I think Belgian runner Marleen Renders will have difficulties competing
for WC half marathon gold after her recent Paris marathon, but the
organisation seems optimistic...
Regards, LS

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
International Association of Athletics Federations
Association Internationale des Fédérations d’Athlétisme

CAN RENDERS FOLLOW ROUSSEAU’S GOLDEN RULE IN BRUSSELS?
30 April 2002

Monte-Carlo – When the 11th IAAF World Half Marathon Championships are
staged in Brussels this Sunday 5 May, it will
be the second time that this particular World Athletic Series event will
have been hosted by Belgium’s capital city.

On the 3 October 1993, during the second edition of the World Half
Marathon Championships, a Belgium athlete
captured the men’s gold to the delight of the local crowd.

The master of Brussels that day was Vincent Rousseau, then a 31year old
Belgium army corporal, who took his place in
road race history after a career littered by many disappointing
performances on the track. Rousseau possessed amazing
versatility, since he was a 3:36 1500m man who could also run 5000m in
13:10 and 10,000m in 27:23 but it was his sprint
victory on 3 October 1993, in a national record of 61:06, that saw him
breakthough into world class.

Belgium has two good medal chances for the 2002 Championship as well,
Mohammed Mourhit, twice a World Cross
Country Champion, in the men’s race and national record holder Marleen
Renders in the women’s contest.

Currently in brilliant form, Renders won the recent Paris Marathon with
a near solo effort in a new personal best of
2:23:05 on 7 April, beating her previous best (2:23:43) which she set
when winning the 2000 Paris title.

Renders also won the 1995 Antwerp and 1998 Berlin Marathons, has a World
Half Marathon history which nearly
stretches as far back as Rousseau’s win, with a 7th place finish in 1994
and 13th in 1995.

Renders recently set a new personal best at half marathon with 1:08:56
in the Hague on 23 March 2002, when finishing a
close second behind Kenya’s Lenah Cheriyot (1:08:54) who is in the
Kenyan team for Brussels.

Like Rousseau, Renders has a versatile running pedigree. She is a former
World junior record holder at 10,000m, has
run 5000m in 15:19 and 10,000m in 31:03.

The question this Sunday will be whether Renders opts for Rousseau’s
“wait and see” philosophy counting on a final
sprint or opts for a solo effort, similar to her run in Paris. Whatever
Renders’ decision it is certain that she, along with
Mohammed Mourhit will offer Belgium her best hope of medal honours, when
a record 64 countries take to the streets of
Brussels for the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships.