Belaynesh Oljira brings an enviable reputation to the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon October 20th which includes two 2013 IAAF World Championships bronze medals at 10,000m and in cross country.
The Ethiopian star, who also represented Ethiopia at the 2012 London Olympics, has run 2:21:53 (Frankfurt 2018) for the marathon staking her claim as one of the heavy favourites to win this IAAF Gold Label race.
Oljira will be joined in Canada&rsquo;s largest city by a member of her training group, Bruktayit Degefa Eshetu, who is also a world class marathoner. In January of this year Degefa ran a personal best of 2:23:28 to earn herself a hat trick of Houston Marathon victories. A year ago, Degefa beat Oljira in Houston by a mere six seconds.
Despite sharing a coach and training group their contact has been minimal and it will be every woman for herself when they line up in Toronto.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I train with the Demadonna Athletics Promotion team,&rdquo; Oljira says, &ldquo;which includes also Biruktayit Degefa. We don&rsquo;t train together, except when there is group training, we meet with others.
&ldquo;We are not friends. I joined the team recently, I didn&rsquo;t socialise with most of them but once I met her at the Houston Marathon she seems sociable and I hope we will be friends in the future.&rdquo;&nbsp;
Their casual relationship is not unusual. With training groups numbering as many as a hundred the athletes will meet their coach - in this case Gemedu Dedefo - two or three times a week at some of the popular training sites such as Sendafa, a thirty-minute drive outside Addis Ababa. Athletes might ride share. Training sessions begin just as the sun is rising so it is not unusual that runners might get out of bed at 4am to be picked up.
After a brief warmup the training session starts and from then on, it&rsquo;s all business. If the athletes are going to socialise it is likely to be in Addis away from training. Another barrier in their relationship is the fact Degefa is also married to an American-based Ethiopian named Abinet Adraro and spends much time in the U.S. This past spring, she prepared for the Boston Marathon for several months there. She was eighth in Boston.&nbsp;
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Biruktayit Degefa wins the Houston Marathon</div>
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Degefa met her husband at the 2015 Houston Marathon. He was volunteering to serve meals at an Ethiopian community dinner that weekend and he tried to serve her. Their encounter turned into a long-distance relationship followed by marriage. They have since moved their American home to Albuquerque where the altitude is beneficial for her training. Adraro who ran the 2019 Houston Half Marathon in 1:02:09 served as his wife&rsquo;s pacemaker when she won the 2018 Houston Marathon.
&ldquo;I met my husband in Houston, most of the time we spend together he comes to Ethiopia and I also go to Albuquerque in many times of the year,&rdquo; she explains.
&ldquo;Training with the group can benefit you with different things like you share experience, you find new friends, you have fun with them especially when you train with them you don&rsquo;t think of your tiring moments of training.&rdquo;
Among their training group are a strong contingent of world-class women including Tirfi Tsegaye (2:19:41 personal best, who ran an impressive 2:22:44 in Toronto in 2010), Aberu Kebede (2016 Berlin winner in 2:20:45) and two-time Toronto champion, Shure Demise.
&ldquo;Yes, Shure has told me about the Toronto marathon, about its course and weather, and all the good people there,&rdquo; Degefa admits. &ldquo;My expectation in Toronto is to win with a good time.&rdquo;
Not surprisingly Oljira is also targeting victory in Toronto.
&ldquo;My main goal as for any athlete is to run a good time and to win the race,&rdquo; she declares.
The pair come from vastly different backgrounds. Oljira grew up in Wellega district about 315km west of Addis. She started out running cross country and track with immediate success. Indeed, her first overseas venture was a cross country race in France where the first-place prize was a car. She won.
&ldquo;I started running in school and once I was the school champion,&rdquo; she recalls. &ldquo;After that the people in my village called me &ldquo;Derartu Tulu&rdquo; (after the 1992 Olympic 10,000m champion).
&ldquo;I told my uncle, who lived in Addis Ababa, and he encouraged me to start training hard. He told me that I will be successful in my future life and I can gain some value out of athletics. So, I started to train with some athletes but their training was very tough and I couldn&rsquo;t overcome these challenges. I told myself I had to face it so here I am today.&rdquo;
Degefa, who grew up in Mojo about 70km southeast of Addis, meanwhile went straight into the longer distances racing her first marathon in 2009 at the age of 18. Enthusiasm and perhaps the lure of financial rewards took over and in 2014 she raced six marathons, winning three. But when she joined Demadonna at the end of 2017 her competitive schedule was reduced in favour of quality.
This past spring Degefa trained in the US for several months. And, since Oljira had been injured over the winter, their schedules didn&rsquo;t match until recently.
This year&rsquo;s Toronto race promises to be an intriguing battle between these two Ethiopian champions. They are tremendous adversaries and perhaps the occasion will see them become true friends.
Paul Gains (organisers) for the IAAF

Belaynesh Oljira brings an enviable reputation to the Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon October 20th which includes two 2013 IAAF World Championships bronze medals at 10,000m and in cross country.

