News30 May 2003


Gebrselassie and Bekele top quality bill in Hengelo - updated

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Bekele's short course victory salute in Lausanne (© Getty Images)

The most eagerly anticipated 10,000m confrontation since the Gebrselassie versus Tergat duel at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, will be staged this Sunday in The Netherlands at the Thales FBK Games – IAAF GP – at the Fanny Blankers-Koen Stadium, in Hengelo (1 June).

Gebrselassie, 30, the World 10,000m record holder will face the latest Ethiopian running sensation to follow in his Athletics footsteps, Kenenisa Bekele, 21, the quadruple World Cross Country Champion, who took the second of his double wins in Lausanne at the end of March.

Both men suffered injury ravaged summer track seasons in 2002, but over the course of last autumn and winter have re-established themselves as the dominant forces in long distance running on the track and across the country, respectively.

Gebrselassie who sustained a calf injury after his 2:06:35 senior marathon debut in the 2002 London race, which ultimately led to him not finishing an attack on the one hour run at last year’s Hengelo meet, bounced back into competition with a World 10k road race best (27:02 – Dec 2002). "The Emperor's" renewed reputation was then further cemented after he set a World indoor two mile best, and took the World Indoor Championships 3000m title, to prove he had lost none of his old track speed.

"I am ready for Sunday,” said Gebrselassie yesterday (29 May). “Physically and mentally I am ready, but that was the same last year and we all know what happened. I love Hengelo and the people love me for what I gave them. I hope I can give them this year what I promised the people last year. I am 100% fit and I am extremely happy to run with my Ethiopian friends in what might be the strongest 10,000m ever."

"Bekele is an extraordinary talent. It is not only his running style, also his mental game and strength during competitions is special. He did something I never could; winning the World XC-title. Maybe Bekele can coach me to do the same one day!"

"I don't think I will give Bekele a lot of pressure by praising him a lot, you better think of the pressure this guy gives me".

"If he is able to beat me he should beat me. I like it when people have respect for me but when I am getting too slow they better pass me. I am 100% sure Bekele will not wait for me. He has his own mind,” concluded the quadruple World and twice Olympic 10,000m champion.

The young pretender Bekele, ran with, and so not surprisingly aggravated an Achilles injury when taking his first double gold at the 2002 World Cross in Dublin, and consequently like Gebrselassie, also sat out last summer’s track season. Mirroring his compatriot’s recovery, he also returned successfully to competition at the end of 2002 with a series of dominant wins on the European cross country circuit, which culminated with the retention of both his World Cross Country titles at the end of March this year.

"I have had more success in the cross country than on the track but I hope that this year the track will give me the same success,“ confirmed Bekele. “Some people think I am not a track runner but in the past John Ngugi and Paul Tergat have shown it is possible. I am not comparing myself to them yet but one day I hope to have the Olympic and World titles in the 10,000m…and of course the World record."

"I am in very good shape at this moment but I can't say whether I will break the World record. First of all there are also other good athletes, secondly it will be my first 10,000m and I haven't been so successful on the track so far.

"I really hope to win the same amount of medals and records as Haile. I don't want to be Haile, I would like to achieve the same. I am very honoured to be in the same track-race as he is. This is the first time."

"If I can beat Haile I will do that. In the end this is sports and the best one should win,”

Athletics like most sports has a tendency to throw up a surprise result, and Sileshi Sihine who recently produced double victories at the Ethiopian championships at altitude in Addis Ababa (most notably over Bekele at 5000m) presents the most likely threat to this Gebrselassie and Bekele 'head to head', while World 5000m champion Richard Limo of Kenya could also be in with a shout too.

Jos Hermens, the manager to both the main protagonists is convinced that whatever occurs that the race has all the elements to be one of the greatest 10,000 metres races ever.

“No, I would not be surprised to find four or five athletes still in contention when the bell is sounded at 400m….but, I would be amazed if the eventual winner wasn’t either Haile or Kenenisa,” confirmed Hermens.

“Of course it’s going to be a little bit hot (the predicted temperatures are 27c with very little wind). Haile’s experience will of course count, tactically he is very aware, when to hold back or when to go, but endurance wise, they are very close.”

