One week before her 23rd birthday, Dire Tune ran to her third big success of the year at a meet in Ostrava, Czech Republic. The Ethiopian broke Tegla Loroupe’s world record for the one-hour run, covering 18,517 meters to better Loroupe’s mark by 177 meters.
The 22-year-old Ethiopian had already made her presence felt with two important marathon victories this year: first she broke the course record in Houston with 2:24:40, and then three months later won the Boston Marathon in a sprint finish over Alevtina Biktimirova (Russia). Tune could well be part of the Ethiopian marathon squad for the Olympics. Despite having pacemakers she was off the pace in the hunt for the world best in the first half of the race, passing 5,000m in 16:28.82, or almost 15 seconds slower than planned. Tune was still 15 seconds behind the planned schedule when she passed 10,000m in 32:45.46. But soon after the Ethiopian went to the front herself and more than made up the time. (As a side note, when Loroupe set the mark in 1998, she continued running past the one-hour mark and set a still-standing world record of 1:05:26.6 for 20,000m.)
The women’s 10,000m in Ostrava was an Olympic qualifying event for the Ethiopians. Six days after her world 5,000m record in Oslo and following a trip back to Ethiopia, Tirunesh Dibaba was at it again. Soon after the start it became clear that the race wouldn’t be super fast. Wude Ayalew led through 5,000m (15:43.22). Dibaba was in the lead pack but then dropped back suddenly; at one point she was 10 meters back, and it looked as if the world 10,000m champion was not going to qualify for the Olympics. But just over three laps from the finish Dibaba recovered, and won in 31:03.37 from her sister Ejegayehu, who ran 31:04.05. Meselch Melkamu was third in 31:04.93.
Gete Wami wins Comeback Race
Two months after she fell in the London Marathon and went on to finish third despite her injuries, Gete Wami won her comeback race in England. The winner of the first World Marathon Majors series proved unbeatable in the women’s race in Sunderland. The 33-year-old Ethiopian, one of the favorites for the Olympic marathon, won by a decisive margin in 29:20. The normal distance for the race in Sunderland is 10K. But on Fathers’ Day in England the women’s race had to be reduced in distance for safety reasons. High waves crashed up and over the coast road, which is normally part of the course. Deprived of this part of the course the race was only around 9K.
Liz Yelling (Great Britain) had been at the front early on while Wami stayed back in the leading pack. The Ethiopian only took the initiative in the second half and went clear of her rivals. Second was Nadia Ejjafini (Bahrain) in 29:36. Third place went to Yelling (29:56). Fourth was the Spaniard Alessandra Aguilar in 30:11.
The fall in the London Marathon affected Wami more than at first suspected. “I had sharp pains and had to follow medical advice and not train for three weeks. My back and legs had blue marks but thankfully it was nothing serious,” said Wami, who will not race again before the Olympic marathon.
Double Win for KIMbia at the Bellin Run
The KIMbia group had a double victory at the Bellin Run in Green Bay, Wisconsin. In a thrilling finish John Yuda (Tanzania) won the 10K in 28:47 from his training partner John Korir (Kenya), who was credited with the same time. KIMbia’s Charles Munyeki was third in 29:20. The fastest woman by a clear margin was KIMbia’s Millicent Gathoni. The Kenyan won in 32:51 from the Romanian Adriana Pirtea (34:58), who was second in last year’s Chicago Marathon. Third was the veteran Joan Samuelson (USA) in 36:44.
Nearly 9,000 runners entered the traditional Bellin Run. Among them was Uta Pippig. She ran without pushing herself and, without training specifically for the race, finished in 404th place in 43:27.
