In cold and wet conditions, double world champion Sifan Hassan shattered Paula Radcliffe’s long-standing European 10,000m record in a late season race in Hengelo on Saturday (10).
Competing in an empty stadium in order to comply with the current restrictions, Hassan stopped the clock at 29:36.67 after 25 laps of the track to slash 25 seconds off Radcliffe’s previous mark of 30:01.09 which was set at the 2002 European Championships. In doing so, Hassan now holds European records at all distances from 1500m up to the half marathon.
“I am so happy to have run a new European record, especially a record that has stood for so long by such a strong athlete as Paula. It was a very difficult race today as it was so cold and wet,” said Hassan. “I was feeling really strong today and wished for a bit better conditions, but this record gives me a lot of confidence.”
The race wasn’t billed as a world record attempt although Hassan put Almaz Ayana’s mark of 29:17.45 which was set at the 2016 Olympic Games into view with a bold first half in 14:37 - the fastest ever halfway split in a women’s 10,000m.
Hassan often gets faster in the latter stages of her races - she ran the last 800m of her world mile record in approximately 2:03 last summer and won the world 10,000m title with an incredible sub-4:00 last 1500m - but the Dutchwoman paid for her early exuberance in the last 5000 metres.
As the laps passed, Hassan dropped further and further off world record pace but she was still rewarded with the fourth fastest time in history as well as the European record to complete the set. Hassan also achieved the novelty of lapping the entire field in Hengelo with Ethiopia’s Tsehay Gemechu finishing a distant second in 30:57.73.
The 27-year-old achieved a unique 1500/10,000m double at the World Athletics Championships in Doha last year and Hassan has a chance to add another world title to her resume next weekend when she leads the continental hopes at the World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, Poland on 17 October.
World all-time top-10 10,000m
Almaz Ayana (ETH) 29:17.45 (2016)
Wang Junxia (CHN) 29:31.78 (1993)
Vivian Cheruiyot (KEN) 29:32.53 (2016)
Sifan Hassan (NED) 29:36.67 (2020)
Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH) 29:42.56 (2016)
Alice Aprot (KEN) 29:53.51 (2016)
Meselech Melkamu (ETH) 29:53.80 (2009)
Meseret Defar (ETH) 29:59.20 (2009)
Paula Radcliffe (GBR) 30:01.09 (2002)
Berhane Adere (ETH) 30:04.18 (2003)
European all-time top-10 10,000m
Sifan Hassan (NED) 29:36.67 (2020)Paula Radcliffe (GBR) 30:01.09 (2002)
Lornah Kiplagat (NED) 30:12.53 (2003)
Ingrid Kristiansen (NOR) 30:13.74 (1986)
Elvan Abeylegesse (TUR) 30:21.67 (2005)
Fernanda Ribeiro (POR) 30:22.78 (2000)
Alla Zhilyayeva (RUS) 30:23.07 (2003)
Galina Bogomolova (RUS) 30:26.20 (2003)
Yasemin Can (TUR) 30:26.41 (2016)
Liliya Shobukhova (RUS) 30:29.36 (2009)
Sifan Hassan's lifetime bests
800m 1:56.91
1500m 3:51.95
Mile 4:12.33
3000m 8:18.49
5000m 14:22.12
10,000m 29:36.67
Half Marathon 65:15
Elsewhere around Europe…
At the WizzAir Sofia Marathon on Sunday (11), Viktoriya Khapilina moved to third on the 2020 European marathon list with victory in a lifetime best of 2:27:57, winning ahead of Kenyans Naom Jebet (2:28:41) and Cynthia Kosgei (2:32:10)
In the men’s race Mohamed Ali from the Netherlands was third on his debut in 2:16:21. Ali was initially supposed to be racing in the Bucharest Marathon which was cancelled just one day before the race due to the pandemic.
2018 SPAR European cross country champion Filip Ingebrigtsen won the Norwegian cross country title in Skien on Saturday (10). He won the senior men’s 10km in 29:23 by over one minute from Magnus Tuv Myhre in 30:27. On his return from injury Henrik Ingebrigtsen was seventh in 30:49.
Multiple European medallist Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal was similarly dominant in the women’s 6km. She covered the distance in 19:04 to win by over a minute from Maria Sagnes Wagan in 20:22.
Former world half marathon silver medallist Samuel Tsegay from Eritrea won the Swedish 10km title in Anderstorp on Saturday in 28:31. Meraf Bahta won the women’s 10km title in 32:02.