From Badme to Berlin...and to Osaka

What do Badme, Berlin, and Osaka have in common?

The answer: Gudisa Shentema, one of Ethiopia's marathon runners that will be competing at the World Championship in Osaka, Japan tonight. I will elaborate on the story of Gudisa in just bit, but first...

It is no secret that Ethiopia and Kenya are the top two nations in the world when it comes to distance running. And among the two, Ethiopia is ahead, especially when it comes to championship events. However, when you consider all races around the year and around the world, Kenya is light years ahead of Ethiopia in terms of the depth of its talent pool. Just consider the following example: in 2006, of all the marathons run in 2hr 10 min or faster, Kenyans produced 37 of them while Ethiopians accounted for only six. So far in 2007, the fastest Ethiopian performance has been by Gashaw Melese, a 2:09:53 in Paris, but there are 17 Kenyan performances faster than Gashaw's. This is domination!

Ethiopia has produced more legendary runners such as Abebe Bikila, Derartu Tulu and Haile Gebrselassie than Kenya has. When we compare the very best of Ethiopia with Kenya, it appears that Ethiopia is ahead. The obvious question, then, is why doesn't Ethiopia have the same depth of athletes outside of championship competitions?

I think a possible answer is two fold. First, Kenyan federation does not have a stranglehold on the talent pool as does the Ethiopian federation. There is more room for Kenyan talent to surface and blossom, and in time produce performances such as I stated above.

But I believe the second answer is the key regarding why there is such a big gap in the depth category between the two countries. Ethiopia is a country of 80 million while Kenya's population is only about half of Ethiopia's. Considering Ethiopia has a much bigger pool to recruit talent from and the fact that Ethiopia's best have been better than Kenya's best, I am absolutely convinced that, given the right conditions (an absolute key), Ethiopia can and will produce depth of runners that will dwarf even the mighty Kenya!

By right conditions, I mean alleviating poverty and disease and absence of devastating wars. Now, I know full well that Kenya is not free of these foes of humanity, but I believe Kenya has had less of these issues to deal with than Ethiopia. Particularly, in the war category. I do not recall any major war Kenya has been engaged in as Ethiopia has with Eritrea and Somalia. One has to wonder what Ethiopia is capable of producing, in athletics and otherwise, if its human resources were not bogged down in political strife and war and their paralyzing effects.

And that brings me back to the story of Gudisa Shentema. Gudisa has an amazing story that needs to be told and retold. Frankly, I find it surprising that this story has not been circulated widely considering the powerful message it carries. I came across it while reading the media guide from his sponsor, Global Athletics and Management.

So, who is Gudisa Shentema? Gudisa Shentema is a 27 year old Ethiopian soldier-turned-marathoner. Most recently, he finished second, behind none other than Haile Gebrselassie, at the 2006 Berlin Marathon where Haile came within a minute of breaking the marathon world record. Gudisa ran 2:10:43 in Berlin, good enough to earn him a spot at Osaka's World Championships.

But Gudisa's path to Berlin, and now Osaka, has the most unusual beginning. As an eighteen year old, he was at the front of the 1998 Ethiopia-Eritrea war (dispute over Badme). Here is Gudisa's story as written in the media guide:

Born in Ambo, about 85 miles from Addis Ababa, Gudisa Shentema was raised by an aunt and grew up with no interest in sports. In 1998, when the war broke out between Ethiopia and Eritrea, he joined the Army and went to the front. In 2000, he was returning to his brigade after a brief leave when the bus stopped for a tea. A heavy smoker, Shentema went into a bar to have a cigarette, looked up at the TV, and "saw a guy named Gezahegne" winning the Olympic marathon in Sydney. "That scene never left my mind, so when I got back to my brigade I found out they had a 21K race in two months so I enrolled and won easily." When the war ended, he began training in Addis and made quick progress: in 2002 he finished 71st in the Abebe Bikila Marathon; in 2003 he won it. Shentema is now represented by GA&M, along with Gezahegne Abera, the 2000 Olympic gold medalist who distracted him from his cigarette.

Gudisa has run in more marathons since 2003, including the 2005 World Championships, and done well in most of them. In Osaka's World Championship Marathon to be run in few hours from now, Gudissa is not even given an outside chance of getting a medal according to the experts. It is my wish, though, that he will have a breakthrough performance so that his story gets told to a bigger audience.

But I wonder, what if Gudissa was among the tens of thousands that were killed in a meaningless war a decade ago? How many more undiscovered marathon aces died in Badme? As the song goes, "War, what is it good for?"

World Championships TV Schedule

The 11th edition of IAAF World Championships in Athletics will kick off in less than 24 hours. Viewers in the United States can follow the action on NBC and Versus channels.

Versus will televise events on a daily basis, twice a day on most days, although all of it appears to be on tape delay. Click here for additional information regarding Versus telecast.

NBC will broadcast several hours of the championships but only on the weekends. Again, all of NBCs telecast appears to be on tape delay. Click here for more information.

If you prefer to see the championships live, then your best bet is subscription based viewing at WCSN.com. For a mere $4.95, you can watch the whole championships live as well as on demand.

Best of the Best

• More countries are member of this organization than are of the United Nations (192);
• More countries participate in events staged by this organization than do by FIFA (208);
• The flagship event of this organization occurs twice as frequently as the Olympic Games, but it also hosts more countries than the Olympic Games (205)

The Organization: International Association of Athletic Federation (212)

The Event: World Championships in Athletics

The Stars: Ethiopia's Lions

Dreams

What do you dream about? When you are awake, when you are asleep?

Most everyone who is close to me- family, friends, work colleagues- know my (excessive) interest in the sport of running. Some understand me, and others don't. But it does not change anything for me. Recently, though, I have been wondering how someone can tell when he/she is too interested in something. I think one possible clue is when you start dreaming about that thing while your are awake and while you are asleep.

When I was a child, and even after I grew up, I used to have dreams of being chased by someone or something. I would try to run to get away but it always felt like my running was in slow motion, while the attacker was fast closing on me. I was always glad when I finally woke up from such dreams.

Nowadays, though, I still dream a lot about running, but I am no longer being chased. When I am awake I often dream about the seemingly unreachable goal of running a sub 3 hour marathon. When I am asleep I dream a lot about being in a race where I feel the exhilaration of being right up front with the leaders. In such dreams, I always find myself being surprised that I could maintain such a fast pace to stay up front. It is an effortless feeling.

Just few days ago, I dreamt about being in a 1500M race, and during the last 300M I was locked in a battle with another runner for the lead. The other guy kept pushing harder every few strides and I covered his move every time.

The funny thing about these races is I never ever remember how the race ends. It is always thinking "I can't believe I am running this fast" but not knowing what the final result is.

Here is another recent running dream: several weeks ago, I found myself at a mile race on the track. There were several heats of the race so I decided to jump in with the group expected to finish between 7:00 - 7:50 min. I figured that I could get pulled to running faster than I could running by myself.

This was the third heat so as my heat is called up to the starting line, I walk onto the track for what I remember to be my first ever track race. I keep thinking about Haile, Kenenisa, etc. and wonder what they feel in such moments.

After giving quick instructions, the starter gets the race underway and I immediately find myself in the middle of the pack running a pace which I am not sure I can keep for four laps. The leaders go way ahead but I keep pushing and notice the clock reading 1:40 at the end of the first lap. Amazingly, lap two and three go consistently the same running each at a 1:40 pace. I am working hard now with one lap left, but by this time, I had already managed to pass many that had gone ahead of me. Only four or five still remain ahead of me as we get in the back stretch of the final lap. Feeling that it is now or never, I push even harder and manage to pass two more people getting myself in to third place. As we pass the 200M mark, I pass one more person and get into second place, and at the same time notice that the one person remaining upfront is a woman.

