Athletic News Archive

2008

Olympic Trials Should Produce Strongest
U.S. Distance Squad in Years

06/25/2008 - With fields featuring past championship medalists, veterans aiming for one last national team and young, hungry up-and-comers, the distance races at the U.S. Olympic Trials will lack neither quality nor drama. For distance fans, interesting races start immediately, with the men's 5,000m heats and the women's 10,000m final on the first day of competition, June 27. Here's a brief event-by-event breakdown of what to look for.
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Dire Tune Breaks World Record for One-Hour Run

06/16/2008 - One week before her 23rd birthday, Dire Tune ran to her third big success of the year at a meet in Ostrava, Czech Republic. The Ethiopian broke Tegla Loroupe's world record for the one-hour run, covering 18,517 meters to better Loroupe's mark by 177 meters.
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Dibaba Fever Hits Oslo: World Record for 5,000m

06/09/2008 - Tirunesh Dibaba provided the crowning moment of the AF Golden League Meeting in Oslo with a world record over 5,000m. On a warm summer night in Norway the 23-year-old stormed to the fantastic time of 14:11.15 in front of around 15,000 ecstatic spectators at the legendary Exxon Mobil Bislett Games. Dibaba's new mark took more than 5 seconds off the time set in Oslo last year by her compatriot Meseret Defar.
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Jelimo Storms to African 800m Record

06/02/2008 - The current star of the middle distances is just 18 years old, comes from Kenya and goes by the name of Pamela Jelimo. Last week she ran a sensational 800m world junior record in Hengelo (1:55.76), and has now improved that mark by more than three-quarters of a second with a 1:54.99 at the DKB-ISTAF meeting in Berlin's Olympic stadium.
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Pamela Jelimo Sensational in Hengelo

05/26/2008 - As expected, Ethiopians dominated the eagerly anticipated long-distance races at the Hengelo meeting in the Netherlands. While Kenenisa Bekele won the 5,000m, his compatriot Sileshi Sihine took the 10,000m from Haile Gebrselassie, who took a major step towards Olympic selection. But a Kenyan woman stole the show: 19-year-old Pamela Jelimo produced a breathtaking 800m, storming across the line in 1:55.76.
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Double KIMbia Triumph at Bay to Breakers

05/19/2008 - KIMbia runners took the top spots in the men's and women's races at the venerable Bay to Breakers 12K in San Francisco. John Korir and Lineth Chepkurui triumphed over the massive field of 65,000 in the 97th edition of the hilly race.
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Noguchi Wins Last Test before Beijing

05/12/2008 - Mizuki Noguchi, the 2004 Olympic marathon champion, won her last test race before she has to defend her title in Beijing in August. The Japanese won the half marathon in Sendai, Japan in a fast 68:25. In the men's race, the Kenyan Harun Njoroge won in 61:55, five seconds ahead of Japan's Yusei Nakao. Third was Kazuo Ietani (Japan) in 62:05.
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Peninah Arusei Breaks Course Record in Berlin 25K

05/05/2008 - There was a Kenyan double victory in Berlin's traditional 25K. While Samuel Karuku came through surprisingly to win in the high-class time of 1:13:49, his countrywoman Peninah Arusei set a course record with 1:24:10. Taking into account the two winning times, this edition of the Berlin 25K was the best yet for quality since the race was first held in 1981. The new organizers, Berlin Runs, recorded a total of 8,142 participants from 23 countries.
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Kirui Crowns Vienna's Jubilee with Course Record

04/28/2008 - Once again Kenyan runners proved their dominance in taking the first eight places—including a course record—in the 25th edition of the Vienna City Marathon. In a fitting tribute to the jubilee edition of the event, Abel Kirui clocked 2:07:38 when he crossed the finish line on the Heldenplatz, achieving the first sub-2:08 time in the event's history. He made a substantial improvement on the time of Morocco's Lahoucine Mrikik, who won in Vienna with 2:08:20 in 2006.
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Mikitenko is WMM Surprise of the Spring

04/25/2008 - The World Marathon Majors (WMM) achieved ever-increasing public profile following the spectacular finale to the first series in New York last November. On that occasion the Kenyan Robert Cheruiyot and the Ethiopian Gete Wami were acclaimed as the first series winners. Each received a check for $500,000.
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Closest Women's Finish in Race History Highlights Boston Marathon

04/22/2008 - A thrilling side-by-side duel between Dire Tune and Alevtina Biktimirova resulted in the closest women's race in Boston Marathon history on Monday, with Tune sprinting away only in the last couple hundred meters to win by 2 seconds in 2:25:25. Robert Cheruiyot had no such company over the last third of the race, and finished in 2:07:46 to become the youngest four-time winner at Boston.
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Expected Winner Wins Marathon Trials in Unexpected Fashion

04/21/2008 - Deena Kastor won Sunday's U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, as pretty much the entire city of Boston expected her to. But the Olympic bronze medalist did so in a manner no one had discussed in all of the pre-race predictions—by having to overcome a two-minute gap past halfway after failing to recognize who exactly the early frontrunner was.
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Lel, Mikitenko Impressive Winners in London

04/14/2008 - The Kenyan Martin Lel has won one of the best marathons of all time. In London he triumphed in 2:05:15, the fifth fastest time ever recorded. Irina Mikitenko (Germany) created a sensation in winning the women's race in 2:24:14.

