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Lead Stories: Friday, November 21, 2008

In Cool and Wet Conditions, Tactical Races Rule Day One in Stuttgart

Posted September 13th, 2008 at 2:17 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Tactical victories by Meseret Defar and Bernard Lagat were the key performances on the middle & long distance program of the first day of the IAAF/VTB Bank World Athletics Final on Saturday.

Defar bounced back from a pair of stinging defeats to take the 5000m in 14:53.82 to edge Kenyan Vivian Cheruiyot (14:54.60), to avenge her loss of a week ago in Brussels over the same distance. The Kenyan led much of the race before Defar took over with just over 200m to go, covering the final lap in 58.7. Defar, who this event in 2005, will come back on Sunday and line up in the 3000.

Meselech Melkamu of Ethiopia, the World Indoor 3000m silver medalist third in 14:58.76.
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2008 Beijing Olympic Preview: Women’s 5000 Meters

Posted August 12th, 2008 at 11:30 AM by Jesse Squire

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Olympics

Women’s 5000 Meters

The Schedule: heats, Tuesday Aug 19; finals, Friday, Aug 22
The Americans: #6 Shalane Flanagan, #7 Kara Goucher, #12 Jen Rhines
The Contenders: #1 Meseret Defar (ETH), #2 Gulnara Samitova-Galkina (RUS) #3 Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH), #4 Meselech Melkamu (ETH) #5 Sylvia Jebiwott Kibet (KEN), #8 Penina Chepchumba (KEN), #22 Liliya Shobukhova (RUS)
The Stats: Records, 2008 List, 2007 Worlds, 2004 Olympics
The Medal Picks: T&FN - Defar, T Dibaba, Melkamu; SI - T Dibaba, Defar, Jepleting
The Story: While everyone knows the men’s 100 and high hurdles will be great showdowns, this race has been getting short shrift. Too bad, because it’s going to be a great race.

Teammates Dibaba and Defar have owned the long distances for several years. They have not raced each other head-to-head this year, but did appear in separate 3k and 2-mile races in the Reebok Boston Indoor Games. Dibaba broke the 5k World Record in Oslo’s Bislett Games, running 14:11.15; later in the summer, Defar ran 14:12.88 in Stockholm. Both are strong and have withering kicks. It will be a war.
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Defar Tops the Bill in Stuttgart on Saturday

Posted February 1st, 2008 at 5:45 PM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

One year ago, Meseret Defar came to Stuttgart’s Schleyer-Halle to make amends for a seasonal debut which didn’t quite reach her own expectations. Unexpectedly pushed to the finish, she left Stuttgart as the world record holder in the 3000m after a stunning 8:23.72 performance.

On Saturday night the two-time world indoor champion over the distance returns for the Sparkassen Cup’s 22nd edition, this time on the heels of a new world best over two miles. While Defar hasn’t publicly promised a further revision of her standard, her 9:10.50 two mile performance in Boston last weekend indicates a challenge is a distinct possibility.
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Richards, Isinbayeva Split $1 Million Jackpot as Golden League Series Concludes

Posted September 17th, 2007 at 8:32 AM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Sanya Richards and Yelena Isinbayeva each won a $500,000 share of the IAAF Golden League Jackpot after their respective victories at the ISTAF meeting in Berlin today, the final meet of the six-meet Golden League series.

In front of a near-capacity crowd of 70,000 –the third consecutive announced Golden League sell-out – Richards yet again crushed all opposition en route to a 49.27 dash, another world-leading performance for the 22-year-old American.

“Nobody knows how hard this year has been for me,” said Richards, who after early-season illness, finished fourth at the U.S. championships in June and missed a spot on the world championships squad. “I feel much stronger now than I did two months ago.”

It was the second perfect six-for-six Golden League campaign for Richards, who last year took a smaller share of the prize pot. But for Isinbayeva, the world record holder in the pole vault and one of the sport’s biggest stars, it was the first time her event was given GL status, and she took full advantage over the three month campaign to share half of the sport’s biggest prize. Next up for the 25-year-old Russian, she said, was an assault on her own 5.02m world record which has stood for more than two years.
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Plodding Pace Helps Defar to 5000m Gold

Posted September 1st, 2007 at 1:00 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Special Features, Live Race Coverage

Meseret Defar, the reigning Olympic gold medalist and world record holder at 5000m, claimed her first outdoor world title on the pentultimate day of the 11th IAAF World Championships at Nagai Stadium.

Helped by a plodding pace set by fan favorite Kayoko Fukushi, who was doubling back from the 10,000m, Defar did little but wait for 11 of the 12 and one-half laps. In the early going, she simply trailed a step behind Fukushi who was turning gentle 74 and 75 second laps. It wasn’t until the 11th lap that Vivian Cheruiyot tried to jump start the race with a sub-72 circuit. At the bell, Defar applied the pressure, but held her big sprint for the end.

