Beijing T&F - Day 2

On Saturday the only event Ethiopian athletes are participating in is the Men's 3,000 M Steeplechase. By contrast Sunday is packed with the Women's Marathon and Steeplechase finals, the Men's 10,000 M finals and the 1,500 M semi-finals. By the end of Sunday we will be able to size up the team's performance. If the team is not prepared for the heat and humidity we will see it in the medal count. If the preparation was not adequate it will be downhill after Sunday. Y

I did get ahead of myself. So let me return to Saturday.

Men's 3,000 M Steeplechase - Baby Steps

Ethiopia has made steady progress in this event. In 2004, Luleseged Wale and Tewodros Shiferaw were entered and both failed to advance. At the 2005 World Championships Tewodros Shiferaw failed to advance. At the 2007 World Championships Roba Gary and Nahom Mesfin advanced to the finals. The team of Roba Gary, Yacob Jarso and Nahom Mesfin is still young but having advanced to the WC finals Roba and Nahom should be in the finals. This however is not a cake walk, both are on the buble and have to work hard to advance. Yacob would have to follow Zemzem Ahmed's example and set a PB to make it to the finals.

Look for Roba and Nahom in the finals.


Update:
The surprising Yacob Jarso ran a personal best and won his heat and will be in the finals on Monday. Roba and Nahom did not make it. Nahom just missed out, finishing 5th in a slow heat (top 4 qualify). This is a step back for Roba and Nahom but it's gratifying to see some young runners such as Yacob and Zemzem step up.