World record holder Keneisa Bekele of Ethiopia established his supremacy in long running  by successfully defending his Olympic gold medal in the Men’s 10000m at the national Stadium on Sunday August 17.

 

Bekele who finished his race in 27:01.17, almost sliced four seconds off his own record he set at the Athens 2004 Summer Games. Micah Kogo of Kenya won bronze in 27:04.11.

 

The caliber of the race was so high that theall first four racers beat the old Olympic record of 27:05.10. Kidane Tadesse of Eritrea controlled the pace for most of the early stages of the race, with Bekele content to sit in third position.

 

The pace picked up when former world record holder and two time Olympic champion Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia took control at the 6000m mark.  Seven runners were in the front pack with two laps remaining, but at the final lap bell Bekele pulled away and eventually won by 20m.

 

Bekele is the sixth man to have won back-to-back Olympic titles in the Men’s 10000m.