Lornah Kiplagat retains title in San Juan in 2008 (© Denni Lozza - Island Photography)
time World Road Running champion Lornah Kiplagat will lead the field in a women's 10,000m race on 30 May in Utrech, The Netherlands.
Kiplagat, and her cousin, Hilda Kibet, will be aiming for the Dutch Olympic qualifying standard of 31:22.00. Both runners missed the target at the European Cup 10,000m in Istanbul last month. At the time, Kiplagat was in a heavy training period, and is expected to run significantly faster than her 31:53.72 in Istanbul, where she finished second to Elvan Abeylegesse of Turkey.
A year ago, Kiplagat’s focus was the 10,000m at the World Championships in Osaka, but a calf injury sustained in May was serious enough to curtail her training and sideline her from Osaka.
The 33-year-old Dutchwoman bypassed an attempt to defend her World Cross Country title in Edinburgh in March, she said, to focus on this summer’s Olympic Games.
Kiplagat is familiar with the Utrecht track, having run 31:14:28 there in 2003. The track record is 30:51:99 by Edith Masai, from 2005.
Others expected to line up include Belgian Nathalie De Vos, and Hayley Yelling of Great Britain.
Organisers and Bob Ramsak for the IAAF