Tirunesh Dibaba
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| Olympic medal record | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Women's Athletics | |||
| Bronze | 2004 Athens | 5000 m | |
Tirunesh Dibaba (born June 1, 1985) is an Ethiopian long distance track athlete.
Born in the village of Chefe, Tirunesh Dibaba is the cousin of the two-time Olympic, and world champion 10,000 m runner Derartu Tulu. Tirunesh was the 4th of 6 children and was raised in the high-altitude Arsi Zone of the Oromia Region. She moved to the capital, Addis Ababa, in 2000 and at the age of 14 began her athletics career.
Dibaba is part of an athletic family, with older sister Ejegayehu also making her mark on the international stage and brother Dejene marked as a future star.
[edit] International Performances
Dibaba's first fully-international outdoor track event was the 2001 World Athletics Championships. Running at the age of 15, she finished 5th in the 5,000 m.
Dibaba's most prestigious performances so far have come in the world championships athletics events of 2003 and 2005. Dibaba won the 5,000 m in a sprint finish against Marta Dominguez of Spain and Edith Masai of Kenya. At the 2005 championships, Dibaba produced a blistering finish to out-sprint compatriot Berhane Adere and her own sister Ejegayehu.
At the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Dibaba was beaten into third place by Meseret Defar of Ethiopia and Isabella Ochichi of Kenya. The result was considered by some to be a disappointment but at 19, she still became the youngest ever medallist for Ethiopia at the Olympics. At the 2005 World Athletics Championships, Dibaba defeated Defar in a sprint finish having led much earlier than usual. The win ensured that Dibaba became the first ever female athlete to win both the 5,000 m and 10,000 m in the same championship. In 2006 she won five out of six Golden League events (5,000 m) in the same season, which earned her a total of $83,333.
A major feature of Dibaba's running style is an incredible sprint finish. During the final lap of the 10,000 m in 2005, Dibaba was clocked over the closing 400 m in 58.33 seconds. Dibaba is not known for taking the lead in a race until the final lap.
Dibaba is also a remarkably successful cross country runner; she has four IAAF World Cross Country Championships victories, including one junior title (Lausanne, 2003), one short course title (Saint-Galmier, 2005), and two long course titles (Saint-Galmier, 2005, and Fukuoka, 2006).
