Bekele’s assault on 3000m World record tops a stellar programme in Birmingham - preview

Birmingham, UK – Kenenisa Bekele is aiming for his third World record at Birmingham’s National Indoor Arena when he tops the bill for Saturday’s Aviva Grand Prix, the eighth of nine IAAF Indoor Permit meetings in 2010.

The Ethiopian has set World records in the 5000m and 2000m – along with a World best for Two-miles - in this stadium over the last six years, but this time he is targeting one of the toughest of the lot – Daniel Komen’s 3000m mark of 7:24.90 set back in 1998. Bekele won his only World indoor title at this distance in 2006 and his personal best from 2007 is the third quickest ever behind Komen and Haile Gebrselassie, but at 7:30.51 that is nearly six seconds short of his goal.