I love this sport. Kenenisa Bekele is, in fact , the world record holder at 5,000 meters and 10,000 meters. Surely someone must have taken him seriously today. Well, at the BUPA Great Run, just past halfway, Kenenisa Bekele dropped behind Haile Gebreselassie and Mo Farah, feigning, perhaps a lack of fitness.
Haile and Mo kept pushing the pace, wearing themselves out. However, Kenenisa Bekele saved his energy for a huge push downhill at the mile 12 mark. Bekele built up a lead and Mo Farah gamely went after Bekele, in full speed for the last 400 meters, but, Bekele had out played Farah today, with Kenenisa Bekele finishing in 60:09 and Mo Farah in 60:10. Haile Gebrselassie took third in 60:41, and set a new Masters’ World record!
NOVA put together arguably the best men and women’s elite fields for a half marathon ever assembled. Kenenisa Bekele took the gamble, won and now will have a career in the marathon. Mo Farah made an error, which he will not do again: give Bekele any distance at all on a road course.
Mo Farah beaten in Great North Run sprint finish by Kenenisa Bekele
• Ethiopian pipped Farah to finish in 1hr 0min 8sec • Farah one second behind with Haile Gebrselassie third
Ethiopa’s Kenenisa Bekele wins the Great North Run ahead of Great Britain’s Mo Farah.
Kenenisa Bekele could feel Mo Farah bearing down on him like a hawk swooping in for the kill. This time, however, the prey outfoxed the predator.
There was to be no glorious finale for Farah in his first attempt at a half-marathon yet Great Britain’s Olympic champion can take solace from the fact that he was beaten here by one of the finest long-distance runners of the modern era. One second was the mere gap that separated Bekele and Farah in the 32nd Great North Run, but the Ethiopian timed it beautifully.
Larry Eder has had a 52-year involvement in the sport of athletics. Larry has experienced the sport as an athlete, coach, magazine publisher, and now, journalist and blogger. His first article, on Don Bowden, America's first sub-4 minute miler, was published in RW in 1983. Larry has published several magazines on athletics, from American Athletics to the U.S. version of Spikes magazine. He currently manages the content and marketing development of the RunningNetwork, The Shoe Addicts, and RunBlogRun. Of RunBlogRun, his daily pilgrimage with the sport, Larry says: "I have to admit, I love traveling to far away meets, writing about the sport I love, and the athletes I respect, for my readers at runblogrun.com, the most of anything I have ever done, except, maybe running itself." Also does some updates for BBC Sports at key events, which he truly enjoys.