At this point, I still feel strong enough to know that I could pass her, but for a second or two, I have a mental debate with myself and my upbringing wondering whether I should pass her or not. With a possible first ever victory in sight and having convinced myself that everyone in the race is a fair game, I push more and come up even with the woman with about 50M to go in the race. She puts up a fight for few more strides but then she fades back and I find myself in the clear, ahead of everyone. I couldn't believe the race had unfolded this way and I start to revel in my first ever victory just steps away.

As I back off from my full sprinting stride in anticipation of the narrow finish line only 10 meters ahead of me, I suddenly hear fast approaching footsteps, and in the blink of an eye, I was passed by another man right at the finish line with no time or space for me to respond. I glance at the clock and it reads 6:37 and change, much quicker than I ever anticipated running. I could not believe I had committed this classical mistake at the finish line but I was still pleased with the turn of events.

I found it even more amazing that I was awake all along during this dream...

Countdown to Osaka

With less than three days remaining before the World Championships (the largest sporting event in the world for 2007) it feels like we are in the "quiet before the storm." Actually, as I write this, I look out the window from our condo and see the waves of the Atlantic crash on the beach about 50 meters away from me. My family and I have come here for our annual vacation at Bethany Beach, Delaware, but the weather has been horrible!

The storm has definitely arrived here as can be witnessed from the ongoing rain and stronger waves. Yesterday morning, I bravely went out for a morning run on the beach and returned 30 minutes later completely drenched. I couldn't get myself out the door for more of the same today, so instead I started to look at all that is being written about Ethiopian athletes headed for Osaka. Hopefully, the weather will clear up later today to go back to the pool and ocean with the kids, but in the mean time here is a summary of items I came across:

Short odds for Bekele's distance hat-trick
Who's the greatest? Kenenisa Bekele can take another step towards settling that argument with his third successive 10 000m world title.With Haile Gebrselassie's 5 000m and 10 000m records already in the bag, the diminutive Ethiopian can now move towards the Emperor's 1993-1999 haul of four successive 10 000m world titles."I am not thinking a lot about that at the moment," said Bekele, who also took his hero's Olympic title over the distance in Athens... more


Expected highlights in Osaka - Distances
Looking to the distance contests, several of the sport’s biggest names will be chasing even more superlatives to add to their growing collections at the 11th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, Osaka, Japan (25 Aug to 2 Sep).

MEN –
While Kenenisa Bekele may have succeeded his mentor Haile Gebrselassie as a multi World record holder, the 25-year-old Ethiopian still has catching up to do in the ‘titles won’ category. Thus far this season, there’s been no evidence submitted to suggest that Bekele is not an overwhelming favourite to capture his third consecutive 10,000m title. While Bekele looms larger-than-life, his fiercest competition looks to come from compatriots Sileshi Sihine, Gebregziabher Gebremariam, and Tadesse Tola, although Eritrea’s Olympic bronze medallist Zersenay Tadesse, who just missed a sub-27:00 clocking with his solo run at the All African Games, can’t be discounted.

In the 5000m, considerable attention will be directed to Australian Craig Mottram, the reigning bronze medallist, as he seeks to end an African stranglehold... more


For Tufa, 10,000m was not love at first sight
Of the few things that irritated Ethiopian runner Mestawet Tufa in the two years prior to 2007, the mention of the words 10,000m definitely topped the list.

“I hated the mention of the event,” Tufa says. “Five years ago when I competed for the first time in the event in Addis Ababa, I was lapped by five or six runners and finished seventh.”
Instead of working hard and getting better at the event, Tufa chose to stay away from the event until this year when she ‘gambled’ on a decision to return at the 36th Ethiopian Athletics Championships in Addis Ababa.

It has proven to be a masterstroke of a decision that has since seen her take... more

Wami to defend Berlin Marathon title

by David Monti, Race Results Weekly

Three-time Olympic medalist Gete Wami will defend her title at the 34th running of the real, Berlin Marathon, race organizers announced today.

Wami, who set an Ethiopian record of 2:21:34 at Berlin last year (since surpassed by Berhane Adere), is currently sitting in second place in the 2006/2007 World Marathon Majors rankings with 40 points, 15 points behind leader Jelena Prokopcuka of Latvia. Should Wami win at Berlin, she would have 65 points and would vault into the lead for the $500,000 prize to be awarded to the points series leader after November’s ING New York City Marathon, the last race in the current series.

Also announced for the Sept. 30 marathon were Japan’s Naoko Sakamoto (2:21:51 PB), Russia’s Irina Timofeyewa (2:25:29), Poland’s Grazyna Syrek (2:26:22) and Germany’s Irina Mikitenko, who will be attempting to complete her first marathon.The real, Berlin Marathon was the fifth-largest marathon in the world last year with 30,118 finishers, according to Running USA, an industry trade association. With one of the fastest courses in the world, the race is the home of the men’s world record: 2:04:55 set by Kenyan Paul Tergat in 2003.

Osaka Bound

The Ethiopian Athletics Federation announced last Friday the Ethiopian squad of 32 athletes that will be travelling to Osaka, Japan to compete at the 11th World Championships in Athletics that is due to start in nine days. For the most part, it is a predictible list based on performance of the athletes so far.

However, I do have some questions that I will have to wait to get answers for:
1- Women 1500M: Why is Gelete Burka running in the already loaded 5000M when she can add to the medal count by running the 1500M in which she has done very well so far this year? Why is Mestawet Tadesse the only woman running the 1500M? Where is Meskerem Legesse? Did Mestawet or Meskerem meet the qualifying "A" standard that would have allowed Ethiopia to send more than one athlete in the 1500M? It appears to me that Gelete is getting a raw deal here by missing out in the 1500M.

2- Men's 5000M: Why is Kenenisa not doubling in the 5000M when he has run so many sizzling 3000M races in the last few weeks? This would have been his greatest chance to win a double gold. Perhaps, his experience from Mombasa has him focussed on beating Zeresenay Tadesse in the 10000M.

Incidentally, I am interested to know what the relationship between Kenenisa and Zeresenay is. I have watched many times over the 10000M at the 2004 Athens Olympics where Kenenisa was first and Zeresenay an unexpected third. After crossing the finish line, Kenenisa turned around and started to walk back looking for his team-mates Sileshi and Haile. About the same time Zeresenay crossed the finish line and appeared to approach Kenenisa wanting to shake hands or talk but Kenenisa simply walked past. I watched this many times over and it looks awkward. I wonder what the dynamics between the two of them is and if that contributed to what unfolded in Mombasa. It should make for another great 10000M race in Osaka.

3- Women's 10000M: Once again both Mestawet Tufa and Ahaza Kiros are on the list. Could there be a replay of the debacle in Mombasa? Also it remains to be seen how fit Tirunesh is.

4- Men's Marathon: Tesfaye Tola is back?? He won the Bronze Medal at the Sydney Olympics seven years ago. I was very impressed with him at the time (beautiful strides) but have not heard much of him recently. I like Gashaw Melese in this one since he did so well earlier this year at the Paris Marathon on a hot day (likely in Osaka). He won the Paris Marathon in 2006.

Overall, I think this is a great team. I hope the coaches learned their lesson from Mombasa and trained the athletes at a location that resembles Osaka's climate. Best wishes and I hope we will all watch and support as Ethiopia's best shine on a world stage.

