5000 metres at the World Athletics Championships

The 5000 metres at the World Championships in Athletics has been contested by men since the inaugural edition in 1983 and by women since 1995. Women competed over 3000 metres from 1980 to 1993, in line with championship standards of the time. It is the shortest long-distance running event at the competition, the 10,000 metres and marathon being the other two such events on the programme. It is the second most prestigious title in the discipline after the 5000 metres at the Olympics. The competition format typically has a two-race heats stage that leads directly to a final between fifteen athletes.

5000 metres
at the World Athletics Championships
Women competing in the 2013 final
Overview
GenderMen and women
Years heldMen: 19832023
Women: 19952023
Championship record
Men12:52.79 Eliud Kipchoge (2003)
Women14:26.72 Hellen Obiri (2019)
Reigning champion
Men Jakob Ingebrigtsen (NOR)
Women Faith Kipyegon (KEN)

The championship records for the event are 12:52.79 minutes for men, set by Eliud Kipchoge in 2003, and 14:26.72 minutes for women, set by Hellen Obiri in 2019.[1] The world record has never been broken or equalled at the competition by either men or women, reflecting the lack of pacemaking and athletes' more tactical approach to championship races.[2] Similarly the women's 3000 metres world record was not improved during its 13-year history. The championship record for that event was set on its last appearance in 1993, by Yunxia Qu with a time of 8:28.71 minutes.[1]

The women's 3000 m was among the first ever IAAF World Championship events as it was one of two designated events at the 1980 World Championships in Athletics (alongside women's 400 metres hurdles), which was held after the International Olympic Committee refused to add the women's event to the Olympic programme that year.[3]

Mo Farah of Great Britain is the only athlete to win this title three times, between 2011 and 2015. Meseret Defar is the most successful female athlete of the event, having won two world championship titles and reached the medal podium five times consecutively from 2005 to 2013. Vivian Cheruiyot is the next most successful with two golds and one silver. Six other athletes have won the 5000 m championship twice: Ismael Kirui, Muktar Edris and Jakob Ingebrigtsen on the men's side, and Gabriela Szabo, Tirunesh Dibaba and Hellen Obiri on the women's side. Tatyana Dorovskikh was also a double champion in the women's 3000 m, and the only woman to win multiple medals over that distance.

Kenya is the most successful nation in the discipline, with seven wins in the men's distance and five in the women's, and has the highest medal total at 30. Ethiopia is the next best performer with six women's titles, three men's titles and 30 medals overall. Morocco, Great Britain, Romania, Ireland and Norway are the other nations to have won multiple gold medals in the 5000 m. The Soviet Union won the most 3000 m medals during its run, with two titles and four medals. China produced a medal sweep in 1993. Eamonn Coghlan and Jakob Ingebrigtsen are the only non-African-born men to win the 5000 m.

Distinction Male Female
Athlete Age Date Athlete Age Date
Youngest champion   Ismael Kirui (KEN) 18 years, 177 days 16 Aug 1993   Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH) 17 years, 333 days 30 Aug 2003
Youngest medalist   Ismael Kirui (KEN) 18 years, 177 days 16 Aug 1993   Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH) 17 years, 333 days 30 Aug 2003
Youngest finalist   Selemon Barega (ETH) 17 years, 204 days 12 Aug 2017   Sally Barsosio (KEN) 17 years, 144 days 12 Aug 1995
Youngest participant   Abdullah Al-Qwabani (YEM) 16 years, 177 days 26 Aug 2015   Wisam El-Bekheet (PLE) 14 years, 281 days 9 Aug 2001
Oldest champion   Bernard Lagat (USA) 32 years, 264 days 2 Sep 2007   Hellen Obiri (KEN) 29 years, 296 days 5 Oct 2019
Oldest medalist   Bernard Lagat (USA) 36 years, 266 days 4 Sep 2011   Edith Masai (KEN) 36 years, 148 days 30 Aug 2003
Oldest finalist   Bernard Lagat (USA) 38 years, 247 days 16 Aug 2013   Teresa Récio (ESP) 38 years, 35 days 11 Aug 2001
Oldest participant   Bernard Lagat (USA) 38 years, 247 days 16 Aug 2013   Nora Rocha (MEX) 39 years, 254 days 29 Aug 2007

