att h lll e t iii css 09
The magnitude of Bekele’s
World records:
greatness is exhibted by
5000m
12:37.35 (2004)
those who he prevents from
10000m
26:17.53 (2005)
featuring on this page, most

26:20.31 (2004)
notably Usain Bolt and
Hicham El Guerrouj. It is
Indoor
not only the achievements
5000m
12:49.60 (2004)
of Bolt which are
impressive – world records
champI
onshIp
record:
during the Olympic and
world championship wins –
olympI
cs:
but the manner in which he
Gold:
5000m (‘04)
achieved them. His 100m

10000m (‘04 and ‘08)
victory in Beijing, where he
silver:
5000m (‘04)
was so assured of victory
that he could celebrate with
World champ
IonshIps:
15 metres remaining and
Gold:
5000m (‘09)
still break the world record

10000m (‘03, ‘05, ‘07, ‘09)
was extraordinary, and
Bronze:
5000m (‘03)
probably the performance
of the decade. Yet despite
World cross countr
y:
duplicating that success
Gold:
short course (‘02, ‘03, ‘04, ‘05, ‘06)
in the 200m and over both

long course (‘02, ‘03, ‘04, ‘05, ‘06, ‘08)
events the following year,
silver:
short course (‘01)
it is hard to compare such
a short burst of brilliance
World
Indoor:
with the sustained glory of
Gold:
3000m (‘06)

Bekele.
Likewise, El
Guerrouj overcame the
disappointment of failing to
win gold in Sydney when
he was the overwhelming
favourite, to capture the
event in Athens and then
defeat Bekele in the 5000m.
Yet, the Moroccan’s fastest
times, save for his foray
into the 5000m at the end of
his career, came in the 90s.
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