Cragg warms-up for Euro gold with personal best

ALISTAIR CRAGG took another big step towards European gold this summer with a personal best in a historic 5,000 metres in New York.

The European Indoor 3,000m champion, who is solely focused on winning the outdoor 5,000m in Gothenburg in August, ran 13 minutes 8.97 seconds for fifth place at the Reebok Grand Prix meet on Randall’s Island on Saturday. It was nearly four seconds faster than his previous PB of 13:12.74 set at Crystal Palace in July 2004 and came in a race that produced the fastest men’s 5,000m on US soil.

Kenya’s Abraham Chebii ran the all-comers record, having produced an astonishing kick down the back straight to charge home in 13:04.56, more than a full second faster than Said Aouita’s 13:05.59 run at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984.

Cragg, who had always been in touch in a six-man lead pack, saw Chebii disappear, and three more Kenyans take off after him. Yet, aside from the PB, he was delighted with his run which came after a disappointing two-mile race in California in May.

The Irish Olympian also ran with a loose shoe for most of the race but he said that had very little effect on the way he ran.

“I feel good after that. I was in control, which is good for the summer season. I wasn’t out of breath, I just couldn’t go much faster, which I can live with at this stage of the season.”

The strong field had set out on course to break the magical 13-minute barrier, running through 1,600m in 4:08.1 and 5:10.4 at 2,000m.

Chebii was one of a group of seven runners leading the way, each taking their turn at the head of the pack. It stayed that way until the bell.

That was when Chebii took control, moving into the lead with 300m to go and taking off down the home straight to leave his rivals for dead.

Micah Kogo, 13:06.18, Benjamin Limo, 13:07.14, and Jonas Cheruiyot completed a Kenyan 1-2-3-4 with seven-time NCAA champion Cragg, representing Ireland, taking fifth.

Cragg is planning to run at the Cork City Sports meet on July 1 before taking in a couple of Golden League meets in Europe ahead of the European Championships.

“My whole summer’s just about building to Gothenburg. I’ve got to keep things pretty simple and I really want to get gold at the Europeans.

“There’s nothing else that comes close.

“My best day ever in track was winning (European Indoor) gold in Madrid. It wasn’t fast but I have the medal. I could run 12.48, 12.58, but I would give that away for a gold in Gothenburg. It’s medals I want to have when I finish running.”

While Cragg was laying down markers for the rest of the summer, there was disappointment for the other Irish athletes in action in New York.

In the women’s 1,500m, national steeplechase record holder Roisin McGettigan trailed home in 11th in 4:19.57 while Connecticut-based Marie Davenport was below par in a women’s 5,000m that produced a world record for Ethiopia’s Meseret Defar.

Defar turned in a 61-second last lap to clock 14:24.53 and beat the two-year-old record of 14:24.68 set by Elvan Abeylegesse of Turkey.

“I was very confident when I saw the time with a lap to go and I knew that I could break the record,” said Defar, who revealed that a legendary compatriot had predicted her achievement.

“I was in Hengelo (in the Netherlands) with Heile Gebrselassie and he said to me ‘you can do it, you can beat the record in New York’. After that I knew I could do it.”

Davenport ran 15.44.33 for sixth place, way below her PB from 2004 of 15:09.07, and now turns her attention to the roads. The Irish Olympian was last week unveiled as a entrant for the women’s Circle Of Friends 10K in Central Park this Saturday.

She will go to the line in a strong field headed by defending champion Lornah Kiplagat of Holland, Australia’s Benita Johsnon, Latvian Jelena Prokopcuka and home favourites Jen Rhines and Amy Rudolph, wife of Mark Carroll.

Defar’s run was the highlight of a night in which 2000 Olympics triple gold medallist Marion Jones marked her return to big-time sprinting after two years struggling with injury and her implication in the BALCO drugs scandal.

Now 30, Jones blew away a stacked 100m field at the Icahn Stadium, including 100m world leader and 200m Olympic champion Veronica Campbell of Jamaica, reigning world champion Lauryn Williams and 2003 world champion Torri Edwards.

Jones was fastest out of the blocks and held her lead to the tape to clock 11.06 in cold conditions and on a wet track. Campbell was second in 11.11 with Edwards third in 11.23.