The 10,000 metres
run, longest track event, is a common
long-distance track running event. The event is part of the athletics programme
at the Olympic and the World Championships. The 10,000 metres track race is
usually distinguished from its road running counterpart, the 10K run, by the
referring to the distance in metres, rather than kilometres. It has been part of Olympics since 1912. The world record for men is held by
Kenenisa Bekele of Ethiopia in 26:17.53, posted at Brussels, in 2005. For women, the record is held by Wang Junxia of China in
29:31.78 in 1993. The race demands exceptional levels of aerobic endurance.
At 15th
World Athletic Championship in Beijing, Mo Farah defended his title in the
10,000 meters at the world track and field championships furthering the British
distance runner’s legacy as one of the all-time greats, while his training
partner, Galen Rupp of the U.S., faded over the final meters to a disappointing
fifth place.It was the sixth consecutive gold medal at a global championships
for Farah, 32, who completed the feat of double golds in the 5,000 and 10,000
meters at both the 2012 London Olympics and the 2013 World Championships in
Moscow. He will seek to do the same here in Beijing, where the heats for the
5,000 meters begin on Wednesday.
In
Women’s section, Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya won the gold medal ahead of
Ethiopian Gelete Burka in second place – but more news focus is on Molly
Huddle, of US, who currently lives on Rhodes island.
American
long distance runner Molly Huddle raised her arms triumphantly in the air as
she won a bronze medal in the women's 9,999m race at the IAAF World
Championships. The only problem for Huddle was that she had another meter to
go. The premature celebration was an embarrassing stuff-up for Huddle, who like
all the other athletes in the race has trained her entire life to be where she
is. That runner, Huddle's American
teammate, Emily Infeld, took advantage of Huddle's nonchalant finish and just
barely slipped past her to claim the bronze medal. Infield was out-of-her-mind
happy after winning a bronze that, for the previous 9,999 meters of the race,
was not hers to win.
The
American runner was competing in the 10,000m final at the Athletics World
Championships in Beijing and looked to have secured the bronze medal.With
Vivian Cheruiyot of Kenya and Ethiopia's Gelete Burka already over the line,
Huddle had third place assured and was so delighted with the result that as she
reached the line, she raised her arms in celebration.Only she did it too early,
and compatriot Emily Infeld was able to sneak in and take the third place
medal.Huddle looked utterly shocked - and furious with herself - before
mustering the sportsmanship to congratulate Infeld.
With
the medal winners off celebrating, Huddle appeared to be fighting back tears at
the Bird's Nest stadium. Infeld's was the first world championship medal for a
non-African born runner in the 10,000 meter since her compatriot Kara Goucherin
2007. In the end it was Emily Infeld
(31.43.49), pipping Molly Huddle (31:43.58) on the line.
'In
that last half step, I just let up too much,' said a hugely disappointed
Huddle. So in a split second, Huddle's celebratory expression changed as shee
cringed burying her face in her hands.Huddle said the crowd noise was so loud
on the final lap that she couldn't tell who was near her at the end.The 5'5
runner will return home to husband Kurt Benninger, whom she married in 2009,
without a medal in this event, looking ahead to a better strategy in Rio.
Kenya's Vivian
Cheruiyot won a thrilling last lap sprint to claim the gold medal, capping her
comeback season with her second world title in the longest track event.The
31-year-old, who took 2014 off to have a child, hit the front with 300 metres
to go and powered her way to victory in 31 minutes, 41.31 seconds to reclaim
the title she won as part of a 5,000-10,000 double at the 2011 world championships
in Daegu.Ethiopia's Gelete Burka stayed with Cheruiyot when the Kenyan sprinted
away on the back straight but could not handle the pace in the final 100 metres
and had to settle for silver in 31.41.77.In the absence of Ethiopia's
three-times world champion TiruneshDibaba, who has taken the year off to have a
child, Cheruiyot's victory kept the title in East Africa for the 10th straight
championships.
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
25th Aug 2015.
