Four Under 28:00 in Ottawa 10K

Moroccans dominate most competitive 10K race in years

Four sub-28 minute finishes put Ottawa at top of
Canadian destinations for elites

May
25, 2013 ‰ÛÒ OTTAWA ‰ÛÒ Thirty-three-year-old Moroccan
El Hassan El Abbassi crossed the finish line of the 10K Tamarack Ottawa Race
Weekend with a time of 27:36 in the most exciting race the city has witnessed
in years.

El Abbassi led a tight pack of elite
racers, barely holding his edge on Ethiopian Adugna Bikila, 24, at 27:37,
31-year-old Geoffrey Mutai from Kenya in 27:38, and fellow Moroccan Najim El
Qady, 32, with a time of 27:41.

Despite shaving three seconds off his 27:41
winning time in 2012 and leading most of the way, Mutai was out-sprinted in the
final stretch. It was a good night for El Abbassi, who shaved 26 seconds off
his personal best time of 28:07.

‰ÛÏThis year‰Ûªs field exceeded my expectations
for its depth of talent,‰Û says Manny Rodrigues, Elite Athlete Coordinator.
‰ÛÏWith four runners finishing under 28 minutes tonight, it cements Ottawa‰Ûªs
reputation as Canada‰Ûªs most sought after destination for international elite
runners.‰Û

Windy weather may have prevented racers
from beating the 2009 course record of 27:24 set by Deriba Merga of
Ethiopia.  After a rainy week, cool and
dry windy conditions moved into the nation‰Ûªs capital Friday evening.

Malika Assahah, 30, from Morocco, placed
first among women elites with a time of 31:45 ‰ÛÒ a full 30 seconds faster than
her personal best time of 32:15. She was followed by 29-year-old Ethiopian
Firehiwot Dado at 31:48 and 30-year-old New Zealander Mary Davies at 32:08.

First Canadian male to finish was Kelly
Weibe, 23, of Vancouver, with a time of 29:22. Among the strong contingent of Canadian
elite women who lined up this year, London, ON native Lanni Marchant, 29,
finished with a time of 32:45. Right behind her with a time of 32:51 was 36-year-old
Brantford, ON native Krista Duchene, who handily beat her previous best time of
34:08.  Rounding out the leading Canadian
women was Natasha Fraser, 31, from Port Moody, BC with a time of 33:35.

‰ÛÏA number of athletes will go home happy
tonight,‰Û says Rodrigues. ‰ÛÏBoth men and women winners ran significant personal
best times, and Canadians  in particular
did exceptionally well.‰Û 

MEN

NAME	TIME	COUNTRY
1.          El Hassan EL ABBASSI	27:36.6	Morocco
2.          Adugna BIKILA	27:37.3	Ethiopia
3.          Geoffrey MUTAI	27:38.4	Kenya
4.          Najim EL QADY	27:41.9	Morocco
5.          Edwin KIPYEGO	28:21.8	Kenya
6.          Shadrack BIWOTT	28:55.5	USA
7.          Ahmed BADAY	28:57.7	Morocco
8.          Kelly WIEBE	29:22.0	Canada
9.          Martin DENT	29:49.0	Australia
10.       Edwin KAITANY	29:59.5	Kenya

WOMEN

NAME	TIME	COUNTRY
1.        1. Malika ASSAHAH	31:45.7	Morocco
2.        2. Firehiwot DADO	31:48.2	Ethiopia
3.        3.  Mary DAVIES	32:08.4	New Zealand
4.        4. Hellen JEMUTAI	32:12.8	Kenya
5.        5. Juliet CHEKWEL	32:38.1	Uganda
6.        6. Lanni MARCHANT	32:45.8	Canada
7.        7. Krista DUCHENE	32:51.9	Canada
8.        8. Joyce CHEPKIRUI	33:00.2	Kenya
9.        9. Natasha FRASER	33:35.0	Canada
10.      10. Rkia EL MOUKIM	33:57.0	Morocco

–30– 

About the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend

The 2012 Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend welcomed more than 42,600 participants
in six races, including the Marathon, the Half-Marathon, the 10K, HTG Sports
5K, 2K and Y Kids Marathon. The Ottawa Marathon and Ottawa 10K are both
designated Silver Label IAAF events by the International Amateur Athletic
Federation (IAAF). Run Ottawa, the organization behind the Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend, is dedicated to promoting the sport
of running and enhancing the health and well–being of our community by organizing distinctive world–class and local races, and managing an
active, membership-based running club. Information: www.runottawa.ca.