Yet another first place. Aregu Sisay, the Ethiopian
housekeeper, is raking them in at the moment. 10 kilometers in Naqoura (39:46),
5K in Jbeil (18:31), both in March, the 5000 meters at Jomhour and at AUB
(19:10) in April, and this morning the 10K in Ain Mreiseh race, in a mere 39:32.
With a serious bronchitis, no less. Then there was the ISF half marathon last
month (21K), in 1:29:34, in which she was narrowly beaten by a police woman,
Soujoud Salem, from Jordan. And there are still 2 big races coming up; one
being the 5K women race from the Beirut Marathon in June.
We’ll be adding yet another shelf in her room for her trophies. She’s worrying about how she’s going to get them all home: Ethiopian Airlines has a 40 kilos luggage limit. All these cups stand on a marble pedestal, and she’s well beyond the 40 kilos by now. And she’s not counting medals.
The world record for 5K stands at 14:46 , and for 5,000 meters at 14:11. The world record for the 10K and the 10,000 meters are at 30:21 and 29:31 respectively. There’s a difference between running on the road (K) and on the track (meters), hence the different times, I was explained by her trainer.
You have to keep in mind that
she has no knowledge (and neither do I) of what she should eat in order to
improve her running, so there’s no balanced diet. Her trainer finally convinced
her to lay off on the diet-Coke, but that is as far as it gets.
Another (huge) factor is that
she is a working woman; she trains and runs in between her job, which – like
any housewife can tell you – is strenuous and never-ending. This week she
picked up a cough that has been passed on by the other household members, and
has not been feeling well most of the time.
She can be pretty stubborn at times as well, and good advice – further complicated by a language barrier - is not always heeded.
So all things considered, that’s
pretty awesome. But there is even more hope on the horizon. Her club, Inter-Lebanon,
has decided to dispatch her to the French Pyrenees this summer for a month long
intensive training camp, together with the other top runners of her club. Then
in October, there’s the Amsterdam marathon in Holland, and from then on, we’ll
see. Pretty good for a country girl who, until she came to Lebanon, never ran.
I am – and I’ve said it many
times - in awe of the runners’ community in Lebanon. It’s a group of people
from all walks of life, all religions and (slowly but surely becoming one of) all
social groups as well. They merge wonderfully well, because all that matters is
the chronometer. “What was your time?” is the first thing they ask each other at
the finish line. It’s a good mixture of civilians and military people as well.
The Lebanese army’s got some good runners; most of the top male runners come
out of the army.
The fact that they’re up and
about at 6:30 in downtown on a Sunday morning indicates a pretty healthy life
style as well. I’d be running too if it weren’t for the fact that I’ve got like
zero discipline.
She's 23, still too young to be a top runner for marathons, they tell me. Marathon runners peak much later. But she's got the genes. One day, when she will be running New York, Boston and Rotterdam, you can say: I've know about this lady all along, because I have followed her career from the start. Don't forget; you read it here first.
2 comments:
All she needed was the opportunity to unshackle her potential and it all started with you.
Very well done Aregu Sisay for your winning the races you are running and also well done for Sietske for your continuing support for Aregu.
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