-------------------------
Ethiopian squad for the 11th IAAF World Championships in Osaka 2007

MEN (16)
1500m: Derese Mekonnen, Mekonnen Gebremedhin
3000m SC: Roba Gari, Nahom Mesfin
5000m: Tariku Bekele, Abraham Cherkose, Bekana Daba, Sileshi Sihine
10,000m: Kenenisa Bekele, Sileshi Sihine, Gebregziabher Gebremariam, Tadesse Tola
Marathon: Gashaw Melese, Dejene Berhanu, Ambesse Tolosa, Gudissa Shentema, Tesfaye Tola

WOMEN (16)
1500m: Mestawet Tadesse
3000m SC: Netsanet Achamo, Mekdes Bekele, Zemzem Ahmed
5000m: Tirunesh Dibaba, Meseret Defar, Gelete Burka, Meselech Melkamu
10,000m: Tirunesh Dibaba, Mestawet Tufa, Ejegayehou Dibaba, Aheza Kiros
Marathon: Robe Guta, Askale Tafa, Dure Tune, Adanech Zekiros, Shetaye Gemechu

More Mesgana

They are back for more Mesgana...

Haile Successful

Gebrselassie reminds us once again of his greatness
By Brian Cazeneuve for SI.com

See his distinctive stride and you could read a chapter of Haile Gebrselassie's life, the telltale peek at the world's greatest living distance runner, blowing through Central Park, then Times Square and the streets of Gotham as the Ethiopian legend ran away with the New York Half Marathon on Sunday morning.

The man is light of feet, a skimming stone along the water. Does he even need to touch the ground or might he just float? His chin is straight, only moving laterally if he must espy his opposition. Otherwise, there is no excess energy. How does the bobbing and bouncing not shake his core? How can a spinal column stay so straight when limbs are moving so purposefully?

And then it strikes you. Even at 34, his left arm still has a perceptive, if subtle, flap. The form flaw is out of place. Compact at 5-feet-4, 117 pounds, he looks like the Greek statue with the missing ear. What, pray tell, is wrong? "My books," he tells you. "I needed them for school, so I carried them in my left arm."

The distance was convenient then: 10 kilometers from the farmhouse in Arssi where a single father raised 10 Gebrselassie children to the school where a 16-year old ran his first race, 1,500 meters against older, more accomplished boys. "People were laughing because I was sprinting at the beginning," Gebrselassie remembers. "Look at this boy. He's going to stop soon."

He still hasn't. For his victory that day, Gebrselassie won shorts and a singlet. Retail value: $1, by his estimation. He won certificates for his next two victories. Medals trophies and six-figure appearance fees were still off in the distance.

He has run as long and fast as anyone, setting 22 world records, winning eight world and Olympic medals, including six golds. In the debate among running aficionados to name history's greatest distance runner, Gebrselassie's name stands next to Paavo Nurmi, the Norwegian legend from the 1920s, and Emil Zatopek, the great Czech from the '50s. Neither has Gebrselassie's blistering kick. At the 2000 Sydney Olympics, he outlasted Kenya's Paul Tergat in the 10,000 meters, running the last 200 meters in 26 seconds. Who else on the planet could run 1,500 meters in 3:31.76 in 1998 and win the Berlin Marathon last year in 2:05.56? Despite his sublime resume, Gebrselassie had rarely run in the United States and never in New York City until Sunday.

"When I run in Ethiopia, I look out and see eucalyptus trees and rivers," he said this week, "I wanted to experience New York, to look up and see buildings."

His race began in Central Park for an initial 10 kilometer (six-mile) loop during which Gebrselassie ran stride-for-stride with Somali-born U.S. runner Abdi Abdirahman and Kenya's Robert Cheruiyot, the three-time Boston Marathon champ.

The fast pace played into the hands of Gebrselassie, the two-time Olympic champ at 10,000 meters who once held world records at both the 5K and 10K distances. "I don't know why they pushed," Gebrselassie said afterwards. "I thought they'd stay back. I am a 10,000-meter runner. But they pushed, so I said, 'OK, thank you, you are running my pace. Good-bye.'"

As the runners left the park and headed onto the streets of midtown Manhattan, Abdirahman made a bold push to build a lead. The move dropped Cheruiyot, but not Gebrselassie, who then shot into the lead and never lost it. "In running, you try to recover your surge," Abdirahman explained. "I was trying to build back up and Haile didn't give me that chance. He went right past me and the race was over."

Gebrselassie finished easily in 59 minutes, 24 seconds, a minute ahead of Abdirahman. This was a tune-up, one of many, for his transition to the marathon at the Beijing Olympics next summer, and perhaps for the New York Marathon in 2009. "The race is a natural challenge for me," says Haile, whose older brother, Tekaye, was a 2:11 marathoner in Ethiopia. "You lose the speed before the stamina. I always thought I would move to the marathon late in my career. . . When you run the marathon, you run against the distance, not against the other runners and not against the time."

Gebrselassie has now won all eight half marathons he has entered to go with his marathon wins in Berlin, Fukuoka and Amsterdam. He has won 108 races in 56 different cities, but remains committed to helping his countrymen, many of whom remain impoverished.

His businesses in Ethiopia employ 400 people and include two hotels, a fitness center, a cinema and a car dealership. More than 1,200 students attend the two schools he opened. They are private schools, with a tuition of $7 a month. Students in the fourth grade there are on par with most 12th graders in the country. They have computers and science labs with proper equipment. More than 80 percent will receive higher education, compared with a national average of 10 to 15 percent. As passionately as he speaks about running, he is even more animated about he desire to make Ethiopia better.

"These last few years, we had many problems, from war to poverty, HIV. One year there is drought, next year flooding," he says. "I have to do something for my country. I have to do my part.

"People sometimes get angry with me, because I won't give money away. I tell them, if you want to work, I will find you work. I will give you a job with a good wage and I will take care of you. But a man cannot improve himself with free gifts, only with opportunity. When you find a child who wants to learn but cannot find a good school, or a man who wants to work and to better himself but he cannot find a job to help his family, that is where I must help. Work builds confidence."

In a land that has not always embraced strong women, Gebrselassie relies heavily on his wife, Alem, to run many of his businesses while tending to their four children. "Many times I think we should do something one way and she will suggest another way," he says. "I think, oh, OK, you are the smart one. We will do it your way. This is the modern man."

Hear Gebrselassie speak and you picture another life chapter in which a boy carried his books and learned well.

Haile Wins NYC Half-Marathon

Haile Gebrselassie won the NYC Half-Marathon in stunning fashion on Sunday, completing the course in 59:24, more than a minute ahead of second place finisher Abdi Abdirahman... more

You can watch a 5+ minute long interview Haile gave to WABC TV by clicking here and selecting the clip titled "NYC Half-Marathon... Part 2" and forward about 10 seconds from the beginning of the clip. If you pay close attention, you will hear what sounds like a group of Ethiopians chanting "Haile Haile... Gebrselassie" to the tune of Teddy Afro's song with the same title. There is also a nice wrap-up of the event on the clip titled "NYC Half-Marathon."

Thousand Men Dying

Why are they all sad? (click on the picture to enlarge)
Because they, and Ethiopian Athletics, lost a great friend.
Read more here.

"This is not one man dying. This is a thousand men dying."
Belay Wolashe

Berhane Adere Wins Great Wales Run

Francis Kibiwott and Berhane Adere proved themselves worthy winners of the inaugural BUPA Great Wales Run titles in Cardiff on Sunday [July 29].

The Kenyan and Ethiopian victors relished the flat and fantastically beautiful 10 kilometres course in Cardiff Bay including a speedy trek over the scenic tidal barrage...

...Adere after injuring herself at the London Marathon was enthusiastic after making a positive return from the hip problem she incurred in the capital.

