Ethiopian Review

Barbara Parker and Nick McCormick also compete over 5000m

DOUBLE Olympic champion Tirunesh Dibaba from Ethiopia will make her season’s debut over 5000m at the Reebok Grand Prix, May 30, after injury forced her to miss the World Cross Country Championships. The two-time world 10000m champion and world 5000m record-holder’s shape is not known but the US all-comers’ record of 14:24.53, held by archrival Meseret Defar, could be under threat.

Dibaba’s main rivals will be New Zealand’s Kim Smith, who will come fresh from a commanding win at the Bupa London 10,000, as well as Dibaba’s younger sister Genzebe, who is a two-time world junior cross-country champion.

City of Norwich’s Barbara Parker also competes. The former UK 3000m steeplechase record-holder enjoyed a strong indoor campaign with PBs over one-mile and 3000m and the 26-year-old will attempt to revise her PB of 15:42.16.

In the men’s equivalent, world cross-country champion Gebregziabher Gebremariam will target the 13-minute barrier but a victory is no means assured. The line-up includes compatriots Bekana Daba, Dejene Gebremeskel as well as a strong Kenyan contingent led by Micah Kogo.

Morpeth’s Nick McCormick came back to the fore with a steadying indoor season with five 3000m performances under the eight-minute barrier, which signifies the potential of a strong 5000m performance.

One year after Usain Bolt smashed the 100m world record on this track, all of the sprint events boast all-star line-ups and an expected large crowd will be keen to witness performances of this ilk. In the men’s 100m, former world record-holder Asafa Powell from Jamaica faces the likes of the in-form Antiguan Daniel Bailey, world silver medallist Derrick Atkins from Bahamas, Olympic finalist Darvis Patton from the USA, as well as the up and coming Panamanian Alonso Edward.

Double world champion Tyson Gay of the USA faces the former Olympic 400m champion Jeremy Wariner in a mouth-watering 200m contest, as well as Wallace Spearmon and Xavier Carter.

World 200m and 400m leader LaShawn Merritt will start as the commanding favourite in the one-lap event.

The women’s 100m promises to be just as enticing as the world 100m champion and two-time Olympic 200m champion Veronica Campbell-Brown from Jamaican faces former world champions Lauryn Williams and Torri Edwards, the US champion Muna Lee plus the world bronze medallist Carmelita Jeter.

Williams also lines up in the 200m, where she will face the former world champion Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie from Bahamas and the former European champion Muriel Hurtis from France.

By Steven Mills | (athletics-weekly)