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 ETHIOPIA ETHIOPIAN SPORTS DIBABAB'S DRAMATIC DEFENCE |
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25th August, 2007 Osaka, Japan - Tirunesh Dibaba of Ethiopia did it the hard way, providing a dramatic scenario in the successful defence of her 10,000m title, in the first track final of these 11th IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Osaka. When four Ethiopians assumed the lead after two kilometres, it looked as if we were going to get a scenario like in the men’s race in Paris 2003. But just after 6000m, the 21-year-old Dibaba and colleague Mestawet Tufa were involved in a fall, which left Dibaba winded, adrift and rubbing her stomach, while Tufa had to stop and put a shoe back on. Tufa eventually dropped out, but Dibaba didn’t panic, and it took over a kilometre to get back in touch with the large group, before challenging for the lead again. There she found former compatriot, Elvan Abeylegesse, long running for Turkey, who took off with a kilometre to run. But back into her wonderfully fluid and elegant style, Dibaba ws not going to relinquish her title. She eased past Abeylegesse just before the bell, and sped away to victory in 31:55.41. Abeylegesse was second in 31.59.40, and in something of a departure from recent tradition, Kara Goucher added to the revivial of US long distance running, by outwitting Jo Pavey of the UK and Kimberley Smith of New Zealand, for bronze, in 32:02.05.
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Dibaba’s dramatic defence
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