In a field of around 35,000 runners and with varying weather conditions—cool and dry at the start, but with rain and wind at times later—Lel repeated his win of the previous year. The 29-year-old also set a course record, breaking the six-year old mark of 2:05:38 of Khalid Khannouchi (USA), which was a world record at the time.
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The Marathon Month of April: Highlights Every weekend

04/10/2008 - From London to Boston or from Rotterdam via Hamburg and Vienna – the top marathon races come thick and fast in April as in no other month. In these classic races, five-figure fields can be expected as well as times that lead the international rankings by the top athletes. The London Marathon has in recent years been the yardstick in terms of quality of entry and results.
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Kenyans Musyoki, Arusei Win with Fast Times in Berlin

04/07/2008 - In its 28th edition, the Berlin Half Marathon once again produced top-class winning times. The defending champion, Patrick Makau Musyoki, won the biggest and most prestigious German half marathon in 1:00:00. Beaten in the tightest of finishes was Eshetu Wondimu (Ethiopia), who crossed the finish line a second behind. The women’s winner Peninah Arusei achieved the third fastest time in the world this year, as well as the third fastest performance in the history of the race, with 68:22.
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Bekele Almost Loses Shoe, Still Wins World Cross Country

04/01/2008 - En route to another unique achievement, even a sudden handicap failed to stop Kenenisa Bekele. At the World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, the Ethiopian had to stop in the 12K after he almost lost a shoe. Nonetheless, by the finish Bekele had won the long-distance event at these championships for the sixth time, making him the only person to do so.
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Bekele, Tadesse Rematch Highlight of World Cross Championships

03/27/2008 - When Kenenisa Bekele arrives in Edinburgh this week, he won't be able to get away from Zersenay Tadesse. An advertising banner for the World Cross Country Championships 74 yards wide and 19 yards high has been hanging in the city center since mid March. Right in the middle of this giant banner is a 13-yard meter high figure of Tadesse, the runner from Eritrea who will be the defending champion in Scotland. This picture has bad memories for Bekele.
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Wilson Kiprotich Dominates in Dallas

03/25/2008 - An 8K in Dallas produced some top-class performances on Saturday. Wilson Kiprotich and Rose Kosgei ensured that Kenya scored a double triumph, winning in 22:18 and 26:02, respectively. In ideal weather conditions, Kiprotich set off in pursuit of the world best time of 22:04. He took the initiative from the start and, passing 5K in 13:43, was making excellent time in the race.
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Gebrselassie Wins in Lisbon, Misses World Record

03/17/2008 - Haile Gebrselassie won the Lisbon Half Marathon on Sunday in a world leading time of 59:15 by a clear margin over the former 10,000m world champion Charles Kamathi of Kenya. Kamathi finished in 60:45. The fastest woman in Lisbon was Salina Kosgei in a speedy 69:57. In a sprint finish the Kenyan had just two seconds' advantage over her compatriot Pamela Chepchumba.
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World Record Came as Bonus for Soboleva

03/13/2008 - After winning the 1,500m final at the World Indoor Championships with a world record of 3:57.71 in Valencia, Spain on Sunday, Yelena Soboleva explained that she had not thought about the record during the race. "I was only aiming for gold, not for the record," the 25 year-old Russian explained to reporters.
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Soboleva Crowns Indoor Championships with 1500m World Record

03/10/2008 - Surprises, top-class races and even a world record – the finals of the track events on the last day of the World Indoor Championships in Valencia had everything. The highlight was the women's 1500m final. It was no tactical race as so often in the past, but a final with the pace getting faster and faster as Yelena Soboleva crowned the championships with a world record.
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Debut Win for Nakamura in Nagoya, Takahashi Falls Apart

03/10/2008 - There were two big surprises at the Nagoya Marathon, the last Japanese selection race for the Olympic Games: Yurika Nakamura came through to win in her debut, while the national heroine Naoko Takahashi had a nightmare experience. Nakamura, just 21, ran 2:25:51 in good conditions and finished well ahead of her compatriots Yoshimi Ozaki (2:26:19) and Yuri Kano (2:26:39).
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Meseret Defar Completes World Indoor Hat Trick