Oljira and Degefa to spearhead Ethiopian 1-2 challenge in Toronto

Already the most successful man in the history of the race, Sammy Kitwara will aim for a record sixth win at the World&rsquo;s Best 10k, an IAAF Gold Label Race, to be held on Sunday (28) on San Juan&rsquo;s Teodoro Moscoso bridge.&ldquo;I am feeling very well,&rdquo; said the 29-year old Kenyan during a press conference on Thursday. &ldquo;I had a great preparation for this race and we will see what happens on Sunday. It should be faster race than last year. I know the competition will be tough but I don&rsquo;t feel any pressure. I will run the best I can.&rdquo;It will be the first race of the year for the 2010 world half-marathon bronze medallist.&nbsp; Having won five times between 2009 and 2015, Kitwara will try to equal Lorna Kiplagat&rsquo;s six wins in the Puerto Rican event.For the first time in the 19-year history of the race, organisers moved the start time to 7am instead of 5:25pm to favour faster times by avoiding the stronger afternoon winds.Kitwara should find strong opposition from at least two of his compatriots: Stephen Sambu and Bedan Karoki. Stephen Sambu finished third last year before running a world-leading 27:30 for 10km two months later in Manchester.Karoki savoured victory in San Juan in 2014 and will try to come out on top again after a successful season last year that saw him claim the silver medal at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships Guiyang 2015 and finish fourth in the 10,000m at the IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015.In the women&rsquo;s race, Belaynesh Oljira is back to defend her title. The 2013 world 10,000m silver medallist from Ethiopia will run her first road race of the year after two cross-country events in January.&ldquo;I want to repeat my win from last year,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;The Kenyans are very strong, but I am well prepared.&rdquo;She is expected to face a former champion, Kenya&rsquo;s 2014 winner Mercy Wacera, who wants to bounce back from her disappointing seventh-place finish last year. The world half-marathon silver medallist won last month&rsquo;s Houston Half Marathon in a PB of 1:06:29 and was recently named on Kenya&rsquo;s team for the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in Cardiff.Another Kenyan, Cynthia Limo, wants to improve on her runner-up performance from last year. She finished second to Wacera in Houston but then went on to clock a world-leading 1:06:04 at the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon two weeks ago.The World&rsquo;s Best 10k will also host the inaugural NACAC Road Race Cup. The top three teams &ndash; combining the time of the top-ranked man and woman from the NACAC region &ndash; will receive US$20,000, US$10,000 and US$5000 respectively.Puerto Rico&rsquo;s best ranked athletes in 2015 &ndash; two-time Central American and Caribbean Games champion Beverly Ramos and Mizael Carrera &ndash; will also toe the start line on Sunday.The course records belong to Kenya&rsquo;s Moses Masai (27:19), set in 2010, and Britain&rsquo;s Paula Radcliffe (30:21), set in 2003. Radcliffe&rsquo;s time still stands as a world record.The winners will pocket US$15,000, with prize money awarded to the top 10 finishers. A US$100,000 cheque is available for a world record.Javier Clavelo Robinson for the IAAF

Already the most successful man in the history of the race, Sammy Kitwara will aim for a record sixth win at the World’s Best 10k, an IAAF Gold Label Race, to be held on Sunday (28) on San Juan’s Teodoro Moscoso bridge.

Kitwara aims for record sixth win at World Best’s 10k in San Juan

Ethiopia&rsquo;s Belaynesh Oljira and Etagegn Woldu will be competing at the Antrim IAAF International Cross Country, an IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting, at the Greenmount Campus on 16 January.Both athletes have won medals at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships. Oljira took bronze in the senior women&rsquo;s race in 2013 and then went on to win the same colour medal over 10,000m at that year&rsquo;s IAAF World Championships.The 25-year-old finished ninth at this year&rsquo;s World Cross Country Championships and at the World Championships over 10,000m. She also won the opening fixture of the 2015/2016 IAAF Cross Country Permit series in Atapuerca.Woldu, who will still be a teenager until May next year, took bronze in the junior women&rsquo;s race at this year&rsquo;s World Cross Country Championships and formed part of the gold-medal-winning Ethiopian team. Earlier in the year, she won the African junior 5000m title.Both women will be keen to follow in the footsteps of 2015 Antrim champion Birtukan Fente, who became the third Ethiopian woman to win in Antrim, following three-time winner Etalemahu Kidane and 2003 champion Werknesh Kidane.Also part of the British Cross Challenge series, organisers of the Antrim IAAF International Cross Country hope to attract many of Britain&rsquo;s top cross-country runners.Organisers for the IAAF

Ethiopia’s Belaynesh Oljira and Etagegn Woldu will be competing at the Antrim IAAF International Cross Country, an IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting, at the Greenmount Campus on 16 January.

