An 8K in Dallas produced some top-class performances on Saturday. Wilson Kiprotich and Rose Kosgei ensured that Kenya scored a double triumph, winning in 22:18 and 26:02, respectively.
In ideal weather conditions, Kiprotich set off in pursuit of the world best time of 22:04. He took the initiative from the start and, passing 5K in 13:43, was making excellent time in the race. At this point he’d already left his main rivals behind – Kenyans Haron Lagat (22:33), Richard Kiplagat (22:49) and Lamech Mokon (22:59) eventually filled the subsequent positions. “I felt good and was running strongly, but the wind prevented a record time,” explained the 27-year-old winner, who missed the course record set by his compatriot Sammy Kipketer two years ago by six seconds.
The elite women’s field started three-and-a-half minutes in front of the men’s. On handicap, Wilson Kiprotich was well ahead in comparison, as he overtook Rose Kosgei after six kilometers. Though Kosgei couldn’t make up the advantage on the fastest men at the finish, she did prove a clear winner of the women’s race. The former World Cross Country champion, who hadn’t been able to train at times because of the unrest in Kenya, won in 26:02 from Dorota Gruca of Poland (26:59) and her compatriot Margaret Chirchir (27:13).
Mikitenko and Arusei in Fine Form in Paderborn
The women’s events produced the best races during the traditional Easter Race in Paderborn, Germany. Peninah Arusei (Kenya) improved her 10K best to 31:42, while Irina Mikitenko took the half marathon. Preparing for the Flora London Marathon on in three weeks, Mikitenko clocked 68:51 despite cold weather with a mixture of snow and rain coming down. It was a personal best for the 35 year-old German as well. The 62nd edition of the Paderborn race had 7,802 entries.
Taking the lead right from the start, Mikitenko was never challenged. “It went surprisingly well,” said Mikitenko, who improved her personal best from April 2007 by 55 seconds. London will only be her second marathon after a great debut in Berlin in September 2007 with 2:24:51. Mikitenko’s time also was a course record, which had been held by Joyce Chepchumba (Kenya) with 69:24 from 1997. And for more than ten years no German woman had been as fast as Mikitenko in Paderborn. Emily Kimuria (Kenya) was second in 1:15:43. Joseph Ngolepus (Kenya) was the men’s winner with a course record of 61:24 minutes, improving the former mark by six seconds. His fellow countryman Jonathan Maiyo was second with 61:44.
In the women’s 10K, Arusei won for the third year in a row and improved her personal best from last year by four seconds. Germany’s Sabrina Mockenhaupt couldn’t match the speed of Arusei, but was happy with second place and a personal best of 32:07. Anitha Kiptum (Kenya) took third in 33:41. There was a surprise in the men’s race, in which Austria’s steeplechaser Markus Pröll beat the favorites from Kenya, who had won this race in every year since 1999. The 28 year-old clocked 28:46 and was one second ahead of Boash Mayaka and John Kales (both Kenya), who were both timed at 28:47.
< h3>Rematch of Bekele versus Tadesse at World Cross Country
A fresh duel between Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) and Zersenay Tadesse (Eritrea) will take center stage at the World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh on Sunday. Bekele had already won ten individual gold medals at these championships before Tadesse brought this sequence to an end in 2007.
The Kenyans will go to Edinburgh without their most successful runner of recent years, Eliud Kipchoge. The 2003 world champion at 5,000m dropped out of the Kenyan trials because of back problems. The likeliest Kenyan for a top spot at the World Championships is now, at least on paper, Gideon Ngatunyi. He won the trials and was fourth at the World Championships a year ago. But whether the Kenyans can keep up with Bekele and Tadesse over 12K is questionable. Also worth taking into consideration are the man who placed third over 5,000m in Osaka, Moses Kipsiro (Uganda), and Craig Mottram (Australia).
An Ethiopian is also the favorite for the women’s 8K. Tirunesh Dibaba has already won gold at the World Cross Country Championships in 2005 and 2006. Last year, however, she was second behind Lornah Kiplagat. It’s not certain whether the Kenyan-born Kiplagat, who now runs for the Netherlands, will run in Edinburgh. Another strong Ethiopian in the race will be Gelete Burka. She was fourth at the World Championships in 2007 and won the trials for the championships in Scotland. The Ethiopian women and the winner of the Kenyan trials, Grace Momyani, will be up against, among others, the surprise winner of the 2004 World Cross Country Championships, Benita Johnson (Australia).
Gebrselassie Gives Up Hope of Olympic Marathon
The fulfillment of his dream will have to wait another four years, or perhaps will remain forever unmet: Haile Gebrselassie has announced that he will definitely not run the marathon in Beijing. The background to this decision of the Ethiopian world record holder, who brought the record down to 2:04:26 in Berlin last year, is the air pollution in the Chinese capital. Gebrselassie tried but failed to persuade the Olympic organizers to change the course by moving the start away from Beijing.
Gebrselassie, who dropped out of the London Marathon a year ago because of a pollen allergy, was concerned that his breathing might be affected and that this would have possible implications for the rest of his career if he ran the marathon in Beijing’s polluted atmosphere. The 34-year-old will now try to qualify for the 10,000m at the Olympic Games. But in a contest with his compatriot Kenenisa Bekele, Gebrselassie is unlikely to have much chance of winning in Beijing.
“Haile was afraid that he could ruin the rest of his career because of the poor air quality in Bejing and the breathing problems he has,” said Gebrselassie’s Dutch manager Jos Hermens. “Haile and I think that he could still be just as strong in 2012 at the Olympic Games in London and that he could still win the marathon there even then.” When the Games take place in London Gebrselassie will be 39 years old. In the light of ever-rising standards among his rivals, his chance of victory there is very much open to question.
