Maryam Yusuf Jamal wins in Monaco
Monte-Carlo – Ethiopian-born Maryam Yusuf Jamal of Bahrain won the Herculis/Samsung Diamond League‘s women 1,500m race here yesterday.
World 1500m champion Maryam Jamal showed her best form for some time, triumphing over a strong field in 4:00.59.
The Bahrain star, after the 400 and 800 markers were passed by an unchallenged pacemaker Molly Beckwith of the USA in 1:00.84 and 2:07.65, won comfortably ahead of Ibtissam Lakhouad of Morocco who clocked a season’s best 4:01.09 with Morgan Ucency third.
Disappointing Results for Ethiopia
The Ethiopian team had disappointing results as Meskerem Assefa came in 7th place (4:04.48), while her fellow compatriots Gelete Burka (4:06.69) and Abeba Aregawi (4:10.30) finished in 11th and 15th places respectively. Kalkidan Gezahegn failed to finish the race.
The day belonged to Oympic champion Brimin Kipruto of Kenya, who clocked the second fastest time (7:53.64) in the men’s 3,000m Steeplechase, missing the old mark set by fellow Kenyan-born Qatari athlete Saif Saaeed Shaheen by only 0.01 second.
Gary Roba of Ethiopia finished 7th.
Men’s 5,000m
The Somalia-born Mo Farah of Great Britain continues his impressive form by winning the men’s 5,000m race in a British record time of 12:53.11, followed by Bernard Lagat (USA) and 17-year-old Isaiah Koech of Kenya.
Ethiopia’s representatives Imane Merga could only muster a fourth-place finish (12:55.47) while Tariku Bekele, Kenenisa’s brother, finishing a disappointing 7th place, more than six seconds behind Farah.
