By IAAF Correspondent
22 April 2001 - London - Derartu Tulu may have completed the 42.195 km of London in stunning fashion for her first marathon victory but it was a journey which lasted much longer than 2:23:56. In fact, it has taken nearly five years.
Funny the rewards inspiration can bring but when Ethiopian Tulu finished only fourth in the 10000 metres final at the 1996 Olympic Games, she saw a performance which became a vision and which on the streets of the English capital became a reality.
In Atlanta in 1996, her teammate Fatuma Roba won the Olympic marathon with a run which was still having repercussions today.
“Fatuma was such an inspiration to me,” said Tulu. “What she achieved was fantastic and she is someone who I have always looked upto while I have run the marathon.”
Tulu, 29, took up the gruelling challenge in 1997 and though she has collected the greatest titles on the track and at cross country, she had not succeeded in the marathon.
But at her fifth attempt, her moment arrived when she stayed with the leading pack for the whole of the race and then, less than a mile from home, as the five front runners passed by the London landmark of the Big Ben clock by the House of Parliament, the bell tolled on a new era for this remarkable woman.
On the track, she has a fantastic ability to run 9600m of a 10000m before then somehow finding an incredible sprint on the last 400m, as she demonstrated in such magnificent fashion to reclaim the Olympic title in Sydney last year having gold at the distance in Barcelona in 1992.
But after more than 25 miles? Same story. Speed, power and a frightening injection of pace.
It was a story waiting to happen because Tulu rarely fails in whatever challenge heads her way and her success is rich reward for a winter training with her fellow Ethiopians. Not women but men.
“It has paid off,” she said. “I am so happy. Up to 21 miles, the speed and pace was fast but I was determined I could win.”
That included Gezahegne Abera, who won the marathon in Sydney. “It is important to have a challenge in your training,” she added.
She will new plan her summer which will be centred upon the 10,000m at the World Championships in Edmonton but she added: “I may also do the 5000m there.”
But not the marathon. Her next run over the distance could be New York or Tokyo later in the year before bids for another World Cross Country gold.
She missed last month’s event in Ostend, Belgium, because of a nagging hamstring injury which she did not want to further disrupt for this race. It was a good choice because her win was faultless.
Even with drama in the final stages. As Tulu headed for the line, two men ran onto the course towards here, seeking their own publicity, but being stopped by two Flora London Marathon officials, one of which was David Bedford, the race director and former 10,000m world record-holder.
“I would have fallen over if they had tried to trip me up,” said Tulu. “I half saw them coming towards me.”
Victory inside 2:24 meant she won $25,000 to go alongside her $55,000 prize for first place in a race where she beat Russian Svetlana Zakharova who was second in 2:24:02 with Kenya’s double London winner Joyce Chepchumba third in 2:24.11.
But Tulu could not claim the best smile of the day. That surely went to Kenyan Paul Tergat who was second in the men’s race on his marathon debut.
“Today has been a great day for me, it was as good as I expected and I gained a lot of experience,” said Tergat, the five-times World Cross Country champion and former 10,000m world record-holder, who had never run this far.
“It was unique. The pace was fast, slow, fast, something I am not used. I was not sure how this type of race is run but I am learning and I will be back for more.”
His time of 2:08:14 and performance was one of the best in the history of marathon debuts but not enough to beat Moroccan Abdelkader El Mouaziz, who maintained his fantastic London success.
He was second in 1998, first a year later, second 12 months ago and triumphed again in 2:07.11.
Experience told for Mouaziz. But Tergat has only just begun.
