Caroline Chepkurui Tuigong of Kenya improved on the two-year old 3000m Steeplechase Championship record as she sprinted away from Romania’s Ancuta Bobocel in tonight’s final.
Running bare feet Tuigong clocked 9:40.95, more than twenty second faster than the time she possessed before entering these championships. Bobocel also improved her PB by almost three seconds to a new European Junior record of 9:46.19.
It wasn’t as happy an ending for early race leader and pre-event favourite Mekdes Bekele Tadese who had to be content with a bronze medal, her 9:48.67 time not reflecting her true value.
Bekele decided it was her race to lose and took the lead of the 12-women pack from the very early stages of the race. She reached the first kilometre in 3:19.09 and the second in 6:28.79 before increasing her rhythm even further.
Bekele’s steady pace paid its fruit as she sped away from her opponents gaining a ten-metre lead over Tuigong with three laps to go.
With two laps to go Bekele seemed to have enough ground to secure the title especially when Tuigong started to fade and was eventually overtaken by Bobocel with 550 metre to go.
At the bell, Bekele was well clear of Bobocel who herself had a good ten metres lead over 16-year-old Tuigong.
But that is when drama struck as Bekele heavily hit the barrier and struggled to recover her momentum. Evidently affected by her incident, she lost ground and even struggled to regain her tempo.
Bobocel took the lead for the first time with 250 metres to go; Bekele could not respond. In the final bend, a very fast finishing Tuigong who had evidently overcome her mid-race crisis, sped past Bobocel towards Kenya’s second 3000m Steeplechase title of these championships.
In fourth, Polina Jelizarova of Latvia set a new natioal Junior record of 9:58.76 while Norwegian Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal also set a new national Junior standard of 10:00.44 in fifth.