Doping

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The World Championship 5000 metres was unaffected by doping until the 2001, when men's silver medallist Ali Saïdi-Sief of Algeria failed his post-race urine test due to nandrolone traces. He was stripped of his medal.[5] Only one other competitor has been disqualified from the 5000 m for doping: Turkey's Alemitu Bekele Degfa, whose unsuccessful run in the heats in 2011 was annulled retrospectively after biological passport irregularities.[6][7]

Among those failing tests outside the competition was 1983 men's bronze medallist Martti Vainio, who admitted to using testosterone supplements and failed a test for steroids in 1984.[8] Marta Domínguez, the women's runner-up in 2001 and 2003, was banned later in her career for abnormalities in her biological passport readings.[9] Additionally, 2023 silver medalist Mohamed Katir was suspended in February 2024 for whereabouts failures.[10][11][12]

In the women's 3000 m, no athletes were banned during World Championships competition but 1983 medallist Tatyana Kazankina ended her career in 1984 by refusing a drug test,[13] while the 1987 and 1991 world champion for the distance Tetyana Dorovskikh also ended her career with a drugs ban in 1993.[14] The 1983 women's champion Mary Decker was another banned for doping later in her career.[15]

Medalists

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Championships Gold Silver Bronze
1983 Helsinki
details
  Eamonn Coghlan (IRL)   Werner Schildhauer (GDR)   Martti Vainio (FIN)
1987 Rome
details
  Saïd Aouita (MAR)   Domingos Castro (POR)   Jack Buckner (GBR)
1991 Tokyo
details
  Yobes Ondieki (KEN)   Fita Bayisa (ETH)   Brahim Boutayeb (MAR)
1993 Stuttgart
details
  Ismael Kirui (KEN)   Haile Gebrselassie (ETH)   Fita Bayisa (ETH)
1995 Gothenburg
details
  Ismael Kirui (KEN)   Khalid Boulami (MAR)   Shem Kororia (KEN)
1997 Athens
details
  Daniel Komen (KEN)   Khalid Boulami (MAR)   Tom Nyariki (KEN)
1999 Seville
details
  Salah Hissou (MAR)   Benjamin Limo (KEN)   Mohammed Mourhit (BEL)
2001 Edmonton
details
  Richard Limo (KEN)   Million Wolde (ETH)   John Kibowen (KEN)
2003 Saint-Denis
details
  Eliud Kipchoge (KEN)   Hicham El Guerrouj (MAR)   Kenenisa Bekele (ETH)
2005 Helsinki
details
  Benjamin Limo (KEN)   Sileshi Sihine (ETH)   Craig Mottram (AUS)
2007 Osaka
details
  Bernard Lagat (USA)   Eliud Kipchoge (KEN)   Moses Kipsiro (UGA)
2009 Berlin
details
  Kenenisa Bekele (ETH)   Bernard Lagat (USA)   James Kwalia (QAT)
2011 Daegu
details
  Mo Farah (GBR)   Bernard Lagat (USA)   Dejen Gebremeskel (ETH)
2013 Moscow
details
  Mo Farah (GBR)   Hagos Gebrhiwet (ETH)   Isiah Koech (KEN)
2015 Beijing
details
  Mo Farah (GBR)   Caleb Ndiku (KEN)   Hagos Gebrhiwet (ETH)
2017 London
details
  Muktar Edris (ETH)   Mo Farah (GBR)   Paul Chelimo (USA)
2019 Doha
details
  Muktar Edris (ETH)   Selemon Barega (ETH)   Mohammed Ahmed (CAN)
2022 Eugene
details
  Jakob Ingebrigtsen (NOR)   Jacob Krop  (KEN)   Oscar Chelimo (UGA)
2023 Budapest
details
  Jakob Ingebrigtsen (NOR)   Mohamed Katir (ESP)   Jacob Krop  (KEN)

Multiple medalists

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Rank Athlete Nation Period Gold Silver Bronze Total
1 Mo Farah   Great Britain (GBR) 2011–2015 3 1 0 4
2 Ismael Kirui   Kenya (KEN) 1993–1995 2 0 0 2
Muktar Edris   Ethiopia (ETH) 2017–2019 2 0 0 2
Jakob Ingebrigtsen   Norway (NOR) 2022-2023 2 0 0 2
5 Bernard Lagat   United States (USA) 2007–2011 1 2 0 3
6 Benjamin Limo   Kenya (KEN) 2003–2009 1 1 0 2
7 Kenenisa Bekele   Ethiopia (ETH) 1999–2005 1 0 1 2
8 Khalid Boulami   Morocco (MAR) 1995–1997 0 2 0 2
9 Fita Bayisa   Ethiopia (ETH) 1991–1993 0 1 1 2
Hagos Gebrhiwet   Ethiopia (ETH) 2013-2015 0 1 1 2
Jacob Krop   Kenya (KEN) 2022-2023 0 1 1 2

