52nd Ostrava Golden Spikes - IAAF World Challenge 2013

Who's the Best 10k'er in Ethiopia: The Undefeated Dibaba or the WL Defar

Jun 27, 2013 by Mitch Kastoff

The summer track circuit happens so fast, that plenty of small news can get swept under the rug. Unlike the other seasons where everything is geared towards the weekends, all sorts of meets are held throughout the week. It’s a bit like baseball, I guess. As much as I like watching games almost everyday, I’m also usually kicking myself for not setting my fantasy team’s roster.

So between the USA Championships (last week), the USA Youth Champs (ongoing) Ostrava (today), Edmonton (tomorrow), Harry Jerome (Sunday), and Birmingham (Sunday), some important tidbits may go unnoticed.

Bekele wasn’t the only Ethiopian upstaged in the 10k today

Earlier at Ostrava, Tirunesh Dibaba turned up the pace over the last 600m in the women’s 10k to take the win in a world lead of 30:26.67. Since the two-time Olympic and World Championship 10k gold medalist started running the event in ’05, she's has never lost a 10k.

That all could change after Meseret Defar’s world leading run. In her first 10k since ’11, the two-time Olympic gold medalist ran the world lead of 30:08.06.

This could spell trouble for the rest of the world and, oddly enough, Ethiopia. Since the Ethiopian Federation choose last year’s team based on time, everyone is looking to run fast times early to guarantee their spot on the team.

Some big names may run themselves into the ground chasing times. If they survive, then the distance duo of Dibaba and Defar could be a lock in Moscow.