10,000m field, as at 1 June (maybe subject to change)

Seto, Tomohiro JPN 28:15:02 19/10/76
Koelen vd, Marc NED pace  03/10/83
Mosima, Philip KEN pace  02/01/77
Hoff, Shadrack RSA 27:43:89 19/05/73
Tola, Girma ETH 27:13:48 13/10/75
Kiprop, Francis KEN 27:36:78 04/06/82
Mezgebu, Assefa ETH 26:49:90 19/06/78
Kemboi, Nicholas KEN debut  25/11/83
Bekele, Kenenisa ETH debut  20/06/82
Irifune, Satoshi JPN 27:53:92 14/12/75
Sihine, Sileshi ETH 27:26:12 01/01/83
Keflezhigi, Meb USA 27:13:98 05/05/75
Alemu, Dagne ETH pace  01/01/80
Berioui, Said MAR 27:31:00 03/06/75
Holmen, Janne FIN 28:23:84 26/09/77
Gebrselassie, Haile ETH 26:22:75 18/04/73
Limo, Richard KEN 26:50:20 19/11/80
Gebremariam, Gebre ETH 27:25:61 10/09/84 - added

Away from the men’s 10,000m, the Thales FBK Games in Hengelo on Sunday will also offer a well balanced programme of other events.

The men's 100m presents Canada’s sprint find Nicholas Macrozonaris who recently scalped World record holder Tim Montgomery in Mexico City. The Canadian faces World Cup 100m champion Emedolu Uchenna of Nigeria, Portugal’s double European sprint silver medallist and World Cup 200m champion Francis Obikwelu, and Olympic 200m silver medallist Darren Campbell of Britain.

There are quality 800m, and 3000m Steeplechase line-ups too, headed respectively by the Kenyans, Wilfried Bungei, the World Indoor 800m bronze medallist, and Reuben Kosgei, the World and Olympic Steeplechase champion.

World Indoor champion Tim Lobinger (GER) is the star name in the men’s Pole Vault, while the Shot Put pits Olympic champion Arsi Harju of Finland against Spain’s recently crowned World Indoor champion, Manuel Martinez.

In the women’s 100m, Jamaica’s Juliet Campbell, the former World Indoor 200m champion will face Belgium's Kim Gevaert who took silver medals at both 100m and 200m at the European Championships last summer.
 
Olympic 1500m champion Nouria Merah-Benida of Algeria, 32, who is returning to action this summer after maternity leave from the sport, runs her second 1500m of the season following on from her 4:26.59 win at altitude in Mexico City at the beginning of May. The Algerian has a personal best of 3:59.12 (2000).

In the women’s Discus, Russia’s reigning World champion Natalia Sadova, will have her work cut out against last year’s World Cup and Commonwealth champion Beatrice Faumuina of New Zealand.

Inga Babakova of the Ukraine (PB 2.05m) who took the World crown in 1999 is one of three athletes to have personal bests in excess of 2.00m in the women’s High Jump. The 33 year-old veteran will be joined by Russia European Indoor champion Maria Kuptsova (2.00m; 2.03m indoors), and Dora Györffy of Hungary (2.00m).

Hammer Throw - 30 May

In a prelude to the main meeting programme, the men’s and women’s Hammer events took place on Friday night (30 May). There was a 79.77m fifth round victory for 2001 World and 2002 European championships fifth placer Andrey Skvaruk in the men’s competition, ahead of Hungary’s European champion Adrian Annus (79.06), and the Belarussian Igor Astaphkovich (78.55), who now at 40 years of age has taken a European title (1990) and multiple Olympic medals in a long distinguished career.

The women’s competition produced the rare sight of three women throwing over 70 metres with another two perilously close to that mark too! The win went to France’s Manuela Montebrun, the current season world lead who with a release of 71.54m in the second round, which defeated European champion Olga Kuzenkova of Russia in second (70.84), and Romania's World record holder Mihaela Melinte (70.73) in third. Germany’s Suzanne Keil set a 69.69m personal best and national record in fourth, while USA’s Anna Norgren-Mahon was fifth with 69.58m.

IAAF

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