The world's leading cross country runners face off on Friday in what is billed as the most significant curtain-raiser to this year's World Cross Country Championships.
And what's more, defending world men's long course champion Zersenay Tadesse of Eritrea, former holder Kenenisa Bekele and Kenya's potential champion Eliud Kipchoge will meet at Saturday's Great Edinburgh Cross Country Championships on the same course that will host this year's global competition on March 30.
In the women's contest, the challenge will pit Ethiopia's Gelete Burka against Kenyan Vivian Cheruiyot.
The meet is the fifth of the 11 permit meetings in the 2007/2008 IAAF series.
Tadese caused a major upset when he profited from Bekele's mid-race withdrawal at the 2007 World Cross Country Championships in Mombasa last March to take the gold medal bringing an end to the Ethiopian's five-year reign as long course champion
But Bekele bounced back from his Mombasa disappointment to land his third successive world 10,000m crown in Osaka and has since been in intensive training.
The Eritrean is gradually developing as a genuine rival to the previously all-conquering Bekele.
He may have had to settle to fourth in the 10,000m to the Ethiopian in Osaka but he showed his all-round endurance ability by successfully defending his World Road Running title in Udine, Italy, last October.
Showing posts with label Athletics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Athletics. Show all posts
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Kenyan Athletes - Timbilil, Cheruiyot, Maintaining Solid Leads Abroad
Despite political temperatures hitting their peak here in Kenya consequently paralysing all the sports in the country, Kenyan runners were on the other hand basking in glory with wins in the international arena.
After several races were put off for security reasons, most notably the sixth round of the Kenya Commercial Bank-sponsored national cross country that was scheduled for this weekend in Nyahururu, Edwin Soi, Silvia Kibet and Moses Masai were flying the country's flag high in their specialities.
In Bolzano, Italy, Kenyan duo of Edwin Soi and Silvia Kibet added their names to the prestigious list of winners of the Bo classic Silvesterlauf road race in Bolzano that celebrated its 33rd edition this year.
Resilience
Both Soi and Kibet held off their young Ethiopian opponents in high-quality races. In the men's 10 km race, Soi had to content with 19-year-old Awash Fikadu Habtamu's resilience but managed to shake him off to settle for the runner-up spot.
The men's race started at a conservative pace in the first of eight laps. The rhythm was increased during the second lap when Moroccan Brahim Taleb went to the front clocking 7:29 after two laps closely followed by a large group that included Soi.
The race heated up in the eighth lap when Soi and Habtamu pushed the pace launching their kick for the ultimate prize.
Launched attack
The Kenyan and the Ethiopian engaged in a fierce neck-and-neck battle. During the last lap, Soi launched his attack showing the same sprint, which enabled him to score a double win in the 3, 000 and the 5, 000m at the IAAF World Athletics Final in Stuttgart last September.
Soi crossed the finish line in the Waltherplatz in 28:50 to beat Habtamu who was left to watch as his opponent breasted the tape with a four seconds advantage.
Soi, who comes from Kericho and began running seven years ago, will be running at the Campaccio International Cross Country race on Saturday, where he will face Lebid again.
Kibet, who ran more cautiously in the first three laps leaving the initiative to her opponents, charged to the front and never looked back.
The Kenyan, fourth at the World Championships in Osaka and second at the World Athletics Final in Stuttgart in the 5, 000m, launched her kick to cross the finish line in 16:01 beating Ethiopian, Emest Bedada to the second position by four seconds.
"The race started fast and my body responded well when I launched the final attack," Kibet was quoted saying in the IAAF website.
Solid performance
Further a field, their compatriot, Moses Masai was giving his opponents a run for their money, literally. Masai, a double African junior champion, never gave his opponents any hope of clinching the title as he led the pack from the onset.
Masai, fourth in the 10,000m world lists (26:49.20) in 2007, produced a solid performance over a difficult hilly course to take the race in 28:25. He outpaced his compatriot, Barnabas Kosgei by 18 seconds, with Portuguese Leão Carvalho taking the third podium position in 29:07.
After several races were put off for security reasons, most notably the sixth round of the Kenya Commercial Bank-sponsored national cross country that was scheduled for this weekend in Nyahururu, Edwin Soi, Silvia Kibet and Moses Masai were flying the country's flag high in their specialities.
In Bolzano, Italy, Kenyan duo of Edwin Soi and Silvia Kibet added their names to the prestigious list of winners of the Bo classic Silvesterlauf road race in Bolzano that celebrated its 33rd edition this year.
Resilience
Both Soi and Kibet held off their young Ethiopian opponents in high-quality races. In the men's 10 km race, Soi had to content with 19-year-old Awash Fikadu Habtamu's resilience but managed to shake him off to settle for the runner-up spot.
