BAA 10km 2012
New Zealand distance runner Kimberley Smith showed great form leading up to the London Olympic Games marathon winning the BAA 10km road race in a record breaking 31m 36s.
From the start Smith stuck with the group of elite women which included Ethiopia’s Aheza Kiros. They shared the pace through 5km in 15m 58s, Kiros then pushed the pace with Smith sticking to her. Smith then surged at 6km made a break and went on for the victory.
“Definitely going out a little easier helped, I kind of just sat in for the first 5km and then Kiros pushed the fourth mile a little bit and I went with her. I thought she was tiring a little bit so I surged a little bit and dropped her. I like to run alone and push on so that kind of suited me,” said Smith.
The 30 year old from Providence Rhode Island cut 22 seconds off Kenyan Caroline Kilel race record set in the inaugural event last year. Smith was second last year in 32m 8s. Smith was just three seconds outside Anne Hannam’s New Zealand 10km road record set in Kentucky in October 1988.
Kiros was second in 31m 57s with the 2012 Boston marathon champion Sharon Cherop third in 32m 3s. Kilel, last year’s Boston marathon champion, was fifth in 32m 40s. Smith, who leads the BAA distance medley leader board with a cumulative time of 47m 3s, 15 seconds better than Kiros, will compete in the third and final race in the series, the Boston half marathon, on 7 October.
Geoffrey Mutai of Kenya won the men’s race in 27m 29s.
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