Muindi won a record-setting fourth Honolulu Marathon, in 2 hours, 11 minutes, 12 seconds, shattering the race record by 31 seconds.

"I need to think not about winning, but about the course record," said Muindi, who also broke the course record of 2:12:17 set in 1997. "Last year I was thinking about winning, but this year, the record. Because if you set the course record, you win."

Muindi, who is from Kenya, defended his 2003 title, earning $15,000 for the win, $10,000 for setting the race record, $5,000 for the course record, and $5,000 for running a sub-2:12:00 race.

David Mutua, Muindi's training partner, finished second in 2:12:52. Mbarak Hussein, a three-time Honolulu Marathon champion, was third in 2:14:00.

The 26.2-mile race began at Ala Moana and the Queen Street extension, headed out to Hawai'i Kai and finished at Kapi'olani Park, with 22,388 of the 22,686 participants finishing the race.

Muindi broke the race record set by Ibrahim Hussein, older brother of Mbarak, of 2:11:43 in 1986.

"We had wondered for a number of years if we would ever see it (the record) be broken," Honolulu Marathon president Dr. Jim Barahal said, comparing the record to baseball player Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak.

"We're glad this proves it doesn't take a super human and a super-human effort on a once-in-a-lifetime race."

Barahal said the course currently used is more difficult because of the uphill climb at Diamond Head in the latter part of the race. The route was changed in 1992 because of a bottleneck in the Kahala area.

Jimmy Muindi (1) keeps pace with fellow Kenyans Mathew Sigei (5), David Matua (4), Mbarak Hussein (2) and Ethiopia's Gudisa Shentema (7) on Kalaniana'ole Highway. Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser

Russia's Lyubov Morgunova also set a record in the women's race, running 2:27:33.

Muindi took advantage of the cool temperatures in the upper-60s and a lack of wind — it was so still the leaves on trees weren't moving — in ideal running weather.

"(Saturday), the weather was good," Muindi, 31, said. "We sat down, David (Mutua), my brother, and my coach, and we planned, that this was the day to break the record."

With Muindi's brother, Nicholus, serving as the rabbit, or pacesetter, the lead pack of six started at a near-record pace, hitting the half-way point in 1:06:00.

It was the first time the Muindi brothers ran in the same race, and the first time Nicholus served as a rabbit. It allowed for some strategy for the brothers and Mafua, who train together and had planned how fast to run each split in order to set the record.

"I told (Nicholus), 'If you see me wanting to pass you, you know you're going too slow,' " Jimmy Muindi said.

Early on, Kenya's Boniface Usisivu pushed the pace, often vying with Nicholus Muindi for the lead.

It didn't affect Jimmy Muindi, who ran a strategically different race.

"I know this course very much," Jimmy Muindi said. "(Usisivu) was pushing very hard, but he got tired."

Muindi chose to run on the outskirts of the pack, giving himself some distance.

"I like running my own race," he said. "I listen to them, to their stepping and their breathing, and I don't like them to listen to me."

Muindi also chose to run closer to the turns, especially those early in the race, around downtown, Diamond Head, and Kahala.

"I normally recover a lot of seconds, which becomes a minute," he said.

With no wind to hold back the competitors on the return trip, the runners were free to pick up the pace.

"The other years, I was scared, because if you go ahead, you go too slow," Muindi said.

But Muindi didn't have that trouble yesterday, and was able to create some separation from the pack of Mutua, Hussein, Matthew Sigei of Kenya, Usisivu, and Gudisa Shentema of Ethiopia.

"I knew in time I was going to make a move and no one would catch up," Muindi said.

At the 19th mile, Muindi took off, running a 4:43 mile. Running alone, he ran miles 20 through 23 at an average 4:53 pace.

He slowed as he approached the 24th and 25th miles, which come with a slight climb up Diamond Head Road.

By the time he made the final descent — cheered on by hundreds of runners still in the initial stages of the run — Muindi had the record well in hand.

In the battle for second place, Mutua broke away from Sigei and Usisivu, who fell about 30 seconds behind as Muindi picked up the pace around the 19-mile mark.

"When he was kicking, he told me, 'Follow me,' " Mutua said. "I saw other guys getting tired. I kicked, and they dropped. So, I followed Jimmy. I know how he runs, and I followed him."