Hellen Obiri, a Kenyan middle-distance runner will on Saturday compete in the Northern Ireland International Cross Country event that will be held in Dundonald.
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This is according to the meeting organizer John Allen in a statement on Tuesday terming Obiri as a star athlete who has shown the versatility to beat the best in the world over either track or cross country.
“While the International Cross Country here has always attracted classy athletes from abroad it is particularly gratifying that we have got the services of such a star athlete as Hellen Obiri especially given the ongoing difficulties created by Covid-19 concerning international travel,” said meeting organizer John Allen.
“With her win in the last World Cross, Hellen has shown that she has the versatility to beat the best in the world over either track or cross country.”
This will not only be of great importance to her career but also a big boost for the meeting which will take place at the Billy Neill Country Park.
The Northern Ireland International Cross Country is an annual cross country running meeting which takes place every January in Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is one of the IAAF’s cross country permit meetings, as well as being part of the UK Cross Challenge tour. Previous winners include Paula Radcliffe, Paul Tergat and Steve Ovett.
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Obiri won the World Cross Country title when that event was last held in 2019.
She also won 5,000m gold at the past two World Championships and took silver over the distance at the Tokyo Olympics behind Dutch star Sifan Hassan.
Her performance in Tokyo matched her silver medal at the Rio Games in 2016 and her last run in the UK saw her winning the Great North Run in September.
Star performers who have competed at the Northern Ireland event since it began in 1977 include Steve Ovett, John Treacy, Million Wolde, Ismael Kirui, Paula Radcliffe, and Catherina McKiernan.
She is currently the 5000 meters champion after winning gold in the 2017 World Championships in London. She successfully defended the title at the 2019 World Championships, in Doha, setting a new championship record. Obiri is also the silver medalist from the 2016 and 2020 Summer Olympics over the same distance (5000 meters). She won the 3000 meters race event at the 2012 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Turkey.
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She holds the Kenyan National Record for the mile, 3000 meters and 5000 meters events.
On 30 March 2019, she won the women’s senior race at the IAAF World Cross Country Championship. The event took place in Aarhus, Denmark. She won the 10.2 km race in a time of 36:14.
Obiri was cited as one of the Top 100 most influential Africans by New African magazine in 2017.
She represented Kenya at the 2020 Summer Olympics where she won the silver medal in the 5000 meters event, finishing behind Sifan Hassan.
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