This was a really good result for me - I felt nothing from my hip and now I can start preparing myself for the defence of my Chicago marathon title," said the Ethiopian, ranked on merit the world's number one performer last year... more

Kenenisa Update

July 25, Monaco

"Kenenisa Bekele was supreme in the men’s 3000m. The shortness of this paragraph denoting nothing more than that his run was not quite as fast as his race in Sheffield on 15 July (7:26.69), and that it didn’t provide such a shock! Yet Bekele was just as assured tonight. After the last pacemaker dropped out with three laps to go, he began a solo parade of brilliance which ended in 7:29.32"... more


July 28, Zaragoza, Spain

"The 25-year-old Bekele managed to dip under the 12:50 barrier in his first appearance over 5000m this summer campaign by clocking 12:49.53. In doing so Bekele raised himself to the top position on this year’s world list in a season which had not until last night seen a sub-13 minutes 5000m performance. Bekele also recorded a best Spain’s all-comers time in the process"... more

All Africa Games- Wrap Up

Aug. 5th: Had to be out for a while due to family medical emergency but had this already prepared to post, so for the sake of closure here it is.
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Quick wrap-up on All Africa Games that concluded last weekend:

On Saturday July 21st, Ethiopia got another gold medal from Mestawot Tufa who won the 10000M in 31:26.05. Mestawot has been the best 10000M runner in the world in 2007 and it will be an interesting match up against Tirunesh Dibaba at the World Championships in August.

On Sunday July 22nd, the last day of competition, Gelete Burka brought another gold for Ethiopia winning the 1500M in 4:06.89 leading from gun to tape. Like Mestawot, Gelete has shown an excellent form running the 1500M and will be a medal contender in the Osaka if she competes in the event. Gelete is considering doing a double in 1500M/5000M.

In the men's 5000M, Tariku Bekele once again came short in the final meters of the race as he was overtaken by Ugandan Moses Kipsiro and Kenyan Menjo Kiprono with 30M to go. I like Tariku's guts in taking the race by the horn and running hard all the way but this is the third time in the last couple of months (Pre-Classic and Golden Spike Ostrava) where this strategy deprived him of a win in the final stages of the race. Tariku had the lead with 30M to go but was overtaken by Ugandan Moses Kipsiro and Kenyan Kiprono Menjo who took gold and silver. Tariku finished third to take the bronze in 13:13.43. Ethiopians Abraham Cherkose and Ali Abdosh took fourth and fifth place.

As the games conclude, Ethiopia's medal count in track and field stand at four gold, four silver, and five bronze medals for a total of thirteen medals.

Haile Gebrselassie: "We Won!"

Haile Gebrselassie yesterday won the most important race for Ethiopia. But as he himself said, he alone did not win, but "we all won."

This was not a race run on the track or on the roads. This was a much more important race run on the hearts and minds of all Ethiopians. And Haile's effort was instrumental in bringing a spirit of hope and reconciliation to the country through the release of high ranking leaders of Ethiopia's prominent opposition party who have been imprisoned for nearly two years. Haile was a member of the the team of elders who have been working to secure the release of the prisoners considered by Amnesty International as Prisoners of Conscience.

After Ethiopia's Prime Minister Meles Zenawi announced yesterday the decision to release the prisoners, Haile was interviewed by Negash Mohammed of Deutsche Welle's Radio's Amharic Programme. Below is an unofficial translation of the interview:

Negash Mohammed: [Introduction] Many people view the release of these politicians, who have been imprisoned as the result of the crisis that followed the 2005 election, as a good step in the right direction . Among the team of elders who worked tirelessly to secure the release of these politicians that had been sentenced to life imprisonment on Monday, I have spoken with the leader of the team Professor Ephraim Isaac and a member of the team Athlete Haile Gebrselassie. I was able to reach and speak with Haile first so I will start with him.

NM: Haile, we have known you for winning races. Are you now telling us that you also won in mediation?

Haile Gebrselassie: Not that I won, but we all won. At this time what I would say is that all have won- the team of elders, all the people of Ethiopia have won.

NM: We know that you have worked very hard for this. Can you explain to us briefly what went on?

HG: This mediation effort has been ongoing for a very long period of time. As you may have followed the developments, it has been going for 18 months. When we began the mediation, we first went to His Excellency the Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and he told us it is our right to initiate such effort as elders. He told us to proceed with the effort if we believed it could be successful. Based on that we went to the prisoners at the Kaliti prison. The prisoners also accepted our mediation effort and our work then began.

It was a difficult process that took a long time and was very tiring. But mediation is a process where it requires swallowing both the sweet and the bitter. The main aim of mediation is to put things back on the right track, even when mediating a quarrel between husband and wife. So our aim from the beginning was not just to get the prisoners released but to get Ethiopia back on track towards achieving things we think and dream about for our country.

So today this effort has become successful and today is a day of joy for all the people of Ethiopia. This is a huge step forward. It is a huge step to develop a tradition of mediation. One of the biggest gain that we have made out of this is that both the government and the opposition have accepted the mediation of local Ethiopian elders. We should all be proud, and particularly the elders, that our work has been accepted to this extent.

NM: I thank you Haile Gebrselassie.

All Africa Games- July 20

Deriba Merga, who had an outstanding season in 2006, continued to show great form in 2007 taking the gold medal in the Half-Marathon at All Africa Games with a winning time of 1:02:24. Deriba is a talented runner who has already achieved good results but has a promise of even greater future achievements.

In women's 3000M Steeplechase, Mekdes Bekele took the silver medal in 9:49.95 and Netsanet Achano won the bronze in 9:51.63. Both medals represent the first time Ethiopia has ever won a medal in this event in international competition.

All Africa Games- July 19

Zeresenay Tadesse won the 10000M gold medal making Eritrea the only nation other than Ethiopia and Kenya to ever win the 10000M in the 42 years of All Africa Games. Zersenay, the man who dethroned Kenenisa Bekele from the pinnacle of cross country racing in Mombasa, won the 10000M in 27:00.30. Ethiopia's Tadesse Tola and Gebre Gebremariam won the silver and bronze medal, respectively, shutting Kenya out of the medal podium.

In Women's Half-Marathon, Atsede Bayisa of Ethiopia won the silver medal in a time of 1:13:54. In women's 20km walk, Asnakech Ararsa won the bronze medal in a time of 1:49:29.

Mike Long

Earlier this year in January, I had the opportunity to talk with Mike Long several times on the telephone. As the elite athlete coordinator for Arizona's Rock and Roll Marathon, he was the point of contact for my relative Tariku Aboset who came over from Ethiopia to take part in that marathon.

Mike was very pleasant to talk to each time I called his mobile phone, and he went out of his way several times to make sure Tariku was able to talk to me during his visit in Arizona. I knew that Mike hosted many athletes for the race so I wondered how he could manage to accommodate each one with this level of attention.

After the marathon was completed and Tariku returned back to Ethiopia, I meant to write a note to Mike Long to thank him for the excellent hospitality he provided. However, I never got around to it and after a while I felt it was too late to contact him regarding a race months ago. Few moments ago, I was sad to learn that Mike Long passed away yesterday.

May his soul rest in peace.

------------------------------------------------

UPDATE:

A memorial Service for Mike Long will be held

Friday, July 27th from 1:00pm to 4:00pm

Mission Point Park

San Diego, Ca.

In lieu of flowers, Mike's family requests that you honor his life by making a contribution to the Entoto Foundation at 5452 Oberlin Drive, San Diego, CA 92121.

