Category: News

ready as usual, due to all the stress abound the World Champs (my whole body is still tired). But on the other hand, it will be great to run a 3000 meters and run in such a meeting in front of the crowd. So I will do my best.

I will evaluate the rest of the season after the Brussels meeting. The 5000 meters in Berlin was changed to 3000 meters. The 3000 meter in Brussels will be a good indications on what I want to do. I could do another 3000 meter if I feel fine, or just leave it with the Brussels 3000. I really do not plan much right now -as my seasons goal and peak is over.

Just briefly from me.

Marius 🙂

(7.41/13.00)
Limo (7.33)
Mekkonen (7.33)
Wolde (7.32)
Kipketer (7.34)
Kipkosgei (7.27)
Bitok (7.32)
B.Limo (7.28)
Kibowen (7.29)
Compernolle

With this kind of a field, there will be fast times. I am hoping they will throw some 7.37-42 guys in there also (usually that happens close to the race), but either way it will be ok. I have to get used to running in fields like this. As it looks now there are only three non-Africans in there, one ex-Marroccon and twelve Maroccons/Kenyans and Ethiopians :))

I am feeling fine in practice. No more really hard sessions this season. The races at the World Champs were plenty to boost the endurance. Now it is just to try and keep that feeling throughout the season. I did some easy strides on the track today, just to keep my legs going.

Marius

ps : For those of you that send me emails through this page, please be patient. I will try and answer most of them, but with so many mails coming in, it is really hard (especially when I am trying to update mb.com as well). But I do read them and appreciate receiving them 🙂

travelling for a month now, and it is time to get into some regular routines again.

My next race of the season will be the 3000 meters at the Brussels Golden League the 24th of August, exactly two weeks after the Final at the World Champs. It will hopefully be plenty of time to get my legs fresh again and heal (an aggrevated) groin muscle injury. I am looking forward to running a 3000 meter now – I have not run one since my (first) Norwegian record last year of 7.42.05. It will also be interesting to see how my shape is after such a hard Championship.

Just a short update from me. Finally time for some good rest and sleep:)

Marius

outwards, but still. So I think it was fair to let the appeal go through. He did beat me for 6th, so it is prefectly ok and right of course.

Today has been busy but nice. Lots of interviews and pictures. And I am really tired after a night with little sleep. It is hard to make your body rest after such an intense effort. And tomorrow I will leave early, so I have to go to bed early…..I have a looong flight ahead of me. But it is much nicer to travel when you feel you have done your best.

I had a short run this morning, and was sore in the groin injury but I could jog still. It will take a little bit of time until it is ready to race again. I just have to take it step by step.

Well, great day today, the day after my World Champs ended 🙂

Marius

I had decided together with Frank and Staale Jan that I would stay right at the tail of the field if the pace was fast. In that way, I could start catching people at the end. That exact thing happened. I was last for the first 3800 meters but took five guys on the last 3 laps. The whole first part of the race, I was just saying to myself : “Relax, relax, not all of those guys in front will keep that pace” In that way I motivated myself to push on. And at the end, I pushed in fron of Visciosa of Spain first, then El Wardi and Amyn of Marrocco, then El Himer of France. On the 300 meter mark to go I could see the back of Adam Goucher getting closer. At the 200 meter mark I kicked hard, and I think he was surprised and could not respond. Final 400 was around 56.8/9.

This whole championships has been great. I was calm before the race and just excited. All the final was, was a bonus for me, and I did not expect to do as well as ninth. Great for motivation :))!!

Tomorrow I will just relax and take it easy. The race today will guide me through the rest of the season. I really had to focus in the middle of the race, and it was hard both mentally and physically. But I got through it, and am really glad I took those decisions to push on.

More tomorrow, here from Edmonton :))

Marius

a Championships. You have had a better field in terms of a few really fast runners, but never the whole field better then 13.11. That will make the race extremely tough.

My expectations are is terms of what I am good for at the moment. Close to (or more then) 10 of the athletes in that field (3 Etiopians, 3 Kenyans, Said Sief, Garcia, Sghyr and Amyn) are just one step better then me at the moment – at any given race and speed. But then you have the other guys that I can fight with – plus that some of the 10 (that actually all have a chance of winning !) could have a difficult race for some reason. There are always possibilities out there, and I will take them if they appear.

I am feeling fine. The qualifying race seems to be out of my legs. Some work tomorrow and I will be ready to race at 22.35 Edmonton time Friday. I am really looking forward to it. It has been a dream to be in a Final like this and I have tried twice before (99 Worlds, 00 Olympics) I will use it as an experience and do my best. How well that will do, I have no idea. Either way it will be extremely tough. Wish me good luck !

Marius – last update before the race .

4 6 809 Buford-Bailey Tonja USA 54.55 0.146
5 1 456 Parris Debbie-Ann JAM 54.68 0.151
6 7 656 Tirlea Ionela ROM 55.36 0.164
7 8 446 Hemmings Deon JAM 55.83 0.179
8 2 823 Glover Sandra USA 57.42 0.174

10.85 0.146
3 5 361 Thánou Ekateríni GRE 10.91 (SB) 0.145
4 6 42 Sturrup Chandra BAH 11.02 0.154
5 1 821 Gaines Chryste USA 11.06 0.141
6 8 41 Ferguson Debbie BAH 11.13 0.189
7 7 855 White Kelli USA 11.15 0.151
8 2 578 Nku Mercy NGR 11.17 0.142

year), Mark Carroll (who beat me in Oslo), Said El Wardi (13.04) and Driss El Himer of France….so I knew my only shot was to get through on time. The top 5 got through automatic, plus the top five best times in the heats (two of them/15 total to Final).

The tactics was to go out at a steady pace, and lead the field. So I did, going out hard and running from the front. I got company with Mark Carroll after about three laps, and we alternated laps for a while (he told me when he came up to me “Bakken, lets go together”). That helped alot. I passed the 2000 meter on the 13.20 pace we had planned the night before, leading. But I could feel the altitude (668 meters/2000 feet), to my surprise. The other runners said the same after the race – it was really hard to breath even that “low”. Appearantly when Brendan Foster, GB was on his top, he came to this track in 1978 after running abour 27.30 at sea level and did 28.13 up here….came down again and did 27.30 in Prague…

The field caught up with me at around 2500 meters and at 3700 meters, the field with Sammy Kipketer passed me. So I just had to stay in there. I was ninth with one lap to go, and passed a Spanish runner at the line and El Wardi with 300 meter to go. The time of 13.32 was fast enough to go through – so all as planned. It was a HARD race, and extremely hard to stay in front and get the pace going. But I am glad I did it. It paid off and now I am in Fridays Final together with only 3 other non-Africans by birth. I think the altitude took a couple of the other Europeans down. Adam Goucher looked really strong in the second heat and will have a good shot in the Final. He has the advantage of living at altitude in Boulder.

I have four days to rest now. And I will need it – four or five times during the race I had to pull myself together to stay in there. But luckily something happened that challenged me all the times that came.

So all well from Edmonton 🙂

Marius

plus the five best times overall will go through. A total of 15 in the final….

My shot to advance is to get through on time. It will be really tough, and I both have to be running my best and be lucky. I am well aware of this, and will run as hard as I can. Then I will have four days until the final on Friday, so plenty of time to rest.

Well, people. All fingers crossed Monday at 09.35 Canada time/17.35 Norwegian time. I need all good thoughts I can get,

Marius