Athletics: Bekele outshines Farah in Great North Run
Bekele clocked in at 60 minutes and nine seconds on his debut.
Ethiopia's Kenenisa Bekele (R) leads Britain's Mo Farah (L) as they charge to the finish line of the Great North Run half marathon in South Shields, near Newcastle in northeast England on September 15, 2013. PHOTO: AFP
NEWCASTLE:
Mo Farah might have taken over from Kenenisa Bekele as the world’s leading distance runner on the track over the past three years, but on the road in the Great North Run half marathon yesterday he found himself eclipsed by the resurgent Ethiopian.
Bekele, a three-time Olympic gold medal winner, after temporarily dropping behind Farah and compatriot Haile Gebrselassie in the 13.1 mile race, drew level and then pulled clear on a downhill stretch with a mile and a quarter remaining.
Farah made a desperate attempt to close the gap in the last half a mile but finished a stride down, as Bekele clocked in at 60 minutes and nine seconds on his debut.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 16th, 2013.
Mo Farah might have taken over from Kenenisa Bekele as the world’s leading distance runner on the track over the past three years, but on the road in the Great North Run half marathon yesterday he found himself eclipsed by the resurgent Ethiopian.
Bekele, a three-time Olympic gold medal winner, after temporarily dropping behind Farah and compatriot Haile Gebrselassie in the 13.1 mile race, drew level and then pulled clear on a downhill stretch with a mile and a quarter remaining.
Farah made a desperate attempt to close the gap in the last half a mile but finished a stride down, as Bekele clocked in at 60 minutes and nine seconds on his debut.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 16th, 2013.