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Tirunesh Dibaba

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Tirunesh Dibaba

Dibaba celebrating her 10,000 m victory at the 2007 World Championships.
Medal record
Representing  Ethiopia
Women's athletics
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place 2008 Beijing 10000 m
Gold medal – first place 2008 Beijing 5000 m
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Athens 5000 m
World Championships
Gold medal – first place 2003 Paris 5000 m
Gold medal – first place 2005 Helsinki 5000 m
Gold medal – first place 2005 Helsinki 10000 m
Gold medal – first place 2007 Osaka 10000 m
African Championships
Gold medal – first place 2008 Addis Ababa 10000 m
Silver medal – second place 2006 Bambous 5000 m
World Cross Country Championships
Gold medal – first place 2003 Lausanne Junior race
Gold medal – first place 2005 Saint-Galmier Short race
Gold medal – first place 2005 Saint-Galmier Long race
Gold medal – first place 2006 Fukuoka Long race
Gold medal – first place 2008 Edinburgh Senior race
Silver medal – second place 2002 Dublin Junior race
Silver medal – second place 2004 Bruxelles Short race
Silver medal – second place 2007 Mombasa Senior race
World Junior Championships
Silver medal – second place 2002 Kingston 5000 m


Tirunesh Dibaba also known as Tirunesh Dibaba Kenene (born June 1, 1985 in Bekoji, Arsi, Ethiopia) is an Ethiopian long distance track athlete and both the outdoor[1] and indoor 5000 metres world record holder. She is the current Olympic 5,000 metres and 10,000 metres champion. She has also won four world track titles and five world cross country titles.

Born in the village of Bekoji, Tirunesh was the 4th of 6 children. She is a member of the Oromo ethnic group, and was raised in the high-altitude Arsi Zone of the Oromia Region. She began doing athletics at the age of 14. She moved to the capital Addis Ababa in 2000.

Tirunesh is part of an athletic family, with older sister Ejegayehu also making her mark on the international stage and brother Dejene marked as a future star. Their sister Genzebe won the junior race at the 2008 World Cross Country Championships.[2] 1992 and 2000 Olympic champion Derartu Tulu is also their cousin. She continues the successful athletic history of the Oromo people in long distance running.

International Performances

Tirunesh's first fully-international outdoor track event was the 2001 IAAF World Cross Country Championships. Running at the age of 15 in women's junior race, she finished 5th.

Tirunesh's most prestigious performances so far have come in the world championships athletics events of 2003, 2005 and 2007. In 2003, Tirunesh won the 5,000 m in a sprint finish against Marta Dominguez of Spain and Edith Masai of Kenya. At the 2005 championships, Tirunesh produced a blistering finish to out-sprint compatriot Berhane Adere and her own sister Ejegayehu and also became the first woman to win the 10,000/5000 m double at the same champinships. In 2007, when the championships were held in Osaka, Tirunesh again utilised her sprint finish to overhaul Turkey's Elvan Abeylegesse, thus becoming the only woman to win back-to-back 10,000 m titles. In Osaka, Tirunesh won with a time of 31:55.41.

At the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Tirunesh was beaten into third place by Meseret Defar of Ethiopia and Isabella Ochichi of Kenya in 5000 m event. The result was considered by some to be a disappointment but at 19, she still became the youngest ever medalist for Ethiopia at the Olympics.

In 2006 she won five out of six Golden League events (5,000 m) in the same season, which earned her a total of $83,333.

A major feature of Tirunesh's running style is an incredible sprint finish. During the final lap of the 10,000 m in 2005, Tirunesh was clocked over the closing 400 m in 58.33 seconds. Tirunesh is known for not taking the lead in a race until the final lap.

Tirunesh is also a remarkably successful cross country runner; she has five IAAF World Cross Country Championships victories, including one junior title (Lausanne, 2003), one short course title (Saint-Galmier, 2005), and two long course titles (Saint-Galmier, 2005, and Fukuoka, 2006). From 2007, there was just one race in each category. Dibaba won the silver in the women's race at Mombasa in 2007 and the gold at Edinburgh in 2008.