Oljira and Woldu aim to add to Ethiopian success in Antrim

Ethiopia&rsquo;s Imane Merga won the Cross Internacional de Atapuerca, the opening race of this winter&rsquo;s IAAF Cross Country Permit series, for a fifth consecutive year on Sunday (15).
Merga started the men's 9km race as the favourite after capturing four successive wins since 2011, the same year he also won the world cross country title at the other end of Spain in Punta Umbr&iacute;a.
However, after last season&rsquo;s narrow finish with his fellow Ethiopian Muktar Edris, Merga&rsquo;s fifth win was by no means a certainty.
After two kilometres, the front group consisted of Uganda&rsquo;s Moses Kibet and Timothy Toroitich, the Ethiopian pair of Merga and Edris, Spain&rsquo;s Alemayehu Bezabeh and Ayad Lamdassem, Bahrain&rsquo;s Aweke Ayalew, Eritrea&rsquo;s Goitom Kifle and Kenya&rsquo;s Thomas Longosiwa.
Pushing the pace in particular were Kibet, Kifle and Ayalew, the latter a late addition to the field and who placed 10th at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships earlier this year, while Merga and Edris ran comfortably in the middle of the pack.
Successive 1.95km laps of 5:43 and 5:32 eliminated the two Spaniards from contention.
Just before the final big lap, Ayalew accelerated and was only followed by Merga and Toroitich.
Ayalew then lost ground on his two rivals some 600 metres from the line and the Toroitich-Merga clash didn&rsquo;t last long either. The Ethiopian attacked earlier than usual, with 300 metres to go, to easily pull away and secure his fifth straight victory in Atapuerca, as he himself indicated while waving his right hand &ndash; one win for every finger &ndash; just before crossing the finish line in 25:02.
Toroitich was second in 25:06 and Ayalew another four seconds further back.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m very pleased for my fifth success here but also for the nice weather we&rsquo;ve enjoyed this weekend," said Merga. "Last year it was much tougher because of the rain, wind and cold. I attacked at the right moment, just when I knew Toroitich wouldn&rsquo;t be able to catch me."
Edris, the world cross-country bronze medallist, admitted he wasn&rsquo;t currently in the shape of last year when he pushed Merga all the way to the line.
<h3>Oljira maintains Ethiopian dominance</h3>
The women&rsquo;s 8km event was weakened by the late withdrawals of Ethiopia&rsquo;s world cross-country silver medallist Senbere Teferi and Kenya&rsquo;s Mercy Cherono but the race still started quickly thanks to the initiative of the Ethiopian duo of 2014 Atapuerca winner Belaynesh Oljira and Alemitu Heroye whose early pace could only be followed by Spain&rsquo;s Trihas Gebre.
This trio were ahead after the first kilometre with the Polish duo of Dominika Napieraj and Iowa Lewandowska travelling 50 metres behind.
Headed by Heroye most of the time, the leading trio clocked successive laps of 6:30, 6:26 and 6:16; the latter proved to be too much for Gebre who began to fade after halfway.
Oljira decided to make her move with 400 metres remaining and her young compatriot Heroye had no answer to her surge, four seconds separating them at the tape as the pair clocked 24:52 and 24:56 respectively.
Gebre had no difficulty staying in third and coming home as the top Spaniard in 25:34, running a solitary race for the final three kilometres as the best of the rest came home more than a minute behind her.
&ldquo;I felt more comfortable today than last year as weather conditions were much better today,&rdquo; said Oljira, reflecting the comments of Merga about the better weather conditions.
Emeterio Valiente for the IAAF

Ethiopia’s Imane Merga won the Cross Internacional de Atapuerca, the opening race of this winter’s IAAF Cross Country Permit series, for a fifth consecutive year on Sunday (15).

Merga and Oljira are repeat winners at Atapuerca

Four-time champion Imane Merga will return to Atapuerca, near the Spanish city of Burgos, for the 12th &ldquo;Cross Internacional de Atapuerca&rdquo;, the first of three Spanish races scheduled for this winter&rsquo;s IAAF Cross Country Permit series which will get under way this Sunday (15).
As it has become tradition, the organisers have assembled a star-studded line-up to take on the 2011 world cross country champion Merga in the 9000m race, including his fellow Ethiopian Muktar Edris, who pushed him to the line last year when a photo finish had to decide the winner r after several minutes of uncertainty.
The 27-year-old Merga will try to bounce back from a relatively below-par track season, when he only could finish 13th over 5000m at the IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015 after also failing to finish in the 10,000m and take his fifth consecutive win.
As for Edris, the 2015 world cross country championships bronze medallist improved his 10,000m best to 27:17.18 when winning in Hengelo this summer but finished in 10th place in Beijing.
However, last month, the 21-year-old former world junior 5000m champion returned to form and was a comfortable winner of a good quality international 10km road race in the Italian city of Trento.
Everything seems ready for a replay of the Merga-Edris showdown from last year but the Ugandan pair of Timothy Toroitich and Moses Kibet might want to differ.
The 24-year-old Toroitich completed a classy podium last year following fourth place the previous season and he will be aiming to continue his progression in Atapuerca.
The Ugandan enjoyed a successful winter on Spanish soil last winter with no less than four victories &ndash; in Soria, Alcobendas, Venta de Banos and Amorebieta &ndash; before finishing a creditable eighth in the world championships 10,000m.
Kibet is the other top 10 finisher from last March&rsquo;s world cross country championships in Guiyang, China, and he won the junior men&rsquo;s bronze medal at the 2009 world cross country championships.
After a modest track season, Kibet returns to his speciality while Eritrea&rsquo;s Goitom Kifle completes a theoretical top-five on Sunday, but there will also be a strong local squad of runners.
The large Spanish group includes former European cross country champion Alemayehu Bezabeh, Adel Mechaal, emerging talents Ilias Fifa, Toni Abad&iacute;a, Roberto Alaiz and Carlos Mayo, former European 5000m champion Jes&uacute;s Espana, the experienced Ayad Lamdassem, as well as marathoners Javier Guerra and Carlos Castillejo.
They all will be looking for a place on the Spanish team for the European Cross Country Championships in the French city of Toulon-Hyeres on 13 December.
<h3>Cherono against the Ethiopians in the women&rsquo;s race</h3>
The women&rsquo;s field assembled for the 8000m event is also of the highest calibre, thanks to the presence of the Ethiopian trio of 2014 Atapuerca winner Belaynesh Oljira, Senberi Teferi and Alemitu Haroye plus Kenya&rsquo;s Mercy Cherono.
Oljira, who won bronze medals in 2013 in both the world championships 10,000m and at theworld cross country championships that year, arrives fresh from a solid 1:10:42 half marathon effort in October but Teferi could be a hard to beat as the 20-year-old is also the silver medallist from this year&rsquo;s IAAF World Cross Country Championships in March. Teferi also performed brilliantly on the track this summer and got a world championships 5000m silver medal.
Haroye finished just two places behind Teferi at the world cross country championships in Guiyang and should also be a factor on Sunday.
Cherono, the 2013 world championships 5000m silver medallist, had to settle for fifth in Beijing but will be looking to make a quick impact at the start of her winter campaign.
The 24-year-old also excels on grass and mud, having won the junior women&rsquo;s world cross country title in 2010 and has a fine knowledge of the circuit having been present on the podium for the last three years with a haul of two third places, in 2012 and 2013, and a second place last year.
The European challenge should come from Polish marathoner Iwona Lewandowska, a winner last month at the World Military Games, and reigning Spanish cross country champion Trihas Gebre while the 2014 European 3000m steeplechase bronze medallist Diana Mart&iacute;n will be back in action again after returning from injury, which prevented her going to Beijing.
The weather forecast is for a sunny day, much less colder than usual at this time of year, with the thermometer reaching up to 15 degrees Celsius.
Emeterio Valiente for the IAAF

