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| June 3, 2003 | Tuesday | Rabi-us-Sani 2, 1424 |
Gebrselassie suffers shock defeat on return
HENGELO (Netherlands), June 2: Olympic 10,000 metres champion Haile Gebrselassie, making his long-awaited return to the track after being injured last year, was beaten by compatriot Kenenisa Bekele on Sunday.
Gebrselassie, the world record holder for the 10,000, was outsprinted in the last 100 metres by Bekele, the double world cross-country champion.
Fellow Ethiopian Sileshi Sihine, the 2002 world junior silver medallist over 10,000, finished third in a race that never really challenged Gebrselassie’s world record of 26:22.75 — set at the same meeting in 1998.
The 20-year-old Bekele finished in a time of 26:53.70 while Gebrselassie crossed the line in 26:54.58, with Sihine third in a personal best of 26:58.76.
“I don’t feel bad about beating Haile,” said Bekele. “I have a lot of respect for him as a competitor and friend but when you are in the field we are competitors, and my aim was of course to win.”
Gebrselassie, who missed last year’s outdoor track season after injuring a calf muscle in the London Marathon, said he was disappointed with his first track outing of the year but now knew what he had to work on ahead of the world championships.
“Of course I’m not happy that I lost,” said Gebrselassie. “I knew Kenenisa was strong and that it was a possibility that I could lose but I never expected that he would actually beat me today.”
In other events, Russian high jumper Marian Kuptsova set a season’s best with 2.02 metres, bettering the 1.98 mark set by Tisha Wallace of the U.S. at the Prefontaine Classic last week.
Croatia’s 19 year-old Blanka Vlasic was second with a personal best of 1.98 while Inga Babakova of Ukraine was third with jump of 1.96.
World indoor champion and season’s leader Tim Lobinger was beaten into fourth place in the men’s pole vault when he could only clear 5.70 metres. France’s Romain Mesnil won with a leap of 5.75.
World indoor bronze medallist, Wilfred Bungei of Kenya broke Johnny Grey’s 800 metres track record, set in 1988, in a time of 1:43:05, while Turkey’s Elvan Abeylegesse obliterated the women’s 5,000 field in sweltering conditions to win in a time of 15:06.75.
Results:
MEN’S:
100 metres; 1. Uchenna Emedolu (Nigeria) 10.19 seconds; 2. Nicolas Macrozonaris (Canada) 10.29; 3. Darren Campbell (Britain) 10.33.
800 metres: 1. Wilfred Bungei (Kenya) 1:43.05; 2. Bram Som (Netherlands) 1:45.11; 3. Hezekiel Sepeng (South Africa) 1:45.36.
Mile: 1. James Kwalia (Kenya) 3:50.39; 2. Gert-Jan Liefers (Netherlands) 3:51.39; 3. Anis Selmouni (Morocco) 3:52.66.
10,000 metres: 1. Kenenisa Bekele (Ethiopia) 26:53.70; 2. Haile Gebrselassie (Ethiopia) 26:54.58; 3. Sileshi Sihine (Ethiopia) 26:58.76.
3,000 metres steeplechase: 1. Paul Koech (Kenya) 8:06.68; 2. Reuben Kosgei (Kenya) 8:09.65; 3. Michael Kipyego (Kenya) 8:13.02.
Pole vault: 1. Romain Mesnil (France) 5.75 metres; 2. Richard Spiegelburg (Germany) 5.70; 3. Lars Boergeling (Germany) 5.60.
Shot put: 1. Maunuel Martinez (Spain) 20.88 metres; 2. Bradley Snyder (Canada) 20.55; 3. Tepa Reinikainen (Finland) 20.28.
Hammer: 1. Andriy Skvaruk (Ukraine) 79.77 metres; 2. Adrian Annus (Hungary) 79.06; 3. Igor Astapkovich (Belarus) 78.55.
WOMEN’S:
100 metres: 1. Kim Gevaert (Belgium) 11.24 seconds; 2. Endurance Ojokolo (Nigeria) 11.30; 3. Juliet Campbell (Jamaica) 11.41.
800 metres: 1. Mina Ait Hammou (Morocco) 2:00.41; 2. Susan Scott (Britain) 2:01.08; 3. Monika Gradzki (Germany) 2:01.43.
1,500 metres: 1. Margaret Ngotho (Kenya) 4:08.91; 2. Veerle Dejaeghere (Belgium) 4:09.04; 3. Jackline Maranga (Kenya) 4:09.62.
5,000 metres: 1. Elvan Abeylegesse (Turkey) 15:06.75; 2. Benita Johnson (Australia) 15:13.67; 3. Lornah Kiplagat (Kenya) 15:22.97.
High jump: 1. Marina Kuptsova (Russia) 2.02 metres; 2. Blanka Vlasic (Croatia) 1.98; 3. Inha Babakova (Ukraine) 1.96.
Discus: 1. Vera Pospisilova (Czech Republic) 63.61 metres; 2. Irina Yatchenko (Belarus) 63.58; 3. Natalya Sadova (Russia) 62.85.
Hammer: 1. Manuela Montebrun (France) 71.54 metres; 2. Olga Kuzenkova (Russia) 70.84; 3. Mihaela Melinte (Romania) 70.73.—Reuters
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