Berhane Adere beat Romania's Nuta Olaru to win the inaugural Rock n Roll Seattle Half Marathon in one hour 11 minutes 19 seconds.

The Ethiopian star followed Olaru, who is hopeful that she has done enough to make the trip to Berlin for this summer's World Championships marathon, for 12 of the 13.1 mile course.

Adere then took control of the race to win ahead of her eastern European rival by 24 seconds.

"I felt good all the way around, I believed in myself and knew that I had the speed to claim the victory," said Adere.

Isley Gonzalez of the United States finished third in 1hr 20min 14sec.

Kenyan Elijah Nyabuti won the men's race in 1hr 5min 14sec while the women's full marathon saw a tight finish between American's Michele Suszek and Leah Thorvilson.

Mexico-based Kenyan Peter Omae took the men's title comfortably in 2hr 18min 17sec.