Meselech Melkamu (ETH) wins the junior women's race (© Getty Images)
World Junior Cross Country champion Meselech Melkamu will lead Ethiopia's squad of eleven athletes for the 9th IAAF World Junior Championships in Grosseto, Italy.
The 18-year old, who is also the reigning Ethiopian 5000m champion, missed out on a late charge to make Ethiopia's squad for the Athens Olympics, but will take part in her first major track championships after her excellent performance domestically where she shocked World 5000m champion Tirunesh Dibaba in the 24th Ethiopian Athletics Championships clawing back a gap of 600m with two laps to go to win the 5000m.
But failure to upgrade her performance in the European circuit, second in Milan and 13th in Bergen, mean that she could not get into the top three qualifications times in the Ethiopian senior squad currently occupied by Tirunesh Dibaba, Ejigayehou Dibaba, Derartu Tulu, and Berhane Adere.
With a possible eye on the double, Melkamu is entered in both the 1500 and 3000m and if she succeeds, she could emulate the success of Meseret Defar, who won gold in both the 3000 and the 5000m two years ago in Kingston, Jamaica.
Tariku Bekele following in the footsteps of elder brother
Apart from Melkamu, 17-year old Tariku Bekele, younger brother of World 5000m and 10,000m record holder Kenenisa Bekele, will be hoping to make it to his second major championships in a year. Last year in July, Tariku Bekele finished second in the 3000m at the 3rd IAAF World Youth Championships in Sherbrooke, Canada.
Some consistent performances including a fourth place finish in the 5000m of the Ethiopian Championships where his elder brother smashed the Addis Ababa stadium record and a third place finish in the IAAF Grand Prix Meeting in Bergen, Norway mean that the youngster is up to the challenge yet again this year.
Gelete Burka - continuous development
Grosseto 2004 could also mark the coming of age of yet another Ethiopian sensation in the form of Gelete Burka, who surprised many during the Ethiopian championships by beating both World 1500m Indoor champion Kutre Dulecha and 16-year teenage sensation Meskerem Legesse over the 1500.
She had narrowly missed out on the chance to represent her country in the 32nd IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Brussels, Belgium due to injury, but a spectacular form on the track since then mean that she will be one of the favorites for the title in Grosseto.
Other Athletes to look out for in the Ethiopian squad include Abraham Kabeto, who is the African Junior 3000m Champion, while Abera Chane is the Addis Ababa Municipal Champion in the 10000m.
Elshadai Negash for the IAAF
Ethiopia's Squad for Grosseto
Women
Gelete Burka
Sintayehu Ejigu
Meselech Melkamu
Rahima Kedir
Men
Hailu Denku
Abraham Kabeto
Tariku Bekele
Bedo Worku
Solomon Tsege
Abera Chane
Gebo Burka
