Meserat Defar sits by her World record clock in New York (© Victah Sailer)
Ethiopia’s Meseret Defar, Olympic champion and current World record holder for the women’s 5000m, has confirmed that her appearances at two IAAF World Athletics Tour meets are key to her preparations for the 11th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, Osaka, Japan (25 Aug to 2 Sep).
First stop is the start of the IAAF Golden League on Friday, 15 June at the ExxonMobil Bislett Games, Oslo, Norway, and then Defar will turn her attentions to the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava, Czech Republic, an IAAF Grand Prix, on Wednesday, 27 June.
“These two meets Oslo and Ostrava are two of the most important races before the World Championships in Osaka. They could give me a lot of confidence in my preparation,“ said Defar.
The reigning double World Indoor 3000m champion and World outdoor 5000m silver medallist broke the women’s 5000m in New York last year with 14:24.53, and it is a distinct possibility that that mark will come under pressure again this year.
Though she has yet to make her 2007 outdoor track debut at 5000m, Defar, 23, has been in magnificent form this year already, setting a World Indoor record at 3000m (8:23.72) in Stuttgart, Germany on 3 February, and a world best at Two Miles (9:10.47) in Carson, USA on 20 May.
Chris Turner for the IAAF
