Abebe Bikila 1960, 64& Feyisa Lilesa 2016

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Monday, May 21, 2012

Ethiopian Record-Breaking Day At Brooklyn Half



Tesfaye Assefa Dube raises his arms at the finish. Photo: NYRR Media

It was a beautiful morning to be on the Coney Island boardwalk, but for the 14,278 official finishers of Saturday’s NYRR 5-Borough Series Brooklyn Half Marathon it took a lot of hard work to get there.
Winning in a close and record-setting finish was Tesfaye Assefa Dube in 1:03:18, followed by Mengsti Tabor Nebsi just two seconds back in 1:03:20. Eric Chirchir was third in 1:04:19. Both Dube and Nebsi broke the previous long-standing event record of 1:03:56, set by Pat Petersen in 1988.
Nick Arciniaga, who finished eighth in the 2012 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials, came in fourth, in 1:05:29, with Jason Hartmann placing fifth in 1:06:21. Hartmann was fourth overall and first American in last month’s Boston Marathon.
“It was tough, for sure,” said Hartmann, 31. “After the Boston Marathon I took a little time off and [today] was definitely a little harder than I expected. But when you come to New York, it’s just great to be a part of the event.” Hartmann ran in a Team for Kids singlet to raise awareness of the NYRR youth charity, and was loudly saluted by the Team for Kids cheering section as he passed.
For the women, Tinbit Weldegebriel, 22, was the winner in 1:15:22, with Hirut Beyene, 20, second in 1:15:27. Both are Ethiopians living in New York City. Third was Anna Weber, 24, of Bloomington, IN, in 1:18:09.
On a revamped course that allowed for the field size to more than double from last year, some 15,000 runners started off at 7:00 a.m. near the Brooklyn Museum, looped through Prospect Park, dashed down Ocean Parkway, and finished on the famous boardwalk of Coney Island.
At the outset, they were led by Arciniaga, who went out aggressively. “I just wanted to try to test myself out there today,” he said. “Then at around two miles the lead group of guys caught back up to me. They were pushing pretty hard and dropped me after four miles or so. After that I was battling just trying to stay in contact.”
The leaders pulled away with about five miles remaining.
Dube, a 28-year-old Ethiopian who lives in the Bronx, was racing in his fifth NYRR event this year. In March, he won the Coogan’s Salsa, Blues, and Shamrocks 5K in 14:43, and in April was runner-up in the Scotland Run 10K. Nebsi, 34, an Ethiopian who lives in New York City, placed 11th in the NYC Half 2012 in a personal best 1:01:31, while Chirchir, a Kenyan who now calls Jackson Heights, NY, home, won the Scotland Run 10K in 29:44. Two New York City Council members also made their way from Prospect Park to the boardwalk: Brad Lander in 1:58:10, and James Garodnick in 2:01:53.

Gebrselassie wins Great Manchester Run - Yahoo! Sports

Ethiopian running star Haile Gebrselassie won the Great Manchester Run on Sunday in the fastest 10 kilometres time of the year.
Ethiopian running star Haile Gebrselassie, pictured in 2011, won the Great Manchester Run on Sunday in the fastest 10 kilometres time of the year. (AFP Photo/Javier Soriano)
The 39-year-old clocked 27min 39sec to claim his fifth victory on the streets of Manchester and then turned his attention to booking his place at his fifth Olympic Games.
The Ethiopian missed out on a place in the marathon at London 2012, but has his sights on competing at this summer's London Olympics over 10,000m.
Gebrselassie, double Olympic and four-time world 10,000m champion, will run over the distance in Hengelo, the Netherlands, next Sunday in a race which will double as the Ethiopian Olympic trials, with the top three set to be selected for the team.
"I am so happy today, everything was perfect," he said. "I am not surprised to run that fast. I wanted to run under 27 minutes.
"According to my training this year, I feel I can run faster on the track. I want to go under 27 minutes, that's what I am thinking. If I run this fast on the road, why not on the track?
"The top three in Hengelo go to the Olympics, that's what the federation said.
"At the moment if I get in the top three I go. My question is, what is the possibility in London? We'll see."
In the women's race, Kenya's Linet Masai, the former world 10,000m champion, took victory in 31min 35sec