Dibaba created a new 5000 metres world record, 14 minutes 11.15 seconds, at the Oslo Golden League 2008 meeting.[1]

Tirunesh Dibaba won 10,000 metres Gold in Beijing Olympic on August 15, 2008 setting a new Olympic record time of 29:54.66 which was enough to break the old record of 30:17.49 set by fellow Ethiopian and cousin Derartu Tulu at Sydney Olympic Summer Games back in 2000. The new Olympic record was also the second fastest 10,000 meters of all time and an African record too. The previous African record (30:04.18) was held by Berhane Adere, set at the 2003 World Championships. One week later on August 22, 2008 she won the 5,000 metres by beating the defending gold medalist Meseret Defar. Dibaba finished the race in 15:41.40 which was way far from her current world record. This olympic double win made her the first ever woman to win both 5,000 and 10,000 metres at the same Olympics.[3]

Meseret Defar

Tirunesh is known to have an on-track rivalry with Meseret Defar, and races featuring the two are highly anticipated, but rare, usually, only occurring at championships.

Personal Life

Tirunesh is engaged to 2004 and 2008 Olympic 10,000 meter silver medallist Sileshi Sihine.

World Athletics Tour

World Athletics Final

Order Year Event Result Mark
1st World Athletics Final 2003 5000 m 3rd 14:57.87
3rd World Athletics Final 2005 5000 m 2nd 14:46.84
4rd World Athletics Final 2006 3000 m 2nd 8:34.74
5000 m 1st 16:04.77

Golden League

Year Meeting Event Result Mark
2002 Bruxelles 3000 m 11th 8:41.86
Berlin 5000 m 6th 14:49.90
2003 Oslo 5000 m 3rd 14:39.94
Roma 5000 m 4th 14:41.97
2004 Bergen 5000 m 2nd 14:30.88
Roma 5000 m 4th 14:47.43
2005 Roma 5000 m 1st 14:32.57
2006 Oslo 5000 m 1st 14:30.40
Paris Saint-Denis 5000 m 1st 14:54.24
Roma 5000 m 1st 14:52.37
Zürich 5000 m 1st 14:45.73
Bruxelles 5000 m 1st 14:30.63
Berlin 5000 m 2nd 15:02.87
2007 Paris Saint-Denis 5000 m 1st 15:21.84
2008 Oslo 5000 m 1st 14:11.15
Roma 5000 m 1st 14:36.58

Grand Prix

Year Meeting Category Event Result Mark
2002 Adidas Oregon Track Classic, Portland Grand Prix II 5000 m 1st 15:13.78
Prefontaine Classic, Eugene Grand Prix 3000 m 4th 8:42.57
Norwich Union British Grand Prix, London Grand Prix 5000 m 4th 15:04.54
2003 Adidas Oregon Track Classic, Gresham Grand Prix 5000 m 2nd 15:01.44
Athletissima 2003, Lausanne Super Grand Prix 3000 m 5th 8:50.20
2005 Norwich Union Super Grand Prix, Sheffield Super Grand Prix 5000 m 1st 14:51.77
2006 Norwich Union British Grand Prix, Gateshead Grand Prix 3000 m 1st 8:42.04
Norwich Union London Grand Prix, London Super Grand Prix 3000 m 1st 8:29.55
2007 Reebok Grand Prix, New York City Grand Prix 5000 m 1st 14:35.67
2008 Zlata Tetra - Golden Spike, Ostrava Grand Prix 10000 m 1st 31:03.37
Rieti 2008, Rieti Grand Prix 5000 m 1st 14:23.46

Personal bests

Outdoor

Event Mark Date Location
3,000 m 8:29.55 July 28, 2006 London
5,000 m 14:11.15 (WR) June 6, 2008 Oslo
10,000 m 29:54.66 (AR) August 15, 2008 Beijing

Indoor

Event Mark Date Location
3,000 m 8:33.37 January 26, 2008 Boston
5,000 m 14:27.42 (WR) January 27, 2007 Boston

Video Interview

References

  1. ^ a b "News Flash – 14:11.15 - Dibaba smashes World 5000m record in Oslo! - ÅF Golden League 2008" at IAAF.org
  2. ^ Dibaba sisters make it a family affair – Edinburgh 2008. IAAF.org. 30 March 2008
  3. ^ Mulvenney, Nick (2008-08-22). "Distance queen Dibaba surprises herself". Reuters. Retrieved 2008-08-24.
Records
Preceded by Women's 5,000 m World Record Holder
June 6, 2008 – 		Succeeded by
Sporting positions
Preceded by IAAF Women's World Cross Country Champion
Long Course
2005 – 2006 		Succeeded by
Discontinued
Preceded by IAAF Women's World Cross Country Champion
Short Course
2005 		Succeeded by
Preceded by IAAF Women's World Cross Country Champion
2008 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Women's 10,000 m Best Year Performance
2005 		Succeeded by


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