IAAF World ChampionshipsAug 30, 2015 by Taylor Dutch
Almaz Ayana Drops Genzebe Dibaba, Wins 5K World Title in Championship Record
Almaz Ayana Drops Genzebe Dibaba, Wins 5K World Title in Championship Record
BEIJING - Almaz Ayana threw down the hammer against Ethiopian teammate Genzebe Dibaba with four and a half laps to go to take the 5K World Championship title in 14:26.83, a new championship record.
The 2013 World Championship bronze medalist unofficially dropped a 4:24 final 1600m to take down the 1500m World Champion Sunday night in Beijing.
In her fifth race in nine days, Dibaba managed to close the race in 14:44.14 for a bronze medal. The 1500m world record-holder held on for a gutsy kick at the finish to earn her spot on the podium against Kenya’s Viola Jeglagat Kibiwot who finished fourth. Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi managed to out-kick Dibaba for a silver medal in 14:44.07, just 0.07 seconds ahead of her Ethiopian teammate. Ayana, Teferi and Dibaba’s 1-2-3 finish gave Ethiopia a complete World Championship medal sweep in the 5K distance.
With every step, Ayana pushed harder and harder, widening the gap on her Ethiopian teammate so much so that her final 1600m was closed unofficially in 4:24. With no one near her, Ayana blasted into the finish line in 14:26.83, a full 18 seconds ahead of runner-up finisher Teferi and bronze medalist Dibaba.
The last time one nation swept the women’s 5K at the World Championships was in 2005 in Helsinki when Dibaba's older sisters Tirunesh Dibaba, Berhane Adere and Ejegayehu Dibaba went 1-2-3 for Ethiopia.
The race Sunday night was led early on by Japanese teammates Misaki Onishi and Ayuko Suzuki who took the lead together and held it for an initial 800m split of 2:25. Dibaba and Ayana along with a lead group of 10 followed on their heels into a 4:52 1600m. At six and a half laps, Dibaba and Ayana took over as leaders and picked up the pace into an 8:55 3K. To put in perspective how quick the Ethiopian teammates were running, the 3K split was just eight seconds slower than the 3K split in the men’s 5K final yesterday.
Ayana and Dibaba threw down a hard move at the 3K mark, pulling away from the group that included Kenyans Viola Jeglagat Kibiwot, World silver medalist Mercy Cherono and Irene Cheptai. With the dramatic move from Ayana, the Kenyan competitors were almost immediately out of the running for gold and silver. The hard move would foreshadow what was to come from Ayana.
With four and a half laps remaining, Ayana dropped a hammer on Dibaba, shocking the crowd with every step that brought her further and further ahead of the World Champion. The hammer included a 64-second quarter with four laps remaining, a move that Dibaba couldn’t cover no matter how hard she tried.
The remaining places were taken up by Kenyans Kibiwot, Cherono, Janet Kisa, and Cheptai, respectively.
The lone American in the race, Nicole Tully finished 13th overall in a time of 15:27. The performance marked her first World Championship final and just the fourth 5K of her career after taking up the distance this past spring.