Four-time champion Imane Merga will return to Atapuerca, near the Spanish city of Burgos, for the 12th “Cross Internacional de Atapuerca”, the first of three Spanish races scheduled for this winter’s IAAF Cross Country Permit series which will get under way this Sunday (15).

Merga aims to continue winning streak at opening IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting in Atapuerca

Ethiopia&rsquo;s Belaynesh Oljira will return to the scene of her 2014 Cross de Atapuerca triumph when she returns to the IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting in Burgos on 15 November.The 25-year-old was a comfortable winner in the Spanish town last year, finishing ahead of Mercy Cherono and two-time winner Hiwot Ayalew.Oljira, who finished second in this competition in 2011, will now bid to become the third back-to-back winner of the women&rsquo;s race in Burgos, following in the footsteps of Ayalew and Tirunesh Dibaba.In 2013 Oljira took bronze medals at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships and over 10,000m at the IAAF World Championships. This year she finished ninth at both the World Cross Country Championships and the World Championships, but has had more success on the roads, winning competitive 10km races in San Juan and Bogota.Organisers for the IAAF

Ethiopia’s Belaynesh Oljira will return to the scene of her 2014 Cross de Atapuerca triumph when she returns to the IAAF Cross Country Permit meeting in Burgos on 15 November.

Oljira to defend Cross de Atapuerca title in Burgos

The 2015 edition of the Carrera de la Mujer, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race held over 10km in Bogota, proved to be almost a repeat of the year before, with Ethiopia&rsquo;s Belaynesh Oljira powering away from Kenya&rsquo;s Veronica Nyaruai in the final 1200m of the race.Oljira&rsquo;s winning time of 33:57 was just five seconds slower than the course record she established last year. But if the result of the race was similar, the development of it was not.Under cloudy skies and with temperatures a near ideal 15C, no one wanted to lead from the gun. So a group of 13, consisting of all the foreign entrants and two of Colombia&rsquo;s best runners, meandered through the first two kilometres in 7:00, far slower than last year.But shortly after the 2km mark, Nyaruai &ndash; winner of this race in 2012 when it was held over 12km &ndash; took the initiative and considerably upped the tempo. By the 3km mark, there were just three runners together at the front &ndash; Nyaruai pushing, with defending champion Oljira tucked in behind along with her fellow Ethiopian Buze Diriba.The three were together through 5km, when Nyaruai began weaving and gesturing to try to get one of her shadowing Ethiopian rivals to take the lead. When they didn&rsquo;t, she surged again, this effort being enough to drop Diriba, but not Oljira, who moved up on to Nyaruai&rsquo;s shoulder and began a push of her own. The result seemed in doubt until just before the 9km mark, when a final push by Oljira saw her break free and open a gap of 50 metres that she held down the long finish straight.Approaching the finish line in second, Nyaruai started clutching at her side and, crossing the start line timing mats &ndash; some 10 metres from the actual finish &ndash; came to a halt and doubled up in pain. Diriba was finishing fast in third, and it was only the screams of the crowd that warned Nyaruai that she hadn&rsquo;t actually finished, and she was able to summon the effort to cross the actual finish line in 34:31, a bare second ahead of Diriba.USA&rsquo;s Janet Cherobon-Bawcom took fourth in 34:40, and, in a hugely popular upset, Colombian Angie Orjuela took fifth place in 35:48, ahead of many of the more highly favoured foreign athletes.One of the largest all-women&rsquo;s races in the world, this year&rsquo;s Carrera de la Mujer had 17,000 entrants in the 10km, and 5000 more in the couples run 5km and mothers and babies run 2km that were held before the main event.Derek Froude for the IAAF<h3>Leading results</h3>1 Belaynesh Oljira (ETH) 33:57 2 Veronicah Nyaruai (KEN) 34:31 3 Buze Diriba (ETH) 34:32 4 Janet Cherobon-Bawcom (USA) 34:41 5 Angie Orjuela (COL) 35:49 6 Sarah Jeriwoi Kiptoo (KEN) 36:21 7 Misiker Mekonen Demise (ETH) 36:56 8 Alice Serser Milgo (KEN) 37:05 9 Rocio Cantara (PER) 37:09 10 Sandra Marcela Rosas (COL) 37:23

The 2015 edition of the Carrera de la Mujer, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race held over 10km in Bogota, proved to be almost a repeat of the year before, with Ethiopia’s Belaynesh Oljira powering away from Kenya’s Veronica Nyaruai in the final 1200m of the race.