Mike helped found the Entoto Foundation in 2006, and served on its Board of Directors. The Foundation helps deliver medical assistance to Ethiopians who do not have access to appropriate treatment or surgery. The Foundation will serve as a fitting legacy to Mike's love of East Africa and his compassionate nature in always thinking of others... more

UPDATE:

This from Elias Kebede in Ethiopia:

THE FOLLOWING ATHLETES WERE HERE AT GLOBAL ATHLETICS OFFICE IN ADDIS TO PAY THEIR TRIBUTE TO MIKE AND SEND THEIR DEEP CONDOLENCE TO HIS FAMILY

THE ATMOSPHERE WAS VERY SOMBER AND ATHLETES WEPT OPENLY

BELAY WELASHA

DEARATU TULU

GEZAHGEN ABERA

DR YILMA BERTA

TIRUNESH DIBABA

SILESHI SIHENE

EJIGAYEHU DIBABA

MARCOS GENETI

SINTAYHEU EJIGU

BERHANU ALEMU

TEKESTE KEBEDE

MOGES TAYE

GIRMA TOLA

HALEFOM ABEBE

HIRUT ABERA

HAJI ADILO

EYERUSALEM KUMA

ASHEBIR DEMISU

ABERASH TEGENGE

AIDA TADESSE

ELIAS KEBEDE

GOD GIVE YOU THE STERENGTH AT THIS MOMENT

All Africa Games- July 18

The Track and Field competition in the 9th All Africa Games** (no web presence!) got underway on Wenesday July 18th. In women's 5000M final, Meseret Defar retained her title from four years ago, winning the race in 15:02.72. Meselech Melkamu finished a close second taking the silver medal. In men's 3000M Steeplechase, Kenya took gold and silver, but Ethiopian Nahom Mesfin won the bronze with a time of 8:17.21... more

**At these games, Ethiopia is represented by more than 40 athletes competing in 14 sports including gymnastics.

Gebrselassie lights up the day for Ethiopian orphans

Ethiopian distance running legend Haile Gebrselassie joined more than 1000 kids on a fun run on Saturday as he took a break from his racing commitments.

In an event organized by Right to Play (RTP) in collaboration with Worldwide Orphans (WWO) and UNICEF-Ethiopia, Gebrselassie, who is one of RTP’s national athlete ambassadors, led children from six different orphanages in a one-lap fun run at the Addis Ababa stadium and shared his lifetime achievements with the gathering.

“If you are strong and have self confidence, you can reach anywhere,” Gebrselassie said to the children... more

Kenenisa is Back!!!

The Men’s 3000M at the Norwich Union British Grand Prix in Sheffield, England just concluded and Kenenisa came out a strong victor, answering all his critics and doubters including this writer. Kenenisa won the race in 7:26.69 which is a huge seven seconds improvement on the year’s best time up to now. The talkative Australian Craig Mottram was well beat into second place a good nine seconds behind Kenenisa. With this victory, Kenenisa also established a new stadium record.

At the starting line Kenenisa appeared somewhat nervous, but he still managed to smile and wave to the crowd. As the starter’s gun went off, Kenenisa immediately went to the front and settled right behind the two pace makers. Mottram followed by closely staying immediately behind Kenenisa. They continued to cruise in this position passing the first kilometer mark in 2:29.57. They continued on without much shuffling on the second kilometer, which turned out to be a little slower than the first, and passed the 2km mark in 5:02.72. Kenenisa had requested the pacemakers to pass through the 2km mark in 5:03 so everything appeared to be right on target for Kenenisa.

Right after passing the 2km mark, the second of the two pacemakers dropped out and the racing began in earnest. But it practically ended as soon as it started. In a brilliantly executed race plan, Kenenisa injected an unexpected punishing pace right at 2km mark and immediately pulled away from the rest of the field, quickly distancing himself by some 40-50 meters. The rest of the field, including the boastful Mottram (who had scoffed at Kenenisa’s request for a 5:03 pace for 2km as being slow) had no answer to Kenenisa and appeared to be running in slow motion as Kenenisa pulled away at will.

Kenenisa ran a controlled final kilometer of the race, accelerating in the last lap which he covered in 57 seconds. His split for the last kilometer was 2:24 which was faster than the first two kilometers. Kenenisa finished the race in 7:26.69 which is six seconds short of the world record. The time is strong enough to convert to a sub 8 minute two mile which only Daniel Komen has ever run. More importantly, Mottram had to stretch to even get a view of the back side of Kenenisa’s shirt and not as Mottram boasted that the Africans will only see him from the back.

Kenenisa has always shown he bounces back from adversity stronger than before which is the trademark of a true champion. Marvelous job, our Anbessa!!

Wolde Takes Bronze

In the final day of the 5th IAAF World Youth Championships, Dawit Wolde won the Bronze Medal in Boys 1500M, raising Ethiopia’s medal count to four. The Championships have now been concluded and Ethiopia has finished in 10th place with one Gold, one Silver, and two Bronze medals. It is encouraging to see that Ethiopia has up and coming young talents such as Dawit Wolde and Legese Lamisso who are performing well in events in which Ethiopians traditionally have not excelled.

Kenenisa Watch

Ever since the World Cross Country Championships in Kenya back in March, it has been hard to gauge how Kenenisa Bekele may fare through the rest of the 2007 season. We got a chance to see him win the Two Miles race at Thales FBK Games in Hengelo, Netherlands at the end of May. However, there was no serious competition in that race and the winning time was quite slow, so the race did not provide a good indication of Kenenisa’s fitness level.

The next chance to see Kenenisa was at the Pre Classic in Eugene, Oregon, USA. However, that never happened because Kenenisa pulled out of the meet citing lack of fitness. His agent announced at the time that Kenenisa would compete next in Lausanne, Switzerland at Athletissima on July 10.

After anxiously waiting for several weeks, July 10th finally arrived but once again there was no Kenenisa at the meet. In fact, it looked like most of the Ethiopians scheduled to compete there had cancelled their appearance. Incidentally, Lausanne is the training base for Ethiopian born Bahraini Maryam Jamal (aka Zenebech Tola) and she had a nice victory in the 1500M in front of her home crowd. Anyway, there was no explanation as to why Kenenisa did not run the 5000M race as expected in Lausanne. Was he still feeling the lingering effect of the punishing race in Mombasa months ago?

Now Kenenisa is scheduled to run the 3000M TODAY at the Norwich Union British Grand Prix in Sheffield, England. It is interesting that Kenenisa switched from a 5000M on July 10th to a 3000M on July 15th. It could be that he needed the extra few days of training or rest but I believe the switch was made for a different reason. The last lap of the race in Hengelo showed that Kenenisa still has a blistering finishing speed. But it is still questionable whether his overall strength is as good as it once was.

A loss for Kenenisa at 5000M (his specialty) would really bring his value down whereas a loss at 3000M (not his specialty) could easily be written off. In other words, the 3000M is a safe race for Kenenisa which may be an indication that his fitness is not quite there yet. The 3000M today has a strong field including Australian Craig Mottram and Kenyan Abraham Chebii. But Kenenisa himself has sounded very confident in his comments regarding the race:

“I relish the opportunity to run against a class field, like Craig Mottram and Mo Farah , it will help me with my World Championship preparation. My focus is now to have a great summer, starting with the Norwich Union British Grand Prix in Sheffield, where I know I will be competing with strong competitors. It will be my first race at the Don Valley stadium and I am really looking forward to it. I am feeling good and looking forward to the challenge.”

I stated earlier that the 3000M is a safe race for Kenenisa where he can gain more than he can lose. But based on the above comment, it could also be that he has complete confidence in his fitness and that he wants to avenge for his loss to Mottram at the World Cup last year, and Tariku’s (his younger brother) loss to Mottram at Pre Classic and at the Golden Spike in Ostrava.