The men's race started at a conservative pace in the first of eight laps. The rhythm was increased during the second lap when Moroccan Brahim Taleb went to the front clocking 7:29 after two laps closely followed by a large group that included Soi.
The race heated up in the eighth lap when Soi and Habtamu pushed the pace launching their kick for the ultimate prize.
Launched attack
The Kenyan and the Ethiopian engaged in a fierce neck-and-neck battle. During the last lap, Soi launched his attack showing the same sprint, which enabled him to score a double win in the 3, 000 and the 5, 000m at the IAAF World Athletics Final in Stuttgart last September.
Soi crossed the finish line in the Waltherplatz in 28:50 to beat Habtamu who was left to watch as his opponent breasted the tape with a four seconds advantage.
Soi, who comes from Kericho and began running seven years ago, will be running at the Campaccio International Cross Country race on Saturday, where he will face Lebid again.
Kibet, who ran more cautiously in the first three laps leaving the initiative to her opponents, charged to the front and never looked back.
The Kenyan, fourth at the World Championships in Osaka and second at the World Athletics Final in Stuttgart in the 5, 000m, launched her kick to cross the finish line in 16:01 beating Ethiopian, Emest Bedada to the second position by four seconds.
"The race started fast and my body responded well when I launched the final attack," Kibet was quoted saying in the IAAF website.
Solid performance
Further a field, their compatriot, Moses Masai was giving his opponents a run for their money, literally. Masai, a double African junior champion, never gave his opponents any hope of clinching the title as he led the pack from the onset.
Masai, fourth in the 10,000m world lists (26:49.20) in 2007, produced a solid performance over a difficult hilly course to take the race in 28:25. He outpaced his compatriot, Barnabas Kosgei by 18 seconds, with Portuguese Leão Carvalho taking the third podium position in 29:07.
Zimbabwean Middle-Distance Runner Sharon Taengwa Shines In Angola
Middle-Distance runner Sharon Taengwa finished a credible second in the São Silvestre New Year's Eve 15km Road Race in Luanda, Angola.
Kenya's Grace Monany beat the Zimbabwean athlete to the gold medal in the women's category of the race. Taengwa arrived in Luanda on Monday afternoon just a few hours before the race, which started at around 5pm on the same day with over 800 athletes from Mozambique, Brazil, Cape Verde, Portugal and Angola taking part.
Kenya's Eliajah Nyabuti won the men's race ahead of Tony Wamulwa of Zambia and Angola's João Ntyamba. Reports from Luanda yesterday indicated that Samukeliso Moyo, the only other Zimbabwean to participate in the 52nd edition of the road race, did not make it into the top three.
Moyo is a three-time winner of the event and had paid her own way to Luanda while Taengwa flew from Kenya where she had been training.Wirimai Juwawo, who was supposed to represent Zimbabwe in the men's section, failed to travel to Luanda after the National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe botched his travel arrangements.The organisers of the race in Angola had complimentary tickets for two athletes -- Juwawo and Taengwa -- and the third one for Titus Madzingo, who was supposed to travel to Luanda as their team manager.
But the pair of Madzingo and Juwawo ended up being stranded in Harare when they could not access their air tickets from Angolan Airlines' offices. Had NAAZ tried to get the ticket for Juwawo before Christmas, the athlete might have taken part. In the 2006 edition, Kudakwashe Shoko also failed to travel for the same event because NAAZ left it until too late to finalise the travelling arrangements.
Kenya's Grace Monany beat the Zimbabwean athlete to the gold medal in the women's category of the race. Taengwa arrived in Luanda on Monday afternoon just a few hours before the race, which started at around 5pm on the same day with over 800 athletes from Mozambique, Brazil, Cape Verde, Portugal and Angola taking part.
Kenya's Eliajah Nyabuti won the men's race ahead of Tony Wamulwa of Zambia and Angola's João Ntyamba. Reports from Luanda yesterday indicated that Samukeliso Moyo, the only other Zimbabwean to participate in the 52nd edition of the road race, did not make it into the top three.
Moyo is a three-time winner of the event and had paid her own way to Luanda while Taengwa flew from Kenya where she had been training.Wirimai Juwawo, who was supposed to represent Zimbabwe in the men's section, failed to travel to Luanda after the National Athletics Association of Zimbabwe botched his travel arrangements.The organisers of the race in Angola had complimentary tickets for two athletes -- Juwawo and Taengwa -- and the third one for Titus Madzingo, who was supposed to travel to Luanda as their team manager.
But the pair of Madzingo and Juwawo ended up being stranded in Harare when they could not access their air tickets from Angolan Airlines' offices. Had NAAZ tried to get the ticket for Juwawo before Christmas, the athlete might have taken part. In the 2006 edition, Kudakwashe Shoko also failed to travel for the same event because NAAZ left it until too late to finalise the travelling arrangements.
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