Zersenay Tadesse ran the third-fastest half marathon ever to win the Rotterdam Marathon on Sunday. The 24-year-old Eritrean’s time of 59:16 minutes tied the course record that Kenyan Samuel Wanjiru set while winning the inaugural race last year. At the time, Wanjiru’s mark was a world best, but has since been bettered by Haile Gebrselassie (58:55 in Phoenix) and Paul Kosgei (59:07 in Berlin). Tadesse ran 59:05 last September in Newcastle, but on a course that doesn’t comply with the standards necessary for the official recognition of world records.
In Rotterdam, Tadesse wanted to challenge Gebrselassie’s world record, but that goal went amiss when a tactical race developed. Robert Kipchumba of Kenya placed second in 59:28, followed by his countryman Solomon Bushendich in 60:13.
With his win in Rotterdam, Tadesse showed further evidence of his enormous potential. Only two weeks ago, he was second in 26:37.25 at one of the deepest 10,000-meter races of all time in Brussels. After being a cyclist, Tadesse began to run seriously only in 2002; nonetheless, he placed third in the 10,000m at the 2004 Olympics.
The fastest woman in Rotterdam was British runner Mara Yamauchi, in 1:10:38. She had a clear advantage over Mindaye Gishu (Ethiopia/1:12:27) and Aya Manome (Japan/1:12:50).
Tactical races in Stuttgart
Another thrilling duel between Meseret Defar and Tirunesh Dibaba in Stuttgart. © Victah Sailer
At the World Athletics Final in Stuttgart, Ethiopians dominated most of the distance events. First, Tariku Bekele won the 3,000m comfortably in 7:38.98. The following day, his older brother Kenenisa triumphed over 5,000m in a tactical 13:48.62. With world record holder Saif Saaeed Shaheen of Qatar absent from the 3,000m steeplechase, Kenyan Paul Kipsiele Koech won in a fast 8:01.37.
In the women’s 5,000m, Ethiopians Tirunesh Dibaba and Meseret Defar continued their great rivalry. A week earlier, at the Golden League Final in Berlin, Defar prevented her great opponent’s win of the grand jackpot. In Stuttgart, Dibaba had her revenge, winning by only one one-hundredth of a second, in 16:04.77. A day later in the 3,000m, however, Defar was in front again—she ran 8:34.22 to Dibaba’s 8:34.74.
Changes at Boston
Online registration for next year’s Boston Marathon began a couple of days ago. The 111th Boston Marathon will be held on Monday, April 16, 2007—Patriots’ Day in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts—and the field size will be limited to 22,500 official entrants. To register, go to the marathon’s Web site.
New for 2007, the race will begin at 10 a.m. (Wave 1). Wave 2 will begin at 10:30 a.m. In addition to runners enjoying cooler temperatures, the 10 a.m. start will enable officials from the cities and towns along the Boston Marathon route to re-open their roads to vehicular traffic earlier than in the past. Runners should note that due to the efficiency of the wave start program, the majority of runners will not be transported from Boston to Hopkinton much earlier than in past years. To qualify for the 111th Boston Marathon, athletes must meet the designated time standard that corresponds to their age group. Qualifying times must be run on or after September 24, 2005.
