By Chris Chavez
November 1, 2024
Ethiopia’s Tsigie Gebreselama and Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich have signed on with Grand Slam Track as Racers ahead of the professional track league’s inaugural season in 2025. Gebreselama has a sub-30-minute 10,000m PB and boasts an impressive resume against top-tier international competition. Ngetich is the second-fastest women’s half marathoner in history, and the world record holder at 10K on the roads – in that performance she recorded a 5K split equal to the world record, as well.
Here’s what you need to know:
– Gebreselama and Ngetich are the first two athletes signed to the “long distance” category on the women’s side. They will contest the 3000m and 5000m at each of the four Slams.
Who is Tsigie Gebreselama?
– Gebreselama has been one of Ethiopia’s rising stars and spends a bit of her time training in Boulder with members of the On Athletics Club since she is also sponsored by the Swiss sportswear brand.
– She earned silver at the 2023 World Cross Country Championships.
– Gebreselama drew attention at the start of this year’s outdoor track season by winning Sound Running’s The Ten in 29:48.34, which puts her at No. 13 on the all-time list and No. 6 on the Ethiopian all-time list at just 24 years old. She was the Ethiopian Trials runner-up and then went on to finish 10th at the Paris Olympics in 30:54.57.
Kevin Morris / @KevMoFoto
– At 5000m, she ran a personal best of 14:18.76 to win at the Prefontaine Classic and also took third at the Zurich Diamond League in 14:39.05. She was ninth in the Diamond League final in 14:49.79.
– She has a 3000m personal best of 8:24.40 from a third place finish at this summer’s Lausanne Diamond League.
– She is coming off a fifth place finish at the Valencia Half in 1:05:18. Her personal best is 1:05:14 from her victory in February’s RAK Half.
– “I thrive on competition and Grand Slam Track is a series of races for athletes to push their limits," Gebreselama said in a press release. “It's an incredible opportunity to challenge myself against the best in the world and perform in front of passionate fans. I can't wait to feel the energy of the crowd and be part of a show they'll never forget.”
Who is Agnes Ngetich?
- Ngetich burst into the global running spotlight with her bronze-medal performance at the 2023 World Cross Country Championship and then went on to break the women’s 10km road world record by a staggering 28 seconds with a 28:46 in Valencia this past January. She crossed the 5K mark in 14:13, equaling the 5K world record en route.
– However, her track personal bests are only 14:36.70 for 5000m and 31:34.83. She was planning to race the 10,000m for the Kenyan Olympic team selection race at this summer’s Prefontaine Classic and flew to Eugene, Oregon, for it but withdrew due to injury on race day. She plans to return to the track in 2025 with the goal of competing at the World Championships in Tokyo. She was sixth at the 2023 World Championships 10,000m final in Budapest.
– This past weekend, Ngetich clocked a 1:03:04 for the second-fastest women’s half marathon performance in history.
– “Joining Grand Slam Track has ignited even more fire within me,” Ngetich in a press release. “The competition is fierce, the atmosphere will be electric, and the possibilities are endless. I always dreamed of competing at the highest level, and joining Grand Slam Track is the next step in that dream. Especially as I can do this on track now and in a way that I can plan my season properly. I'm excited to race against the fastest women in the world and inspire the next generation to dream big.”
Who Is Missing?
Grand Slam has stated its goal is for each Racer group to be comprised of the fastest and most decorated athletes in their respective disciplines. For female distance runners, that would mean adding two names like Olympic champion and world record holder Beatrice Chebet, 5000m Olympic silver medalist Faith Kipyegon, 10,000m World champion Gudaf Tsegay, distance running GOAT Sifan Hassan, or 10,000m Olympic silver medalist and 5000m Olympic fourth place finisher Nadia Battocletti. None of those five aforementioned athletes
From an American perspective, the top candidates to fill this Race group would be Elise Cranny, Karissa Schweizer, Weini Kelati and Parker Valby. Her excellent Olympic showing aside, Valby is particularly intriguing within the context of GST as she has recent experience in the 48 hour, 3000m/5000m double – she won both at the NCAA Championships last year.
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Chris Chavez
Chris Chavez launched CITIUS MAG in 2016 as a passion project while working full-time for Sports Illustrated. He covered the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro and grew his humble blog into a multi-pronged media company. He completed all six World Marathon Majors and is an aspiring sub-five-minute miler.
