WHEN the world marathon record fell yesterday in Berlin, it set the seal on the awesome career of Haile Gebrselassie. The Ethiopian won in 2hr 04min 26sec, eclipsing the mark of his great Kenyan rival and friend, Paul Tergat, whose 2:04.55 on the same course had stood since 2003.
Having dropped out of the London Marathon this year, due to an allergy, Gebrselassie endured a crisis of confidence. He considered reverting to 10,000m, at which had won a catalogue of Olympic and world titles, and even talked of retirement. Yet this was the 24th world record of his career, making him the most prolific breaker of running records. His range is also unsurpassed.
The shortest of his world records was over 2000m (indoors in Birmingham), but he also won the world indoor 1500m title. The 34-year-old Gebrselassie received 50,000 for victory, a 50,000 bonus for the record, and a reported 250,000 appearance fee.
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