After winning the last two world titles available to him, Zersenay Tadesse’s chase for this year’s global 10,000m title will begin in earnest in the Emil Zatopek Memorial race at the Golden Spike Grand Prix in Ostrava, Czech Republic, on June 26.

The 25-year-old, who claimed the first-ever Olympic medal for Eritrea when he finished third in the 10,000m at the 2004 Games in Athens, will contest the 5000m in the eastern Czech city, where he’ll face, among others, Australia’s two-time 3000m World Cup Champion Craig Mottram.

Tadesse has a 12:59.27 career best to his credit, run last year when he was ninth at the Golden Gala Golden League meet in Rome.

After lowering his own national record to 26:37.25 in the 10,000m at the Memorial Van Damme last August, Tadesse beat a solid field to take the inaugural World Road Racing title in a fast 56:01 over the 20 kilometer course, but that achievement would pale in comparison to his stunning victory last month at the World Cross Country Chamionships, where he prevailed in the most arduous conditions of the championships’ 35 editions.

Tadesse followed up with a comfortable 1:01:26 half-Marathon victory in Cáceres, Spain on April 15, with his next outing expected to be at the BUPA Great Manchester 10-K in Manchester, England, where he’ll be defending his title. He’ll be making his 2007 track debut at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon, on June 10, where he’ll contest the two miles.

The meet-capping Zatopek race has been among the highlights in Ostrava in recent years. In it’s first running in 2003, Saif Saeed Shaheen –then still competing as the Kenyan, Stephen Cherono– upset Hicham El Guerrouj in the 5000, and the following year, Kenenisa Bekele set a world record in the 10,000.

(c) 2007 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved. Used with permission

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