Oljira successfully defends Carrera de la Mujer title in Bogota

Belaynesh Oljira will defend her title at the ninth edition of the Carrera de la Mujer in Bogota on Sunday (20), one of only two IAAF Gold Label Road Races in South America.The 2013 world 10,000m bronze medallist has had a good year, if not spectacular, and will also try to improve on her course record in the 10km race staged in the Colombian capital&rsquo;s Parque Metropolitano Sim&oacute;n Bol&iacute;var.Last year, she clocked 33:52 &ndash; with Bogota being at 2625m altitude, which is higher than either Addis Ababa and Nairobi, fast times are never going to be an issue &ndash; after breaking away from her rivals just after eight kilometres.In 2015, OIjira has finished ninth at both the IAAF World Cross Country Championships and then in the 10,000m at the IAAF World Championships, the latter being her most recent race, which suggests that she is the woman to beat although by no means an overwhelming favourite. Second last year was Kenya&rsquo;s 2005 world youth and 2006 world junior 3000m champion Veronica Nyaruai and she will also be returning to the race that she won in 2012. In 2014, Nyaruai came home 27 seconds adrift of Oljira and obviously will want to turn the tables on her Ethiopian rival this time around. She will also be racing for the first time since failing to finish in her national championships 10,000m in Nairobi in July, and so will be running in Bogota with something to prove.Possibly, Oljira&rsquo;s biggest challenge will, in fact, come from two of her compatriots.Buze Diriba, the 2012 world junior 5000m champion, has had a series of good performances in top quality US road races in 2015 and earlier this year reduced her 10,000m best on the track to 31:33:27.Misiker Mekonnin has been focusing on marathons this year and had two good outings in Mexican races over the classic distance, winning in Torrejon and finishing second in Mexico City so she is comfortable racing at high altitudes. She may not quite have the speed required for success over 10km, though.Eritrea&rsquo;s Nazret Weldu, an impressive 11th at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships, is also in the field.South American interest is likely to be led by Peru&rsquo;s Ines Melchor, the South American marathon record-holder who ran 2:26:48 last year and who added to her list of accolades this summer with a 10,000m national record of 31:56.62 and a win at the Santiago de Chile Marathon in 2:28.18. Melchor will be looking to bounce back after a bad time at the Pan American Games in July when she dropped out of the marathon and then could only finish fifth in the 10,000m, after going to Toronto as a potential medal contender in both events.An estimated 18,000 women are expected to participate in the three main races on the day, which also includes a mixed 5km and a mothers and babies run.Phil Minshull for the IAAF

Belaynesh Oljira will defend her title at the ninth edition of the Carrera de la Mujer in Bogota on Sunday (20), one of only two IAAF Gold Label Road Races in South America.

Oljira the favourite for Bogota's Carrera de la Mujer

Kenya&rsquo;s Sammy Kitwara cemented himself as the most successful runner ever at the World&rsquo;s Best 10k with his fifth win while Belaynesh Oljira took Ethiopia&rsquo;s first victory in four years at the IAAF Gold Label Road Race, whose 18th edition was held on Sunday afternoon (1) on the Teodoro Moscoso bridge in San Juan, Puerto Rico.Facing one of the strongest winds in the history of the race, former world half-marathon bronze medallist Kitwara completed the distance in 28:51, the slowest winning time since the race turned international in 2000. World 10,000m bronze medallist Oljira launched a strong sprint to overcome her Kenyan rivals and take Ethiopia&rsquo;s first World&rsquo;s Best 10k victory since 2011.Affected by strong winds from the start, the lead group of 15 men moved at a slow pace, hitting the third kilometre in 9:07, a minute slower than course record pace. The pack stayed populated with 12 men when they reached half way in 14:50.The race began in earnest after seven kilometres and a faster pace left four Kenyans &ndash; Kitwara, John Mwangangi, Stephen Sambu and Julius Kogo &ndash; in front along with Uganda&rsquo;s three-time Commonwealth champion Moses Kipsiro.In the final kilometre, Kitwara and Mwangangi ran side by side. The former launched his kick and only managed to move away from his rival 100 meters from the finish line to secure his fifth title after missing the 2014 edition. He had previously won in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2013.Mwangangi (28:52) and Sambu (28:56) joined him on the podium. Kogo finished fourth, also with 28:56.&ldquo;Wow, what can I say? I love winning here,&rdquo; said Kitwara. &ldquo;The competition was tough and I had to push all the way until the finish line. John (Mwangangi) wouldn&rsquo;t let me go and I gave my best to take this important victory.&rdquo;The women&rsquo;s race featured another battle between Kenyans and Ethiopians. The lead group of 11 at the 3km mark as reduced to four with two kilometres remaining, leaving just Cynthia Limo and Betsy Saina of Kenya as well as Ethiopia&rsquo;s 2011 winner Sentayehu Ejigu and Oljira.Shortly after, they dropped Ejigu to leave the top three to decide their order on the podium in the last mile. Limo launched her attack, but Oljira responded in the final stretch to break the tape in 31:57, one second faster than Limo, who was rewarded with a personal best.&ldquo;When I knew I had a chance to win, I moved away from the closest rival and thankfully I had enough to take the lead and the title,&rdquo; said the world cross-country bronze medallist.She became the third Ethiopian woman to win the World&rsquo;s Best 10k, after Ejigu (2011) and Deriba Merga (2008).Betsy Saina settled for third ahead of Ejigu (32:26) and Briton Gemma Steel (32:52).Competing on the road for the first time since becoming a mother last October, four-time world champion and three-time World Best 10k winner Vivian Cheruiyot lost contact with the leaders after the first third and finished eighth in 33:23 minutes, 15 seconds behind defending champion Mary Wacera.The top local runners renewed their victories from 2014: Mizael Carrera (30:39) and Beverly Ramos (33:50). Ramos ran the fastest time by a Puerto Rican woman to finish ninth overall.The World&rsquo;s Best 10k, the Santiago de Chile Marathon and Bogota&rsquo;s International Marathon and Carrera de la Mujer are the only IAAF Label road races in Latin America.Of the 10,500 starters, close to 10,000 of them finished the race. The winners pocketed U$15,000 for their efforts.Javier Clavelo Robinson for the IAAF

