Ebuya and Chebet – The Favourites for 7th Cross Internacional De Atapuerca
The beginning of the IAAF Cross Country Permit Series 2010/2011 would be marked by the 7th Cross Internacional de Atapuerca race in Atapuerca, Spain, on Sunday. In order to celebrate the event to the maximum, the organizers (Diputacion de Burgos) have put together a line-up of stellar performers comprising of the top five men from last year's World Championships held in Bydgoszcz. The race would also include the gold and silver medal winners, Joseph Ebuya from Kenya and Teklemariam Medhin from Eritrea.
23-years old runner, Ebuya, was the first one who brought the individual men's long course title back to country since 1999 when Paul Tergat made it in Belfast. The runner possesses a good course record at the Spanish tracks. In 2007 he won the Llodio Soria and Alcobendas titles with a gap of 14 days. However, in the current battle he vowed to avenge his loss to Spanish runner Sergio Sanchez during his last appearance in the country at Venta de Banos.
After an impressive cross country campaign earlier, Ebuya has been down and out for about one and half years. However, in last October the runner bounced back and took an overwhelming 10-miles win in Portsmouth, UK, finishing considerably ahead of Saif Saeed Shaheen, the world 3000m Steeplechase record holder from Qatar.
In the race at Atapuerca, Ebuya would be representing Kenya along with Kiprono Menjo who made his best ever track record during last season's summer managing a PB of 12 minutes and 55.95 seconds for a distance of 5000m, 26 minutes and 56.74 seconds for 10,000m, and an impressive 1 hour, 1 minute and 42 seconds for the half marathon distance in last September.
Also participating, Medhin, the 21-years old runner from Eritrea, made a major breakthrough at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships held in March last year bagging a silver medal. Diligently working under the coaching of Jeronimo Bravo in Madrid, young Medhin is a training mate of Zersenay Tadese from Eritrea.
Finishing at a credible fifth position at the World Half Marathon Championships last month held at Nanning, Samuel Tsegay, Medhin’s countryman, is also in the mix too. At Nanning he made it to the finishing line in a spectacular one hour, one minute and three seconds. The Eritrean squad would further include Kiflom Sium, Tesfayohannes Mesfin and Kidane Tadese.
Another important aspect of the Sunday’s race would be the 8924m event that would act as a stepping-stone for the Spanish athletes targeting the European Cross Country Championships which is going to be held in Albufeira on December 12. The lineup would comprise of Alemayehu Bezabeh, the current European champion, Jesus Espana, the silver medalist in the European 5000m and Sergio Sanchez, the silver medalist of the last World Indoors held in Doha in March.
Bezabeh, the 24-years old runner who won the Atapuerca event two years ago and had to settle for second last year, when the first position was bagged by Gebre Gebremariam from Ethiopia, managed to set a stunning record of 12 minutes and 57.25 seconds for 5000m last summer in Oslo, however, he failed to make it to the podium at the Barcelona Europeans where he finished at the seventh position.
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