Gold medalGotytom GEBRESLASE (ETH) 8:56.36
“It was a great evening for me. It was surprising that the Russian girl took an acceleration with 800 metres to go. Twenty metres before the finishing line, I realized that I could win this race. I absolutely wanted to be the first and I just ran.
“Although my last name is Gebreslase I have no relationship with Haile. I come from the north of Ethiopia, a region which is called Tigray, whose capital city is Mekele and which has famous athletes for instance the double Olympic Champion in Moscow Games in 1980 Miruts Yifter and also Gebre Gebremariam who has won the New York Marathon in 2010 and the World Cross Country Championships in 2009.
“Since two years I do athletics, I started in school. I have two brothers and four sisters, but I am the only one who does athletics. Now I have two coaches there. My role model is Tirunesh Dibaba.
I hope I will be like her one day.”
Silver medal - Ziporah Wanjiru KINGORI (KEN) 8:56.82
"It is a bad result. I hoped to win the title. Gebreslase was not better than us today."
Bronze medal - Caroline Chepkoech KIPKIRUI (KEN) 8:58.63
"I am very disappointed by the result. Our race was not a good race today."