Sammy Kitwara fulfilled his role as the race favourite and took his fifth win at the World's Best 10K, an IAAF Gold Label Road Race, clocking 28:51 in the Puerto Rico capital San Juan on Sunday afternoon (1).

Kitwara wins fifth World's Best 10K title in San Juan

The 11th &lsquo;Cross Internacional de Atapuerca&rsquo; marked the opening leg of this winter&rsquo;s IAAF Cross Country Permit series which will reach the pinnacle with the IAAF World Cross Country Championships next March and saw victories from the Ethiopian duo Imane Merga and Belaynesh Oljira on Sunday 16.Right from the gun, the men&rsquo;s race &ndash; held in cold conditions as the thermometer barely reached 7 degrees Celsius, and with strong winds &ndash; turned into a two-man battle between Merga and his compatriot Muktar Edris. Edris immediately started with a brisk pace which was only followed by Merga, while Eritrea&rsquo;s Teklemariam Medhin and Uganda&rsquo;s Timothy Toroitich had already lost 15 metres to the Ethiopians at the one kilometre point, despite taking turns trying not to lose ground.Wearing identical orange vests, Edris and Merga looked in impressive form but it was always Edris who made the pace while the former world champion Merga ran comfortably just behind him, copying his tactics from the past three editions in Atapuerca where he had taken narrow sprint finish wins. The opening two 2000m laps were covered in 5:28 and then 5:30 but shortly afterwards the rhythm slowed down a bit which let Toroitich and Medhin join the leader just before the end of the third lap, completed in 5:44, while Spain&rsquo;s European cross-country champion Alemayehu Bezabeh ran alone in fifth place some 15 seconds behind.With 19 minutes on the clock, Toroitich &ndash; a creditable fifth at the last World Cross Country Championships &ndash; took the lead but the Ethiopian tandem found no problem to live with his pace. However, the Ugandan&rsquo;s relentless running still paid dividends as Medhin began to struggle and before seven kilometres the long-legged Eritrean started to struggle.At the bell &ndash; 5:45 for the penultimate loop &ndash; Toroitich led from Merga and Edris while Medhin was five seconds adrift.&nbsp;Edris made a move with about 1300 metres to the finish, and opened up a useful gap as Toroitich started to drift out of the battle for the top slot Over the last 500 metres, Edris pushed as hard as he could while &lsquo;Mr Atapuerca&rsquo; Merga was running on his shoulder. The duel home straight proved to be unforgettable as the two Ethiopians were sprinting virtually together. Finally, the win went to Merga while Edris briefly believed he had taken the honours and flung up his arms in apparent triumph as he crossed the line but had to settle for second, although he was given the same time as Merga with 27:39. Toroitich completed a quality podium 15 seconds later.&ldquo;I knew Edris was going to be a tough rival and he proved to be so," said Merga after his fourth victory in the race. "I contested today&rsquo;s race in a better form than in previous years and I was always confident of my sprint finish but Edris pushed me to the end. I thought it was impossible to win by a narrower margin than the previous times but now I know I was wrong.""It was my debut in Atapuerca, but even so my only target was to win," said Edris. "I tried my best by taking the lead from the beginning but that was not enough."The first non-African home was Antonio Abadia, who came from a long way back and took a fine fifth place while Kenya&rsquo;s world cross-country champion Japhet Korir was never a factor and finished a disappointing 18th, some 1:26 behind the winner.<h3>Oljira maintains Ethiopian dominance</h3> In contrast to the men, the 7.9km women&rsquo;s race opened relatively gently with Spain&rsquo;s Sonia Bejarano reaching the one kilometre point in the lead while all the favourites were comfortably positioned behind her. Oljira, who won bronze medals at both the IAAF World Cross Country Championships and in the 10,000m at the IAAF World Championships last year, took command some five minutes into the race but there was still a large leading group of seven at halfway, Spain&rsquo;s Ethiopian-born&nbsp;Trias Gebre the only non-African among them.After successive laps of 6:43 and 6:30, two-time Atapuerca winner Hiwot Ayalew went to the front and the group was quickly whittled down to four with only Ayalew, Oljira, Kenya&rsquo;s world 5000m silver medallist Mercy Cherono and Morocco&rsquo;s Malika Asahssah remaining in contention after Ayalew covered the third lap in 6:25.With less than two kilometres remaining, Oljira regained command of the race and her change of speed left first Cherono and then Ayalew behind.&nbsp; As Oljira carried on to secure her win in style, crossing the line in 25:26, Cherono caught Ayalew some 200 metres out to finish eight seconds adrift of the victor. A&nbsp;fading Ayalew could not even keep her third place as she was caught by Asahssah&nbsp;in the closing&nbsp;30 metres.&nbsp;&ldquo;I knew Atapuerca as I already had raced here three years ago," said Oljira. "On that occasion,&nbsp;I came second so I was eager to come back to what I think is the best cross-country race in the world and win."Emeterio Valiente for the IAAF<h3>Leading results</h3>Men (9.8km) 1 Imane Merga (ETH) 27:39 2 Muktar Edris (ETH) 27:39 3 Timothy Toroitich (UGA) 27:54 4 Teklemariam Medhin (ERI) 28:10 5 Antonio Abad&iacute;a (ESP) 28:21 6 Samuel Tsegay (ERI) 28:23 7 Mohamed Marhum (ESP) 28:23 8 Goitom Kifle (ERI) 28:25 9 Alemayehu Bezabeh (ESP) 28:35 10 Emmanuel Bett (KEN) 28:44Women (7.9km) 1 Belaynesh Oljira (ETH) 25:26 2 Mercy Cherono (KEN) 25:34 3 Malika Asahssah (MAR) 25:41 4 Hiwot Ayalew (ETH) 25:43 5 Doris Changeywo (KEN) 25:55 6 Trias Gebre (ESP) 26:00 7 Marta Tigabea (ETH) 26:14 8 Diana Mart&iacute;n (ESP) 26:39 9 Lily Partridge (GBR) 26:44 10 Iris Fuentes-Pila (ESP) 26:50