“In the last 400 meters I increased the length of my stride,” said Defar after the race as if teaching a class. “And in the last 200 meters I used my sprint to win.”

Elementary, my dear Watson! Her 58.6 second final lap gave her a more than adequate cushion at the finish, grabbing the gold medal in 14:57.91, Ethiopia’s third of these championships.
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Tirunesh Dibaba will not defend world 5000m title

Posted August 28th, 2007 at 8:12 AM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field, Special Features, Live Race Coverage

Tirunesh Dibaba, who won both the 5000m and 10,000m titles at the last IAAF World Championshpis in Athletics in Helsinki, has decided that she won’t defend her 5000m title after winning last Saturday night’s 10,000m gold medal at Nagai Stadium here.

In a statement sent by the media by the Ethiopian Athletics Federation, Dibaba said she was simply not recovered enough from her 25 lap race. “I waited to see myself in training,” the statement read. “But after consultations with my coaches and reexamined my health, I have decided not to contest the race.”

This is a blow to fans who were looking forward to the clash between Dibaba and Meseret Defar, the only woman capable of beating her in next Saturday’s final. Defar, the 5000m Olympic champion in 2004, finished second at the last world championships behind Dibaba and is now the overwhelming favorite to win the gold.
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Meseret Defar wins 5000m; Sets African Games record

Posted July 18th, 2007 at 5:15 PM by David Monti

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

On the first day of the athletics competition at the 9th African Games in Algiers, Meseret Defar took the gold medal in the 5000m, crossing the finish line in 15:02.72, a Games record. Her teammate Meselech Melkamu finished second in 15:03.86, while Kenya’s Silvia Kibet took the bronze in 15:06.39.

“It was not very difficult today, because I didn’t run alone,” said Defar referring to the help she received from her compatriots who helped her control the pace.

Defar was the leader at the first kilometer (2:57.95), then traded the lead with Melkamu and the third Ethiopian in the race, Ayano Workitu. Workitu fell back at 3600m, but Melkamu was still running strong, staying with Defar. The three medalists were still in contention for the win with 200m to go when Defar launched two attacks to seal her victory. The first dropped Kibet, and the second Melkamu.
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Men’s 1500 the key attraction as IAAF Golden League resumes in Paris

Posted July 6th, 2007 at 11:17 AM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

For the crowd of 65,000 that is expected to turn out for tonight’s Meeting Gaz de France, one event will stand head and shoulders above the rest –the men’s 1500, which features French star Mehdi Baala squaring off against American Bernard Lagat.

Baala, the world leader after his solo 3:31.05 in Strasbourg last week, apparently doesn’t mind the pressure. In fact, he added to it yesterday when declaring that he’ll be chasing his own national record of 3:28.98 set in 2003.

Lagat, who will be making his ninth straight appearance here, is pleased that the spotlight will be focused elsewhere.
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Ostrava Preview: Defar, Haile, Isinbayeva and more

Posted June 26th, 2007 at 5:00 AM by Bob Ramsak

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

With an impressive slate of Olympic, World and continental champions and a handful of World record assaults, the IAAF World Athletics Tour 2007 resumes with a bang on Wednesday at the 46th edition of the Golden Spike in Ostrava.

DEFAR LOOKING FOR FAST OSLO FOLLOW-UP

While organiZers have again lured a strong collection of talent to this eastern Czech city, one of the most keenly observed will Olympic 5000m champion Meseret Defar. Hot on the heels of her staggering 14:16.63 World record in Oslo 10 days ago, Defar returns to action to try and take that 5000m mark down even further.

After breaking her own mark by almost eight seconds, the 23-year-old Ethiopian said in a quite straightforward fashion in Oslo that there’s no reason not to try again in Ostrava. Besides compatriots Gelete Burka and Meselech Melkamu, organizers have also brought in Russian Olga Komyagina to set the pace, just as she did in that unforgettable run in Oslo.
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Defar sets 3,000m indoor world record in Stuttgart

Posted February 4th, 2007 at 1:10 PM by Lisa Cieplechowicz

Section: News & Results, Track & Field

Ethiopia’s Meseret Defar has done it again; setting a new 3,000m indoor world record (8:23:72) at yesterday’s Sparkassen Cup in Stuttgart, Germany.

After falling short of her personal expectations last weekend, Defar emerged victorious in Stuttgart; breaking the previous record that was set last year by more than four seconds.

The race was very competitive as fellow Ethiopian Meselech Melkamu stayed with Defar until the end. She ultimately finished in 8:23.74; a very impressive indoor debut for Melkamu who is also a three-time World Cross Country medalist.
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