Mottram himself is anticipating the face-off with Kenenisa also. He expects that Sileshi Sihine’s performance in the 5000M at the Rome Golden Gala would give him indication on Kenenisa’s fitness. Well, Sileshi won the 5000M in Rome on Friday in the fastest time of the year so far. Therefore, at least according to Mottram, it could be an indication that Kenenisa is fit.

I will be eagerly watching this race (also the Women’s 3000M which Tirunesh Dibaba will be running) to see if Kenenisa comes out the victor over Mottram. Mottram is an undeniably talented athlete in his own right, however, his new found confidence in running has his mouth running as much as his feet. After beating Tariku Bekele two weeks ago in the 5000M race in Ostrava, this is what Mottram had to say after the race:

"And I felt (Tariku) Bekele come up with 650 to go I thought, ‘Ok, let's get it on.' I dropped his brother doing the same thing last year and figured he's not quite that good yet, I'll smash him too. I held him out. I didn't run great, and Bekele probably didn't run his best race either. But the world championship race might be like that. And you just have to make the most of the situation."

I doubt that Kenenisa’s fitness is back where it needs to be for the summer season, but I hope in the heat of competition he will find the strength somewhere to hand one back to the talking Aussie.

---------------------------------------------

Update: Women's 3000M race has just got underway. Tirunesh Dibaba was NOT among the starters although she was expected to be. Perhaps she is continuing to have trouble in her training?

*Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya has won the race in 8:43.85. She led for almost the entire race and looked very smooth and confident throughout.

Update: Men's 3000M race has just started... Kenenisa in there. Appears nervous but trying to smile at the start. Click here for a complete update on the Men's 3000M.

Legese Strikes Gold!

In what has to be considered one of the biggest upset of the Championships so far, 17 year old Ethiopian Legese Lamiso has won the gold medal in the Steeplechase race at the 5th IAAF World Youth Championships. Legese handily beat his Kenyan and Moroccan opponents, and in the process established a new World Youth leading time. With this victory, Legese has also brought the first ever global Steeplechase title to Ethiopia. The great Eshetu Tura, who currently coaches the Ethiopian National Team, won the Bronze Medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics.

Kenyans have had stranglehold in the Steeplechase event for decades, winning gold in every Olympic Games they have participated in starting 1968. In the 2004 Athens Olympics, Kenya took all three medals in the Steeplechase. The fact that Legese was able to easily outrun the Kenyans in their trademark event shows what a bright future he has ahead of him. Well done!

In other events, Mahlete Melese and Sule Ututra took Silver and Bronze in Girls 3000M. Henok Tesfaye nearly won Gold in the Boys 800M but a misstep on the curb during the last 200M caused him to drop down to seventh place.

Currently Ethiopia sits in 8th place on the Medal Table.

2012 Olympics Preview

In five years time, the Olympic Games will return to London, England after 64 years. Of course, Beijing Olympics will take place next year, so London may still seem far away. But some athletes, including Haile Gebrselassie, are already talking about competing in London in 2012.

Haile may or may not make it to London five years from now, but the likely stars of that Olympic are on display this week at the 5th IAAF World Youth Championships held in Ostrava, Czech Republic. The championships started yesterday and will go through Sunday (July 11-15).

Ethiopian athletes whose names may become household names by 2012 include Sule Utura, Mahlete Melese, Genzebe Dibaba (yep, that family), Abera Gutema, and Ayele Abshiro. It is worth remembering these names because past editions of these championships have produced our current stars including Kenenisa Bekele, Tariku Bekele, and Meseret Defar.

The ten member Ethiopian squad competing this week is led by the promising Sule Utura, who has recorded a meteoric rise in a short period of time. Day 2 of the Championships was concluded today and Ethiopia is currently tied for 11th place on the Medal Table with one Silver and one Bronze medal.

Best wishes for Ethiopia’s future stars.

Mestewat Tufa- Let Her Run!

Although most of the news regarding Ethiopian athletes during the past couple of weeks has been about Haile Gebrselassie’s record breaking performance in Ostrava on June 27, there was a significant event that went under the radar just one day earlier. On June 26, in Valkenswaard, Netherlands, Mestewat Tufa ran the year’s fastest 10000M finishing in 31:00.27, which is five seconds faster than the previous year’s best.

With this performance, the unheralded Mestewat earned herself a spot on Ethiopia’s National Team that will compete at the World Championships in Osaka, Japan in August. Incidentally, it is worth noting that Mestewat took second place behind Meselech Melkamu earlier this year in February at the 24th Jan Meda Cross Country which served as Ethiopia’s qualifying meet for the World Cross Country meet held in Mombasa, Kenya in March.

Despite Mestewat’s spectacular result, there were some reports that the coaches dropped Mestewat Tufa from the Mombasa line-up just the night before the race and gave the spot to Ahaza Kiros, who finished fifth at the Jan Meda trial. This decision caused a mutiny by Ethiopia’s men runners, who came to the defense of Mestewat, threatening to boycott the championship race on the following day unless Mestewat was reinstated. Mestewat herself was reportedly quite angry and took on matters literally in to her own hands, physically confronting one of the coaches. Eventually she was given back her spot and took part in the Senior Women’s race and finished 47th.

One can not help but wonder what may have initiated the coaches to undertake such a disruptive action at the last possible moment. Perhaps the heat and humidity was the least of all the problems Ethiopia’s athletes faced in Mombasa.

Now that Mestewat has once again earned herself a spot on the National Team, she should be allowed to run in Osaka without any interference. She has shown that she is the world’s best 10000M runner so far this year, and she deserves a chance to go for the gold in Osaka. Let her run!

Tirunesh in Trouble?

Leading up to last Friday’s Golden League meet in Paris, there were couple of upbeat write-ups on Tirunesh Dibaba that ranged from romance to richness. But, as the saying goes, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. And Tirunesh did not show much in Paris even though she still got a comfortable win.

Despite the win, the slow time of 15:21 she turned in for the race has many (i.e. me) scratching their head. For perspective, Meseret Defar’s recent record setting run in Oslo was more than a minute faster than Tirunesh’s run in Paris. In other words, Meseret would have finished more than a full lap ahead of Tirunesh. At the Paris meet last year, Tirunesh beat Meseret in a close race but this time Meseret looks to be a lap ahead and strong favorite for the gold in Osaka.

This is not exactly what we expected to see from the Dueling D’s for the 2007 season! Duels aside, Tirunesh may be in serious trouble for the upcoming World Championships in Osaka. She has already announced that she will not race again until World Championships. She also has not run *any* 10000M race since her victory at the 2005 World Championships in Helsinki.

Still, Tirunesh says she intends to defend both her 5000M and 10000M title in Osaka. For the time being, Meseret Defar and Mestewat Tufa appear to be the favorites for Osaka’s 5000M/10000M race.

Ambitious Haile

It seems like Haile Gebrselassie’s recent performance in Hengelo and Ostrava has put him on cloud nine. His confidence took a shot at the London Marathon in April but it looks to have restored fully… or, at least enough to take a very unusual and bold move of signing up for and making a big announcement about a marathon he plans to run after his next marathon in Berlin.

Haile is confident enough that he will be successful at Berlin and stay healthy enough to jump in the million dollar chase at the Dubai Marathon in January 2008. His agent Jos Hermens says “Ideally, I’d like him [Haile] to break the World record a little in Berlin, then a lot in Dubai.” Haile himself says “My aims are to break the marathon World record, and win the Olympic Games marathon. I’d like to break the World record here in Dubai, and my training towards that begins tomorrow.” What about Berlin, Haile?

