DOWN TO THE WIRE; BAYO SPRINTS TO MEN'S TITLE; KIPLAGAT REPEATS.

Byline: Eric Noland Daily News Staff Writer

A city that prides itself on its international spice got a marathon to match Sunday.

There were thrilling story elements in both of the major divisions, as Zebedayo Bayo of Tanzania overtook a gimpy Jonathan Ndambuki of Kenya in the final few hundred yards to win the men's race and Lornah Kiplagat of Kenya prevailed in a women's race that she had won by default last year.

And L.A. Marathon officials, while not getting the blistering times they expected, derived some satisfaction from Bayo's winning clocking of 2 hours, 11 minutes, 21 seconds over the 26.2-mile course. It was the the third-fastest winning time in the 13-year history of the event, and L.A.'s sixth-fastest time overall.

``Everybody knows I wanted a sub-2:10 today,'' said L.A. Marathon president William Burke, ``but it was a great race.''

Little argument could be found with the assessment. On a day of cool, nearly ideal conditions - the temperature at the start, 45 degrees, was the lowest in L.A. Marathon history - the drama was spirited in both of the main events.

In the men's race, a pack of eight held the lead at the 18-mile mark, and Bayo and Ndambuki pulled ahead for a 30-yard advantage about four miles later.

Ndambuki made his move just past Mile 24, at the corner of Virgil and Wilshire, and was several strides ahead of Bayo on the charge toward the finish. But Ndambuki then encountered some damnable fortune: After cresting a hill on Wilshire, with the skyscrapers of downtown tantalizingly in sight, he pulled his right hamstring muscle slightly on the downhill sprint.

Bayo overtook him at Figueroa, just 2-1/2 blocks from the finish line, and Ndambuki had no power to answer the challenge, losing by a scant four seconds (2:11:25).

``I had confidence because I knew I had a very good kick,'' said Bayo, who admitted that he did not know that Ndambuki had come up lame.

Bayo, 21 years old and running only the third marathon of his career, earned first prize of $30,000 and a Honda sedan valued at $24,150 - quite a windfall for someone who hails from a country where the per-capita gross domestic product is $700.

Bayo had dropped hints of his readiness for this race when he recently finished third in a half-marathon at Lisbon, Portugal, clocking 60:26.

Ndambuki, who is also 21, said of the last 1-1/2 miles: ``I was feeling that I had won the race, because I had given him a gap too big to close. . . . I tried to kick harder the last mile, and I pulled the muscle. I was affected by that. I had strength. Only my leg prevented me.''

Ndambuki would prove to be on the leading edge of a parade of Kenyans to the finish. The L.A. Marathon had loaded up with the accomplished distance runners in hopes of heightening the event's stature, and the Kenyans, after forming the bulk of the leading pack at Mile 16, came to the finish line in a cluster: Simon Lopuyet third in 2:11:41, Philip Chirchir fourth (2:11:52), Charles Tangus sixth (2:12:51).

Their ranks were broken only by Alejandro Cruz of Mexico, who was fifth in 2:12:27. Cruz, who has spent the last year recovering from a career slump, hung with the leaders through most of the race before fading at Mile 20 - also known in marathon lexicon as The Wall.

In the women's race, Kiplagat held off Maura Viceconte of Italy over the final two miles to win in 2:34:03, 10 seconds ahead of Viceconte.

Hellen Kimaiyo of Kenya was third in 2:35:28.

Kiplagat, who won last year's race only after Russia's Nadezhda Ilyina was disqualified for cutting the course, also earned $30,000 and a car.

``It's really a very good feeling to me, and it gives me so much encouragement to break the tape, just because of what happened last year,'' said Kiplagat, who becomes the event's first repeat champion since Nancy Ditz of the U.S. won the first two runnings of the race, in '86 and '87.

TOP FIVE FINISHERS

Men

1, Zebedayo Bayo, Tanzania, 2 hours, 11 minutes, 21 seconds.

2, Jonathan Ndambuki, Kenya, 2:11:25.

3, Simon Lopuyet, Kenya, 2:11:41.

4, Philip Chirchir, Kenya, 2:11:52.

5, Alejandro Cruz, Mexico, 2:12:27.

Women

1, Lornah Kiplagat, Kenya, 2:34:03.

2, Maura Viceconte, Italy, 2:34:13.

3, Hellen Kimaiyo, Kenya, 2:35:28.

4, Irina Kazakova, France, 2:35:58.

5, Svetlana Zakharova, Russia, 2:37:02.

CAPTION(S):

3 Photos, Box

PHOTO (1--Cover--Color) Finishing Touch

Tanzania's Zebedayo Bayo sprints past his competition to win the 13th L.A. Marathon.

(2--Cover--Color) Lornah Kiplagat of Kenya wins second straight women's title.

(3--Color) Zebedayo Bayo of Tanzania outsprinted Kenyan Jonathan Ndambuki down the stretch to win the L.A. Marathon.

Tina Gerson/Daily News

BOX: TOP FIVE FINISHERS (see text)