The Hindu : Sport / World View : Abeylegesse sets new 5,000m world record

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Sunday, Jun 13, 2004

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Sport - World View

Abeylegesse sets new 5,000m world record

BERGEN: Turkey's Elvan Abeylegesse broke the women's world 5,000m record by more than three seconds in 14 minutes, 24.68 seconds at the Bislett Games on Friday.

Abeylegesse broke away from a group of six and quickly built up a 30-metre lead as she ran the last five laps alone on a chilly evening at Fana Stadium.

She praised the crowd for helping her break the previous record by Bo Jiang of China at 14:28.09 in 1997 in Shanghai, China.

"The fans were great," Abeylegesse said. "They supported me all race long and helped me get the record. I've worked hard to make this, day and night, summer and winter."

Abeylegesse, 21, was born in Ethiopia but became a Turkish citizen in 1999.

"I didn't get enough support from my federation in Ethiopia," she said. "My track club in Turkey gave me all the support I needed."

Winning the 1,500 in a meet in Moscow two weeks ago gave her the confidence going into the Golden League opener in Norway.

"I've been very optimistic since I won that race," Abeylegesse said. "My dream was to break the world record and win the gold." It was the first world record set at Fana Stadium, which was hosting the Golden League opener this year while Bislett Stadium — the site of 52 world records in athletics — in downtown Oslo was being refurbished. — AP

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