The 11th ‘Cross Internacional de Atapuerca’ marked the opening leg of this winter’s IAAF Cross Country Permit series which will reach the pinnacle with the IAAF World Cross Country Championships next March and saw victories from the Ethiopian duo Imane Merga and Belaynesh Oljira on Sunday (16).

Merga and Oljira secure Ethiopian double in Atapuerca

Defending champions Imane Merga and Hiwot Ayalew will return to Burgos on Sunday (16) for the 11th Cross Internacional de Atapuerca, the first of three Spanish races scheduled for the 2014-15 IAAF Cross Country Permit Series.
The organisers have assembled a star-studded line-up to take on three-time Cross de Atapuerca winner Merga, including world cross-country champion Japhet Korir and world cross bronze medallist Teklemariam Medhin. With Merga having taken the silver medal in Bydgoszcz last year, it means the whole podium from the 2013 IAAF World Cross Country Championships will be present.
Korir provided a major surprise in taking the senior men&rsquo;s title in Bydgoszcz to become the youngest ever senior champion, but he did not shine on the track that summer. The young Kenyan has had mixed success in 2014 too, clocking 1:02:41 on his half marathon debut in March in The Hague, then running a season&rsquo;s best of 28:19 over 10km one month later.
Now back racing on the surface with which he is most suited, the 21-year-old will be eager to bounce back from his last year&rsquo;s outing in Atapuerca when he had to settle for sixth place.
Merga could be nicknamed &lsquo;Mr Atapuerca&rsquo; after winning three consecutive titles over the past three years. Arguably one of the most consistent cross-country specialists in recent years, his track accolades include a 10,000m PB of 26:57.33 and a bronze medal over the same distance at the 2011 World Championships.
His 5000m season&rsquo;s best is &lsquo;just&rsquo; 13:11.94, but he will be looking to prove himself on the circuit where he remains undefeated.
Based in Madrid where he trains under the guidance of Jeronimo Bravo, long-legged Medhin produced a 27:38.83 10,000m season&rsquo;s best in Eugene two months after setting a half marathon PB of 1:01:47 in Lisbon. The Eritrean, who won the Cross de Atapuerca in 2010, will have his compatriot and training mate Samuel Tsegay &ndash; the current world half marathon silver medallist &ndash; for company.
But Merga&rsquo;s toughest opposition could come from his own compatriots in the form of former world junior champion Muktar Edris and 2011 world 10,000m champion Ibrahim Jeilan.
Still only 20 years old, Edris finished seventh in the 5000m at the 2013 World Championships, just one year after winning the world junior title over the same distance.
More recently, the world junior cross-country bronze medallist lowered his 5000m PB to a world-leading 12:54.83 to win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Stockholm. He heads to Burgos fresh from two victories on the roads, winning over 10km in Trento and 9.6km in Biella in October.
Two other top-seven finishers from the last World Cross Country Championships, Uganda&rsquo;s fifth-place finisher Timothy Toroitich and Eritrea&rsquo;s Goiton Kifle, will also be in Burgos.
Bahrain&rsquo;s Albert Rop, who holds the 5000m Asian record at 12:51.62, and Kenya&rsquo;s Emmanuel Bett, who finished second in Burgos last year, should complete a classy top 10 on Sunday.
The top Spanish runners will also be in contention in Atapuerca with the field including European cross-country champion Alemayehu Bezabeh, two-time European cross-country silver medallist Ayad Lamdassem, as well as Roberto Alaiz, Mohamed Marhum, Antonio Abadia, Ivan Fernandez, Daniel Mateo and Javier Guerra.
They all will be looking for a place on the Spanish team for the European Cross Country Championships in the Bulgarian city of Samokov on 14 December.
Ayalew looking for a hat-trick of victories
As with the men&rsquo;s event, the women&rsquo;s field assembled on Sunday is of a high calibre, thanks to the presence of Ethiopian duo Hiwot Ayalew and Belaynesh Oljira, the world cross-country silver and bronze medallists respectively.
In the absence of a World Cross Country Championships in 2014, 24-year-old Ayalew enjoyed a successful cross-country campaign and remained unbeaten in her six appearances, including commanding wins at the IAAF Cross Country Permit meetings in Atapuerca, San Giorgio Su Legnano and Seville.
In addition, she also showed a fine form on the track when she tackled her specialist event, the 3000m steeplechase, clocking a world-leading 9:10.64 and winning the Diamond Race.
Oljira, also 24, made her marathon debut in April in Boston and clocked a respectable 2:24:21. More recently, the world 10,000m bronze medallist triumphed on the roads at the Great South Run over 10 miles and over 10km in Bogota.
Trying to stop the Ethiopian duo from reaching the top spot of the podium will be the Kenyan pair of Mercy Cherono and Doris Changeywo.
World 5000m silver medallist Cherono has had one of her best seasons to date, winning at five IAAF Diamond League meetings and taking 5000m gold at the Commonwealth Games. The 23-year-old also excels on grass and mud, having won the world junior cross-country title in 2010. Cherono will try to improve on her third-place finish in Atapuerca last year.
Uganda&rsquo;s Rebecca Cheptegei and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Spain-based Marta Tigabea complete the African contingent.
The European response should come from Italy&rsquo;s Elena Romagnolo, Poland&rsquo;s Katarzyna Kowalska and Spain&rsquo;s European steeplechase bronze medallist Diana Martin. Ethiopian-born Trihas Gebre gained Spanish nationality in August and will compete in Atapuerca as a Spaniard for the first time.
Weather forecasters predict a rainy and windy day with the thermometer hardly reaching 9&deg;C.
Emeterio Valiente for the IAAF

