IAAF Diamod League: Genzebe Dibaba targets world records in Oslo & Stockholm

Genzebe Dibaba of Ethiopia will attempt to break two world records in a week when she competes at the two Scandinavia-based IAAF Diamond League meetings in June.

Her first race will be at the ExxonMobil Bislett Games on 9 June where her aim is the mile world record. She will then travel to the Bauhaus-galan in Stockholm on 16 June, where she will try to improve her own 1500m world record.

Having won world indoor titles and set multiple world indoor records over the past couple of seasons, the youngest of three famous Ethiopian running sisters last year finally achieved two of her career-long goals: an outdoor world title and an outdoor world record.

In Monaco last year she clocked a stunning time of 3:50.07 for 1500m and then went on to win the world title in that event one month later in Beijing. She ended the year by being named as the female IAAF world athlete of the year.

The mile has long been synonymous with Oslo’ Bislett Stadium and now Dibaba will have an opportunity of adding to the history on 9 June. Stockholm, meanwhile, has played host to three of Dibaba’s world indoor records.

“Stockholm is my second home,” she said. “I have such a following here, the crowds are all behind me.”

Organisers for the IAAF

2016 IAAF Diamond League calendar
6 May – Doha, QAT
14 May – Shanghai, CHN
22 May – Rabat, MAR
28 May – Eugene, USA
2 Jun – Rome, ITA
5 Jun – Birmingham, GBR
9 Jun – Oslo, NOR
16 Jun – Stockholm, SWE
15 Jul – Monaco, MON
22-23 Jul – London, GBR
25 Aug – Lausanne, SUI
27 Aug – Paris, FRA
1 Sep – Zurich, SUI
9 Sep – Brussels, BEL

Source: IAAF.org