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Lagat to Double at World Championships

Posted August 4th, 2007 at 8:30 AM by Adam Jacobs

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

That Bernard Lagat won today’s 1500m at the Norwich Union Super Grand Prix was not a surprise, but his decision to double in both the 1500m and the 5000m at the IAAF World Championships in Osaka certainly was.

“Tonight I informed USATF that I have decided to double at both 1500m and 5000m in Osaka,” Lagat wrote in an e-mail message sent to Race Results Weekly by his long-time manager, James Templeton.

At last June’s AT&T USA Championships, Lagat also did the 1500m/5000m double, placing third in the shorter event and winning the longer. At that time, he was leaning towards just doing the 1500m, but said that he had not ruled anything out. As his summer track season progressed, Lagat seemed off form at 1500m, finishing a distant 7th in Paris and third in Sheffield. That led to speculation that he would move up to the longer event, but the two-time Olympic medalist indicated that he was ready for the challenge of the double.

“I have had some stomach problems which affected my recent races in Paris and Sheffield,” Lagat wrote. “However, these problems have cleared up in recent weeks. I’ve felt good in training and tonight felt very strong in the 1500 in London. I’m very excited about competing for USA for the first time and I believe I can be a strong contender in both events in Osaka.”