Running News Daily

Fast times at the Meta Time Trials in Malaga

Eilish McColgan has set a UK 5km record of 14:45 at the ASICS META:TIME:TRIALS in Malaga.

She bettered her own 5km mark of 14:48 from the UAE back in February and Paula Radcliffe’s 14:51, set at Hyde Park in 2003, while McColgan is also close behind Sifan Hassan’s European 5km record of 14:44.

Fast times were the target and many were achieved at Sunday's META: TIME : TRIALS by ASICS, a World Athletics Label event in Malaga, with Ethiopia’s Tsegay Kidanu quickest in the men’s 10km with 27:14 and Britain’s Eilish McColgan among the national record-breakers in the 5km.

The event was specially organised to showcase the new METASPEED™+ Series footwear and McColgan, the 2018 European 5000m silver medallist, was among the athletes to go quicker than ever before. She led the women’s 5km in 14:45 to improve the official British record and finish ahead of Kenya’s Naomi Chepngeno with 14:57.

In the men’s race, Olympic finalist Mohamed Katir ran 13:20 to miss Jimmy Gressier’s European record by just two seconds. Felix Bour of France was second in 13:41.

Kidanu impressed on his 10km road race debut, running 27:14 after passing half way in 13:42. That saw the 2019 world U20 cross country fifth-place finisher win by nine seconds ahead of Kenya’s Boniface Kibiwott with 27:23.

Kenya’s Vicoty Chepngeno, winner of the Houston Half Marathon in January, was this time racing over 10km and claimed top spot in 31:39, 16 seconds ahead of Sweden’s Sarah Lahti with 31:55.

Three athletes dipped under the hour in the men’s half marathon, led by Morocco’s Olympic marathon 11th place finisher Mohamed Reda El Aaraby with 59:54.

That saw him break the hour barrier for the first time, improving on his previous best of 1:00:17 set when finishing 13th the 2020 World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia.

Kenya’s Wilfred Kimitei and Alfred Kipchirchir were just two seconds behind him, both clocking 59:56, while their compatriot Vincent Ngetich clocked exactly an hour.

Ethiopia’s Yeshi Kalayu Chekole claimed a clear win in the women’s half marathon, running a PB of 1:07:30 to finish 38 seconds ahead of Kenya’s Sharon Kemboi with 1:08:08.