News Archive

Thursday 6 January 2005

Ethiopians should dominate the battle for honours in the womens race, while

Kenyans are likely to occupy the mens podium at the Belfast International Cross

Country - IAAF permit - in Northern Ireland, which takes place on Saturday (8

Jan).

WOMEN - A battle of the generations

Merima Denboba takes on a talented young contingent led by double World Junior

champion Meselech Melkamu, who is hoping to go one better than she did in

Brussels just before Christmas.

The 19-year-old won World Junior titles on the track (5000m) and country

last year and although her style isn’t always fluent there is little

doubting her quality.

Meselech, who ran 15:00.02 for 5000m last year, is joined by one of her

team-mates from the winning Ethiopian team at the World Junior Cross Country

Championships in the form of 17-year-old Workitu Kidane (also known as Kidane

Ayanu).

Reigning African 5000m champion Etalemahu Kidane is another Ethiopian with a

good pedigree on the country, having taken bronze at the World Junior

Championships in 2000, so they will be hoping to deny Denboba

victory.

At the age of 30, Denboba is hoping experience conquers youth and she

certainly has happy memories of the city as she took silver there in the long

race at the 1999 World Cross Country Championships.

She has also made the podium in the short race at the World Cross Country

Championships and with four team gold medals in the space of five years when

competing for Ethiopia she is a highly consistent performer.

Poland’s 2003 European Cup 3000m winner Justyna Lesman is arguably the

best European-born hope but Britain hope to have challengers such as

Commonwealth Youth 1500m champion Morag McLarty and fellow Scot Freya

Murray.

MEN - A Kenyan party

Africans have won the men’s race for 12 of the last 13 years ...