Elfenesh Alemu (ETH) (© Getty Images)
Ethiopian Marathon runner Elfenesh Alemu is one of the very few Ethiopians who have their names in the Guinness Book of World records and ironically, it has nothing to do with her achievements in Athletics.
The 29-year old married fellow Ethiopian and reigning Olympic Marathon men's champion Gezhagne Abera in a historic wedding ceremony at the Addis Ababa Stadium attended by 25,000m guests. The 600m train of a wedding dress broke Princess Diana's wedding’s record and had to be supported by 300 students drawn from various schools in Addis Ababa.
The wedding ceremony, the top social event in the Ethiopian year (September 2002-August 2003), and was attended by the Ethiopian President Girma Woldegiorgis and many other influential people in Ethiopian society.
Alemu married a man who brought Ethiopia marathon men success after a barren spell of thirty two years. The groom Abera, is the 2001 World and reigning Olympic champion.
However, despite the huge amount of publicity created by their lavish wedding ceremony, the name Elfenesh Alemu does not seem to ring a bell among many Ethiopians. Her compatriots know her better as "the wife of Gezhagne Abera".
Seven years and very little success
For those who have cared to notice, Alemu a tall and slender runner has been part of the Ethiopian Marathon setup for the last seven years and although her career has been full of inspiration, she has failed to provide the results that translate her into one of the country's top runners.
The 29-year old can pride herself on consistent top-ten finishes in big city Marathons and major championships. Four years ago in Sydney, she finished sixth but the closest she came to a major championship medal was during the 1999 World Championships in Seville where she finished fifth.
"Each time I went into the major championships and the Olympics, I felt that I was worth at least a medal," says Alemu. "I run well, but for one reason or another, I couldn't be within the top three."
So why should it be any different for Alemu in Athens?
Superb season
The 29-year old Alemu travels to Athens on the back of arguably the best season of her career which started in the autumn of 2003 when she upset defending Olympic champion Naoko Takahashi to win the Tokyo Marathon. In January 2004, she set a course record (1:10:57) in winning the Bermuda Half-Marathon and then a month later, helped Ethiopia to the team title in the Yokohama Ekiden Marathon relay by winning her 10-kilometre stage in 31:31.
Her proudest moment came later in April, however, when she gave World champion Catherine Ndereba a very tough battle in the Boston Marathon finishing second 2:24.43, fourteen seconds off her personal best record. "I never believed that I could run like that," says a reinvigorated Alemu. "I was amazed that I could push like that."
No one is more convinced that this could be Alemu's year than her coach Dr. Yilma Berta. "It proves that Elfnesh [Alemu] has turned top class," he says. "Catherine (Ndereba) is a top runner and to run like that against her shows what sort of runner Elfenesh is. She could have even beaten Catherine."
This, coming from the same who coaches her husband and helped Fatuma Roba to the 1996 Olympic title, could mean that her time has come to mix it with the big girls. Alemu full-heartedly agrees." It has helped my confidence," the soft spoken runner says. "With the help of God, I hope to give all I have in Athens."
Alemu is certainly giving it all she has in training. The Ethiopian Marathon team covers 250-350kms of running each in training and the 29-year old has been impressive running a 20km speed trial last week in just under 68 minutes at an altitude of 2400m above sea level.
Yet, the 2000 Nagano Marathon winner understands that she will be up against one of the most difficult fields ever assembled. Her personal best stands at a reasonable 2:24:29, nearly minutes slower than Paula Radcliffe's World record. And she has lost on many occasions to the likes of the Kenyan duo of Catherine Ndereba and Margaret Okayo. "These women are all very good runners," she says. "But I am also good. We will see on Sunday."
Carrying the nation's hopes
Unusually, Alemu goes into Sunday's race carrying a huge burden of National responsibility. Husband Abera has been injured and ruled out of the Games and Ethiopia's only success in women's Marathon came eight years ago, too long a period for a nation which prides itself on a rich history of success in the distance. "There is pressure to perform," she says. "But it has only served to motivate me."
Asked about her chances in Athens, Alemu was understandably reserved to predict what will happen. "You can never say anything in the Marathon, can you?" she answers the question with a question. "It is highly unpredictable. I have to continue to believe. May be I will the race. May be I may not!"
And come Sunday, may be she will become the latest success in Ethiopia's production line of distance runners. May be she will be able to cry to the sound of her national anthem as it plays in the background after the medal-awarding ceremony. And just may be, roles will be reversed and people may be calling Gezhagne Abera "The husband of Elfenesh Alemu!"
Elshadai Negash for the IAAF
