By Feverpitch Reporter and Agencies
Augustine Choge is the clear favourite on a historic track that has witnessed some of the greatest performances by many supreme distance runners of all-time at today’s Dream Mile at Oslo’s Bislett Games.
Choge has had a stellar start to the 2009 season having run two of the three world’s fastest times this year in the 1500m.
The rising star won at the first IAAF Golden League meeting of the season in Berlin, clocking a world best 3:29.47. He edged his close friend and training partner, Haron Keitany in a duel to the finish that saw Keitany come up short by 73-one-hundredths of a second. Choge also came frustratingly close to breaking Said Aouita’s 3:29.46 meet record set 24 years ago.
Choge also narrowly defeated Keitany on May 8 at the Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix in Doha, running a fast 3:30.88 and winning by only two-one-hundredths of a second.
In June at the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava, Czech Republic, the five-foot, four-inch Choge displayed his true versatility on the track, dropping down to the 800 meters to run against another rising young star, David Rudisha (20). While Rudisha won in 1:44.09, Choge set a personal best in the event finishing fourth at 1:44.86.
"I look at this as a way to improve my speed," said Choge in an interview on the track after the race in Ostrava. "My goal is to run the 1500 meters at the World Championships."
Choge hopes to create another good feeling in Oslo this evening the second stop of the AF Golden League series.
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