03/09/2008 - For the third time in succession the winner of the gold medal in the women's 3,000m at the World Indoor Championships bears the name of Meseret Defar. The Ethiopian was a convincing winner of the title in Valencia in 8:38.79. The 24-year-old certainly didn't have to go all out to leave her rivals well behind. Her compatriot Meselech Melkamu was second in 8:41.50. Third place was taken by the Moroccan Mariem Alaoui Selsouli, who won her first major medal in 8:41.66. "We wanted to win gold and silver for Ethiopia and we did it. We want to do exactly the same in Beijing this summer," said Melkamu.
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Shami Wins Lake Biwa Marathon

03/03/2008 - Less than a year after his lone defeat in the marathon, Mubarak Shami is back in the winner’s circle. The Kenyan-born athlete, who for the last few years has been running for Qatar, won the 63rd edition of the Lake Biwa Marathon in Japan in the fast time of 2:08:23. In the elite men-only race, Yared Asmeron (Eritrea) improved his best time by around seven minutes and took second place in 2:08:34 ahead of three Japanese.
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Kiplagat Continues Winning Streak in Puerto Rico

02/25/2008 - Lornah Kiplagat won the World's Best 10K in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the fifth straight year on Sunday night. The native-born Kenyan, who now runs for Holland, ran the course in a fast 31:02. After a dramatic finish, the Ethiopian Deriba Merga ran 28:03 to win the men's race. Despite dropping out of the Dubai Marathon last month with a calf injury, Kiplagat seemed at full strength in San Juan.
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Röthlin Wins in Tokyo,
Bekele Breaks World Record in Birmingham

02/18/2008 - Viktor Röthlin has celebrated the greatest victory of his career in Tokyo. The Swiss won the prestigious Tokyo Marathon in the first-class time of 2:07:23. This meant the 33-year-old improved his own national record of 2:08:20, set last year in Zurich, by almost a minute. For the first time this edition of the Tokyo Marathon was not an elite men's race, but an event for mass participation.
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Fast Times in United Arab Emirates,
World Record in Moscow

02/11/2008 - Just three weeks after the Dubai Marathon with Haile Gebrselassie, a second road race in the United Arab Emirates has made headlines: at the second edition of the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon, four runners went under the auspicious one-hour barrier. In so doing, the race confirmed its high-quality results of the previous year when Sammy Wanjiru (Kenya) set the then fastest performance of all time with 58:53.
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Lagat Gets Sixth Millrose Victory

02/05/2008 - Bernard Lagat won the prestigious Wanamaker Mile at the 101st edition of the Millrose Games in the fastest time of the still-new indoor season. On the tight, narrow 150-meter track of Madison Square Garden, the American ran 3:57.51 in front of 12,500 spectators.
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Meseret Defar Begins Olympic Year With World Record

01/28/2008 - Meseret Defar has begun the Olympic year right where she left off last year—with a world record. The 24-year-old Ethiopian covered the rarely run distance of 2 miles at the Boston indoor meeting in 9:10.50. With that time, Defar bettered the old mark, set by the American Regina Jacobs at the same meeting six years ago, of 9:23.38. Defar's time brings the indoor 2-mile standard much closer in line with the world indoor marks for 3,000m and 5,000m.
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Haile Just Misses Million Dollar World Record in Dubai

01/20/2008 - On Friday, Haile Gebrselassie failed in his attempt to break his own world record for the marathon despite perfect weather conditions on the flattest course in the world. The Ethiopian missed out on the biggest prize money in the history of distance running when he overshot his mark of 2:04:26 by just 27 seconds.
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Dire Tune Runs Leading Time at Houston Marathon

01/14/2008 - Dire Tune has not only successfully defended her title at the 36th edition of the Houston Marathon, but her big personal best has moved her closer to the top echelon of women marathoners. Just 22 years old, the Ethiopian won the race in a course record of 2:24:39, providing the top performance of the event, which also included the U.S. half marathon championships. Kenyan David Cheruiyot won the men’s marathon in 2:12:31.
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Unrest in Kenya Affects Running Stars

01/07/2008 - The unrest in Kenya following the disputed presidential election of Mwai Kibaki has also affected its country’s running stars. An Olympic competitor beaten to death, a world champion injured and a world junior cross country champion unable to make the journey to a race in Europe – those are only three ramifications of the violence and chaos holding sway in the western part of the country.
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Kenyan Double in Bolzano

01/02/2008 - With Kenyans once again dominating the road running scene in 2007, it was only fitting that the year finished for them in the same style. Athletes from the top running nation in the world celebrated a double win at the highly rated New Year’s Eve race in Bolzano: first Sylvia Kibet won the 5K in 16:01, and then Edwin Cheruiyot Soi took the men’s 10K in 28:50.
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