10/07/2020 - 17:47
Clarín.com
sports
Valencia dressed up this Wednesday night, because it was the world headquarters of athletics.
And boy did everything go as planned.
Ugandan
Joshua Cheptegei
and Ethiopian
Letensebet Gidey
made history by breaking
world records of 10,000 and 5,000 meters
, respectively, on the sky blue track.
Gidey broke the mythical mark that his compatriot
Tirunesh Dibaba
had achieved
12 years ago
(14: 11-15), with an official time of 14: 06: 62.
And shortly after, with 26m11s02, Cheptegei shattered the record of 26m17s53 that Ethiopian
Kenenisa Bekele
had in his possession
since 2005
.
Gidey, silver in the 10,000 meters in the last World Cup in Doha, bronze in the World Cross World Cup and world record holder of 15 kilometers on the road, counted as luxury hares the Spanish Esther Guerrero, who was in charge of pulling the group in the first kilometer and a half, and the Kenyan Beatrice Chepkoech, world record holder of 3,000 with obstacles, who led the Ethiopian to kilometer 3, which they passed with 7 seconds below the record in the third set.
In the last two kilometers, the 22-year-old athlete already flew alone, who did not slow down, aware that by holding the cruising speed she would achieve the world record, which she finally managed to lower the previous record in just over four seconds.
NEW WORLD RECORD!
Ethiopia's Letesenbet Gidey runs 14: 06.65 to break Tirunesh Dibaba's 14: 11.15 women's 5,000m world record, which had stood since 2008. pic.twitter.com/ELCBPhZmcB
- Chris Chavez (@ChrisChavez) October 7, 2020
The Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey, owner of the world record of 5,000 meters AFP Photo
The icing on the cake in this event, especially to break world records, occurred with Cheptegei, who broke Bekele's record, which was the longest-serving record holder in the 10,000 meters.
Cheptegei likes Valencia, because there in December 2019 he broke the world record for the 10-kilometer route, with 26m38.
To now achieve the 10,000 meter track record, Cheptegei enlisted the help of two teams of "hare" athletes: the Dutchman Roy Hoornweg, Matt Ramsden and the Kenyan Nicholas Kipkorir in the first group;
the Spanish Abderrahman El Khayami and the Australians Stewart Mc Sweyn and Ryan Gregson, in the second.
WORLD RECORD - 10,000m
PREVIOUS: 26:17:53 - Kenenisa Bekele
NEW: 26: 11.02 - Joshua Cheptegei pic.twitter.com/1vJASi1D2H
- The XC (@theXCorg) October 7, 2020
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