News11 Jan 2008


Gete Wami: after a half million, a half marathon!

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Gete Wami successfully defends in Berlin (© Bongarts)

She’s won four World titles and several runnerup medals, an Olympic silver and two bronzes, as well as dozens of world class races. She recently added the considerable bonus of half a million dollars in winning the inaugural World Marathon Majors series. None of which has blunted Gete Wami’s ambition.

The Ethiopian goes into the second running of the big-money Ras Al Khaimah International Half Marathon on 8 February, intent on bringing her 21.1km time in line with her personal best 2.21.34 for the Marathon.
 
Last year’s women’s winner in RAK, as it is known locally in the United Arab Emirates, was Wami’s compatriot Berhane Adere, who ran an untroubled 70.58.

But with Kenyans, Salina Kosgei and Rita Jeptoo in the field this time, Wami will expect to be pushed to a faster time than her best of 70.22, which she ran en route to her Berlin 2006 marathon victory.

"That's one of the reasons why she's running," said her husband/coach, Getaneh Tessema, by telephone from the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa last night. "She's never really been in a fast, competitive half-marathon before. So, I would expect her to run much faster."
 
And he should know, because he was at last year’s inaugural event, to see young Sammy Wanjiru run a super fast time in the men’s race. The Kenyan’s 58:53 would have been a World record - two seconds better than Haile Gebrselassie’s then record -  but for the failure to administer an EPO test, an issue the organisers will ensure does not repeat itself this year.
 
Styled as the richest half-marathon in the world, prize money in RAK has been increased this year, to well over $200,000. And, looking to get a good cut of that, Wami has buckled down to hard training again, after her month off following her victory in the Berlin Marathon and second place in the New York Marathon within five weeks in Autumn!
 
“She had a month off, then two weeks easy running, so she’s been back running hard for two weeks now, apart from an easy run on Christmas Day, to celebrate,” said Getaneh. To elucidate, Christmas Day was just last Monday (7 Jan), in Ethiopia, which follows the Orthodox Christian calendar.
 
“She doesn’t have any injuries, or physical problems. Another month’s training is more than sufficient for her to get in shape,” says hubby, who is still fit enough incidentally to train with his wife…. on the easy runs! But he’s smart enough not to race against her, since he knows he’d get blown away. As is likely to happen to her opponents next month.

Pat Butcher for the IAAF

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