Defending champions Imane Merga and Hiwot Ayalew will return to Burgos on Sunday (16) for the 11th Cross Internacional de Atapuerca, the first of three Spanish races scheduled for the 2014-15 IAAF Cross Country Permit Series.

Merga and Ayalew the favourites in Atapuerca

Ethiopia’s Hiwot Ayalew and Eritrea’s Teklemariam Medhin will line up for the Cross de Atapuerca looking to add another victory to their tally when the IAAF Cross Country Permit series gets underway in Burgos on 16 November.World cross silver medallist Ayalew ended the summer season as the best steeplechaser in the world and she will now look to continue that form on the cross country.Having won in Burgos for the past two years, she is bidding to become the first three-time winner of the women’s race at the Cross de Atapuerca.But her task won’t be easy as she will be up against her fellow Ethiopian Belaynesh Oljira, who finished just one place behind her at the 2013 World Cross Country Championships.Oljira, who is also the world bronze medallist over 10,000m, is coming fresh from a victory at the Great South Run, where she set a PB of 52:40 for 10 miles. She finished second in this race in 2011 and will aim to improve on that.Also in the field is Uganda’s Rebecca Cheptegei, who won last year’s Cross International de la Constitucion, also held in Burgos.The men’s field boasts a trio of talented Eritrean athletes, led by two-time world cross medallist Teklemariam Medhin. The 25-year-old triumphed in Burgos in 2010 and since then has twice finished in the top four, placing fourth in 2012 and third in 2013.The two compatriots joining him on the start line are world half marathon silver medallist Samuel Tsegay and former world youth bronze medallist Goitom Kifle. Both athletes finished in the top eight in Burgos last year, but were just a few seconds adrift of making it on to the podium.But the real danger will be Ethiopia’s Muktar Edris, the 20-year-old who earlier this year clocked a world-leading 12:54.83 for 5000m and in 2013 won three high-quality cross-country races in Italy before taking bronze in the junior race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.Fellow Ethiopian Ibrahim Jeilan, the 2011 world 10,000m champion, is also in the field. The 25-year-old hasn’t contested a cross-country race for five years, but as a former world junior champion on the cross country, he cannot be discounted.Kenya’s Emmanuel Bett will perhaps be the most motivated athlete in the field. Last year the 31-year-old finished a narrow second in Burgos, just one second adrift of Imane Merga.The top Spanish entrants in the men’s race include two-time European cross-country champion Alemayehu Bezabeh, two-time European cross-country silver medallist Ayad Lamdassem, European Championships marathon fourth-place finisher Javier Guerra, and Jesus Antonio Nunez, winner of the first edition of the Cross de Atapuerca in 2004.Organisers for the IAAF

Ethiopia’s Hiwot Ayalew and Eritrea’s Teklemariam Medhin will line up for the Cross de Atapuerca looking to add another victory to their tally when the IAAF Cross Country Permit series gets underway in Burgos on 16 November.