Ethiopia’s Muktar Edris (right) winning the men’s 5000 metres final during the 2019 IAAF Athletics World Championships in Doha, yesterday. Picture: Abdul Basit / The Peninsula
Muktar Edris produced some stunning stuff to successfully retain his 5,000m title at the IAAF World Championships while Selemon Barega took the silver to complete 1-2 for the Ethiopians at the Khalifa Stadium here yesterday.
The 25-year-old, roared on by a noisy contingent of flag-waving Ethiopian fans in the crowd, outsprinted compatriot Barega to win in 12 minutes 58.85 seconds, becoming the first Ethiopian in history to successfully defend the world title that he won in London two years ago.
It was the first 5,000 world championship final since 2005 not to feature Britain’s Mo Farah who has won the title three times.
It was some stunning stuff from the Ethiopian’s as a team and they are rewarded with gold and silver while Mohammed Ahmed of Canada clinched the bronze to prevent a Ethopian clean sweep pushing another Ethiopian Telahun Haile Bekele to the fourth spot.
Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the European champion, and one of the three Ingebrigtsen brothers competing in the event finished fifth.
At one part of time the 19-year-old Norwegian, the youngest of the three Ingebrigtsen brothers was leading, but flattered at the last lap.
Jakob simply melted away in the final lap, paying for having to surge in the middle of the race to keep in touch, and for being overly physical in the closing laps. His two others brothers, both former European champions, Filip did not finish the race while Henrik came 13 in the field of 15.
This race was considered wide open because two of the top at the distance, Yomif Kejelcha and Joshua Cheptegei, were not in the field to focus on the 10,000.
In the end Edris walked away with the gold to give Ethiopia the first gold of the championship.
Meanwhile, Sweden’s Daniel Stahl went one better than his 2017 silver medal with gold in the discus, throwing 67.59 meters.
The Swede charged down into the field in celebration before being embraced by his Swedish teammate Simon Pettersson.
Fedrick Dacres of Jamaica was second and Lukas Weisshaidinger of Austria third.
Meanwhile, in the women’s 800m, Halimah Nakaayi of Uganda accelerated in right time to burst past Ajee Wilson to clinch the gold.
Wilson, who dominated much of the race, leading from the front, finished third.
Raevyn Rogers, who seemed broken for much of the race in 7th place, sprinted past a group to take the silver medal from her training partner.
In the women’s high jump, Mariya Lasitskene, a Russian competing as a neutral athlete, continued her dominance by becoming the first three-time world champion in her discipline.
The day however belonged to 18-year-old Yaroslava Mahuchikh of Ukraine, who cleared a height of 2.04, a world junior record, in her third attempt to secure silver. Vashti Cunningham of USA took the bronze.