It appears that both Haile and Hermens have practically written off Berlin and are just looking forward to Dubai. Say what you may, I think this is a huge disrespect to the Berlin Marathon. If I were the organizers, I would ask for my money back from Haile/Hermens.

Impossible is Nothing

"Some people listen to themselves, rather than listen to what others say. These people don't come along very often. But when they do, they remind us that once you set out in a path, even though critics may doubt you, its okay to believe that there is no can't won't or impossible. They remind us that its okay to believe impossible is nothing."

The above is from an Adidas commercial which has to be one of the best commercials ever made. And Haile Gebrselassie is part of a group of seven legendary athletes featured with Muhammed Ali as they set off for a long run. You can watch the commercial here.

Earlier this evening in Ostrava, Czech Republic, Haile Gebrselassie showed exactly why he deserved to be on the above mentioned Adidas ad. Haile proved nothing is impossible by setting two world records in the 20000M and one hour run.

Many people, including Haile's own countrymen, had started to doubt Haile calling on him to retire from athletics. Many opined that it is impossible for him to win again. Well, Haile has proven once again that he is truly one of a kind with a return to the track for a fast 10000M in Hengelo last month, and two more world records added to his collection tonight.

Haile's new record for the 20000M is 56:25.98 which is nearly a 30 second improvement on the previous record. For the one hour run, Haile covered 21285M which is 184M farther than the previous record.

Haile looked very smooth and comfortable all through the one hour run. He passed the 10000M mark in 28:11 which was 2 seconds faster than the winning time in the 10000M at the US National Championships last week! The last of the pacemakers for today's run dropped out at the 12000M mark which was around 34 minutes in to the race. So Haile had to run the last 26 minutes all by himself, but stayed on an amazingly consistent 67 sec per lap pace for the remaining part of the race. Haile looked amazingly fresh at the end of the run and took the time for a victory lap thanking his fans and giving high fives and displaying his beaming smile.

Tonight showed why Haile is the greatest distance runner of all time, and all indications are that it is just a matter of time before Haile breaks the marathon world record and puts it out of reach for sometime. Carol Lewis, one of the commentators on the telecast, gave perhaps the best description of Haile: "incredible talent and a true gentleman."

Thank you Haile for once again lifting the spirit of Ethiopia!

Dan or Dave

If you had a chance to watch the USA Track and Field National Championships over the weekend, you know that the event was full of drama. Some Gold Medal favorites for Osaka World Championships (Xavier Carter, Sanya Richards) failed to make the team altogether. On the flip side, there were some eye popping performance such as Tyson Gays 100M and 200M runs (Go Razorbacks!).

Xavier Carter's failure to make the team was due to injury, but I was most shocked to see that Sanya Richards, 2006 World Athlete of the Year, failed to make the US team in the 400M for the World Championships.

And that got me thinking back to 1992. I wonder how many people recall the huge ad campaign Reebok undertook leading up to the Barcelona Olympics. They hyped up two of the best decathletes, Dan O'Brien and Dave Johnson, building up anticipation as to who will take the Olympic Gold. Well, as it turned out Dan O'Brien failed to make the Olympic team entirely and Dave Johnson managed only a Bronze Medal.

Coming back to 2007, it is pretty clear at the moment that the strongest head to head competition in women's athletics is between the Dueling D's, Meseret Defar and Tirunesh Dibaba. But, after seeing the fate of Carter and Richards over the weekend, I can't help but wonder what if Meseret fails to make the Ethiopian team for the World Championships 5000M? What about Tirunesh? Well, I believe she has already secured a spot since she is the defending champion from 2005.

Cash the Czech

Tomorrow evening (June 27) will bring us the much anticipated Ostrava track meet (46th Zlata Tetra - Golden Spike - Ostrava) held in the Czech Republic. You will recall that Meseret Defar had pointed to this meet as one of two key preparation she has planned prior to the Osaka World Championships in August. The other one was the ExxonMobil Bislett Games in Oslo where Meseret smashed the 5000M World Record.

Meseret is going for another record in the 5000M tomorrow, but unlike Oslo, she will be facing strong competition from Gelete Burka and Meselech Melkamu who have also been having a great season so far. It should make for a nice race but it may be a bit much to expect two world records on back to back races. Actually, I can not easily recall anyone in recent past who has achieved back-to-back world record in track racing (not counting field events).

The women's 5000 is not the only record attempt tomorrow. Haile Gebrselassie is also going for a world record in the one hour run. Haile should easily get this record as well as the 20000m record. Incidentally, in one of my earlier posts I had speculated that Haile is likely going for two records for the price of one, which has indeed turned out to be the case. However, I had guessed that he would be attempting to gain back the half-marathon record. That turned out to be incorrect because of my wrong assumption that the one-hour record attempt would be on the road rather than on a track. Obviously there could not be a half-marathon record on the track since any race of that distance is classified as a road race.

The men's 5000M race should also be a dandy since there are seven Ethiopians and eight Kenyans entered. The Australian Craig Mottram (winner of the 2 mile race at Pre Classic) is also in the mix which should give Tariku Bekele a chance to avenge his loss to Mottram at Pre two weeks ago. The World XC Champion Zeresenay Tadesse had been announced for the 5000M but his name is not listed among the starters.

The Ostrava meet will be broadcast live on the web (subscription required) at www.wcsn.com.

Streakers... Game Over!

All good things must come to an end. And so the streak I started on April 1, to do consecutive days of running, ended on June 10 after 70 days of running every day. Actually, I came down with a flu type of illness on June 6th, but I fought hard to not end the streak and managed to get a run in for three more days, hoping that I would get better and maintain the streak. But by Sunday June 10, I was in no shape to walk up a flight of stairs let alone go on a run. So I missed my run for the day as well as the following 9 days.

I have returned to the daily run as of June 20 after making sure I was back close to full health. However, I will not be attempting another streak as I found it to be too stressful. Perhaps someday I will notice that I have passed my personal record of 70 consecutive days of running, but as the pros like to say, I will just let the record come to me rather than chase it.

Happy running!

Dadi is the winner...

... in more ways than one.

In the US, today is observed as Father's Day where tribute is paid to all fathers and the institution of fatherhood. Happy Father's Day to all father's out there, and I am proud to be the father of my own two little ones!

But, I think the following has to be the ultimate serendipity as far as running is concerned: today's Great Adama Run in Nazareth, Ethiopia was won by- are you ready for this- Dadi Urga. I wonder if Dadi is really Daddy...

They Call Her BOLD

Meseret Defar, The World's Best 5000m Runner
By Sabrina Yohannes
As featured in the June 2007 issue of Running Times Magazine

Meseret Defar was agitated. She had arrived in Boston two years after her first attempt on the world indoor 3,000m mark there, determined to finally break the record, and confident she was in shape to do so. But the day after her arrival on Wednesday, January 24, 2007, she had come down with flu-like symptoms. "My back ached, and I had to force myself to warm up and train," she said later. "At night, I couldn’t sleep. I had a fever, a headache and body aches."

On race day, January 27, she first watched as her Ethiopian compatriot, Tirunesh Dibaba, slashed her own 5,000m world indoor record. "When you see someone in your field running such a fast time, it inspires you too," said Defar. But she had been unable to ... more

Defar Breaks 5000M WR

This evening, running the 5000M at the ExxonMobil Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway, the great Ethiopian athlete Meseret Defar set a new world record with 14:16.63, almost 8 second inside her own record... more

Our Coaches Are Not Good Enough

... so says Haile Gebrselassie. He also says that "we are in trouble." Runners from the west are catching up and passing Ethiopian and Kenyan runners who have looked invincible for the last two decades. Time is running out, says Haile ... more

Geb Headed Back to Berlin

Haile Gebrselassie has chosen Berlin Marathon as his fall marathon for 2007. I would have guessed he would try the Chicago Marathon to get a fast time, but he has decided to return to Berlin where he won the race and posted the fastest time for the marathon in 2006.

