[ad_1]
Hannah Peters/Getty Images
Geordie Beamish clears the hurdle in the final of the 3000 metres steeplechase in Budapest on wednesday.
In his first season in the event New Zealand’s Geordie Beamish has finished fifth in the final of the 3000 metres steeplechase at the world athletics championships in Budapest on Wednesday (NZT).
The 26-year-old US-based athlete, in just his eighth steeplechase at the senior level, was predictably unable to match the pace of the leading contenders, but produced a withering final lap to storm home to a fifth-place finish in a quality time of 8 minutes 13.46 seconds.
That was just 0.2sec off his national record set earlier in the season and nearly 3 seconds faster than he ran in qualifying for the final.
World and Olympic champion Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco stormed to victory in 8:03.53, leaving world record-holder Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia in his dust as he came home for the silver in 8:05.44.
Kenya’s Abraham Kibiwot grabbed the bronze in 8:11.98.
Meanwhile both of New Zealand’s men’s 800 metres hopefuls failed to progress out of the heats, with Brad Mathas (1min 45.95) finishing fifth in his race, with the top three in each progressing, and James Preston (1:46.84) sixth.
They were both well off the pace of the non-automatic qualifiers with Poland’s Filip Ostrowski grabbing the final spot on 1:45.76.
[ad_2]