finisher Ken Miller said about Uhlfelder, who won the Maryvale race and the St. Patrick's Day 5K this spring.

* Saturday: WRRC track run 5-K, Western Maryland College, 9 a.m., 848-2825; Chinmoy 2-miler, Patterson Park, 8 a.m., 467-3223; Rover Run, Greenbelt Park, 9 a.m., 776-6505; Mattapany Trail half-marathon, St. Mary's City, 9 a.m., 863-3508; Marathon Tuneup, Potomac, 8 a.m., 353-0200.* Sunday: Oriole Advocates Home Run 8-K, Memorial Stadium, 9:30 a.m., 882-5455; Cherry Blossom 10-miler, Washington, 8 a.m.; Cherry Pit 10-miler, South River High, Annapolis, 2 p.m., 268-1165; Cherry Blossom 5-miler, Wilmington, Del., (302)

* Saturday: April Fool's 5-K, McHenry, 8:30 a.m., 724-7687.* April 6: WRRC track run 5-K, Western Maryland College, 9 a.m., 848-2825; Chinmoy 2-miler, Patterson Park, 8 a.m., 467-3223; Spring Fair 8-K, Levering Hall, Johns Hopkins, 8 a.m., 494-8649; Rover Run, Greenbelt Park, 9 a.m., 776-6505; Mattapany Trail half-marathon, St. Mary's City, 9 a.m., 863-3508; Marathon Tuneup, Potomac, 8 a.m., 353-0200.* April 7: Oriole Advocates Home Run 8-K, Memorial Stadium, 9:30 a.m., 882-5455; Cherry Blossom 10-miler, Washington, 8 a.m.; Cherry Pit 10-miler, South River High, Annapolis, 2 p.m., 268-1165; Cherry Blossom 5-miler, Wilmington, Del., (302)

One of the top events in Washington, one that draws half a million visitors annually, is the National Cherry Blossom Festival, which this year opens Easter Sunday and runs through April 7.The festival celebrates springtime and the blooming of the more than 6,000 Japanese cherry trees planted in city parks and along the Tidal Basin. The first trees arrived in 1912 as a gift from Japan to symbolize the friendship between the two countries. The first tree was planted in March of that year by first lady Helen Herron Taft in a small ceremony that included the wife of the Japanese ambassador.