Berlin Marathon is where Paul Tergat set the current marathon world record of 2:04:55 in 2003 and where the Brazilian Ronaldo da Costa broke Belayneh Dinsamo's 10 year old world record in 1998. It must be that Haile thinks his familiarity with the Berlin course, together with the course's history of producing world records, gives him the maximum chance for breaking the current record held by Tergat. Haile missed this record only by 61 seconds in 2006... more

Meseret in Oslo

The European summer track and field season will kick in full gears starting this coming Friday June 15. The first meet of the $1 Million IAAF Golden League Series will take place in Oslo, Norway on Friday at the ExxonMobil Bislett Games.

Meseret Defar will be running 5000M at this meet, which she has pointed to as one of two key preparations for the World Cahmpionships in Osaka, Japan in August. Bislett Games organizers are hoping for a 5000M world record from Meseret.

Other Ethiopians signed up for Friday's 5000M race are Sentayehu Ejigu, Ejegayehu Dibaba, Workitu Ayanu, and Mestewat Tufa. Also running in Oslo will be Mestawat Tadesse and the Ethiopian-turned-Bahraini Maryam Jamal, both entered in the 1500M. Mekdes Bekele will be contesting the 3000M steeplechase.

Haile Still Seeking Records

Haile's 26:52 in Hengelo two weeks ago has proven to him that he still got it- speed, that is. Although he finished fifth in that the race, the sub 27 minute clocking is still very impressive. So, Haile is seeking to convert this speed in to some kind of record. And he is looking where aging track runners look on their way out- rarely contested distances or events.

Haile has announced that he will be attempting to set a world record for the farthest distance run in one hour. The current record is 16 years old and was set by the Mexican Arturo Barrios, who covered 21.101km in one hour.

Does that distance look familiar? It should because it is almost exactly half of a marathon (21.097km). And we all know that Haile set a half-marathon world record of 58:55 in Jan 2006 so the one hour record should be a walk in the park for him. But not so fast, Haile.

I think I see through Haile's thinking on this one. He is trying to get two records for the price of one. The one hour record is as sure as a guarantee based on Haile's 10K time two weeks ago. But I think Haile is also hoping that during his one hour run, he will pass through the half-marathon mark quicker than Sammy Wanjiru's 58:35 and get that record back through the back door. That is two for the price of one. After all, Haile had commented that he would like to get the half-marathon record back soon. Best wishes!

Post Race on Pre

Pre Classic 2007 was a very high quality meet were several meet records and an American Record were set and year's best times established. I watched the whole meet on TV but the men's 2 mile and the women's 1500M race were of particular interest as Ethiopians were among the competitors.

The women's 1500M was won by Gelete Burka in 4:00.48, which is a new meet record for Pre. This was one gutsy race won by a very gutsy young woman (age 21!). Running a four minute 1500M is about as good as it gets in international competition, and the fact that a 5000M runner who stepped down in distance achieved this is simply astounding.

As the race started, Gelete was the only runner willing to go with the pace makers who set out on a fast pace. The rest of the field dropped back immediately by some 20 metres judging the pace to be too quick and assuming Gelete will simply run herself to the ground towards the end of the race by following such a fast pace. When the last pace maker dropped out at the 800M mark, Gelete was at the front of the race by some distance and the rest of the field started their attempt to reel her in. With 300M to go it appeared that the Russian Chizhenko (2006 World Indoor Champion at 1500M) was significantly cutting into Gelete's lead, but Gelete managed to maintain, and even expand, her lead in the last 200M to get the win and post an amazing fast time for the race. It looked as if the 1500M specialists were a bit dejected that an "outsider" walked into their race and walked away with the win.

Gelete enjoyed her victory with a slow jog giving high fives to spectators in the stadium who were reaching out to touch her. You will recall the commanding victory Gelete took two weeks ago at the 5000M race in Hengelo, Netherlands. It is not hard to imagine that Gelete could become the face of Ethiopian athletics in the near future. She is a very talented runner who looks very natural at her trade. She needs to seriously consider competing in 1500M or 3000M at the World Champs and Olympics rather than join the crowded field in the 5000M with Tirunesh, Meseret, and Meselech and miss out on her medal chances.

As for the men's 2 mile race, the late withdrawal of Kenenisa from the race had dampened the spirits a bit but the race was still well contested. The other Bekele brother in the race, the younger Tariku, appeared to be taking the race by the horn while the rest of the field (loaded with talent) were content to stay in the background. It appeared that they went by the first mile in a fast 4:03. By the time the pace makers dropped out of the race, Tariku was at the front pushing hard but the tall Australian Craig Motram was doggedly following Tariku only a step behind. The pace was upped at the bell lap and with 250M to go, Motram got a jump on Tariku and opened a gap quickly. Tariku gave good chase but did not have enough in the tank to overtake Motram who won the race in 8:03.50 establishing a meet record. Tariku was one second behind in 8:04.83 for a very solid second place finish.

Running a 4:03 and 4:01 mile back to back is an amazing stuff. Tariku did his 2 miles race nine seconds faster than Kenenisa did two weeks ago in Hengelo. Also, Tariku's 13:04.05 at the Reebok Grand Prix in New York last weekend was the fastest 5000M run on American soil. Once again, Tariku has shown he is a highly talented runner in his own right and will be a medal contender in Osaka this summer and Beijing next year.

One final note: Zeresenay Tadesse, the 2007 World Cross Country Champ from Eritrea who dethroned Kenenisa in Mombasa, finished the 2 mile race in 7th place in a time of 8:19.34.

Kenenisa Scratched from Pre

I watched the 2 mile race in Hengelo late in the day two weekends ago, so didn't provide a timely update at the time. The results were all over the news the following day so I didn't bother to add an entry.

Watching the race in Hengelo, two things stood out: first, the rest of the field in the race were all virtual unknowns, even for an avid roocha fan. Secondly, the winning time of 8:13.51 was very slow, some 15 seconds slower than the world record. Kenenisa just followed the pace for the slow first mile (4:11), stayed near the front for the much quicker second mile (4:02), and he still managed to produce a blistering kick that no one could match for the last two hundred meters. He finished with a huge margin of victory.

Kenenisa looked fine but one nagging question remained in my mind. What if the race had real competition? The answer was to come in two weeks time on June 10. Kenenisa's next outing was scheduled to be at the Pre Classic in Oregon, USA. Unlike the race in Hengelo, the 2 mile at Pre is stacked with deep field of strong competitors. Also, it was going to be the first head to head meeting between Kenenisa Bekele and Zeresenay Tadesse following the debacle in Mombasa.

But it was not meant to be. Kenenisa has withdrawn from tomorrow's race citing lack of fitness. Perhaps a good decision, because Hengelo did not assure anyone that Kenenisa of old has returned. We will have to wait until July 10 to see Kenenisa in action at Athletissima in Lausanne, Switzerland. In the mean time, you can read more about Kenenisa's withdrawal from Pre here and more about Kenenisa the man here.

Tamrat Ayalew

Tamrat Ayalew- a professional runner from Ethiopia, now in Colorado, seeking political asylum. He says he has a personal best of 2:12 in the marathon. He also says he was imprisoned and tortured by the Ethiopian government... watch a video clip here.