Medalists by country

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Rank Nation Gold Silver Bronze Total
1   Kenya (KEN) 7 4 5 16
2   Ethiopia (ETH) 3 6 4 13
3   Great Britain (GBR) 3 1 1 5
4   Morocco (MAR) 2 3 1 6
5   Norway (NOR) 2 0 0 2
6   United States (USA) 1 2 1 4
7   Ireland (IRL) 1 0 0 1
8   East Germany (GDR) 0 1 0 1
  Portugal (POR) 0 1 0 1
  Spain (ESP) 0 1 0 1
11   Uganda (UGA) 0 0 2 2
12   Australia (AUS) 0 0 1 1
  Belgium (BEL) 0 0 1 1
  Finland (FIN) 0 0 1 1
  Qatar (QAT) 0 0 1 1

Women's 5000 metres

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Championships Gold Silver Bronze
1995 Gothenburg
details
  Sonia O'Sullivan (IRL)   Fernanda Ribeiro (POR)   Zahra Ouaziz (MAR)
1997 Athens
details
  Gabriela Szabo (ROU)   Roberta Brunet (ITA)   Fernanda Ribeiro (POR)
1999 Seville
details
  Gabriela Szabo (ROU)   Zahra Ouaziz (MAR)   Ayelech Worku (ETH)
2001 Edmonton
details
  Olga Yegorova (RUS)   Marta Dominguez (ESP)   Ayelech Worku (ETH)
2003 Saint-Denis
details
  Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH)   Marta Dominguez (ESP)   Edith Masai (KEN)
2005 Helsinki
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  Tirunesh Dibaba (ETH)   Meseret Defar (ETH)   Ejegayehu Dibaba (ETH)
2007 Osaka
details
  Meseret Defar (ETH)   Vivian Cheruiyot (KEN)   Priscah Jepleting Cherono (KEN)
2009 Berlin
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  Vivian Cheruiyot (KEN)   Sylvia Jebiwott Kibet (KEN)   Meseret Defar (ETH)
2011 Daegu
details
  Vivian Cheruiyot (KEN)   Sylvia Jebiwott Kibet (KEN)   Meseret Defar (ETH)
2013 Moscow
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  Meseret Defar (ETH)   Mercy Cherono (KEN)   Almaz Ayana (ETH)
2015 Beijing
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  Almaz Ayana (ETH)   Senbere Teferi (ETH)   Genzebe Dibaba (ETH)
2017 London
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  Hellen Obiri (KEN)   Almaz Ayana (ETH)   Sifan Hassan (NED)
2019 Doha
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  Hellen Obiri (KEN)   Margaret Kipkemboi (KEN)   Konstanze Klosterhalfen (GER)
2022 Eugene
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  Gudaf Tsegay (ETH)   Beatrice Chebet (KEN)   Dawit Seyaum (ETH)
2023 Budapest
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  Faith Kipyegon (KEN)   Sifan Hassan (NED)   Beatrice Chebet (KEN)

Multiple medalists

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Rank Athlete Nation Period Gold Silver Bronze Total
1 Meseret Defar   Ethiopia (ETH) 2005–2013 2 1 2 5
2 Vivian Cheruiyot   Kenya (KEN) 2007–2011 2 1 0 3
3 Hellen Obiri   Kenya (KEN) 2017-2019 2 0 0 2
Gabriela Szabo   Romania (ROU) 1997–1999 2 0 0 2
Tirunesh Dibaba   Ethiopia (ETH) 2003–2005 2 0 0 2
6 Almaz Ayana   Ethiopia (ETH) 2013–2017 1 1 1 3
7 Marta Domínguez   Spain (ESP) 2001–2003 0 2 0 2
Sylvia Jebiwott Kibet   Kenya (KEN) 2001–2003 0 2 0 2
9 Sifan Hassan   Netherlands (NED) 2017-2023 0 1 1 2
Beatrice Chebet   Kenya (KEN) 2022-2023 0 1 1 2
Fernanda Ribeiro   Portugal (POR) 1995–1997 0 1 1 2
Zahra Ouaziz   Morocco (MAR) 1995–1999 0 1 1 2
13 Ayelech Worku   Ethiopia (ETH) 1999–2001 0 0 2 2

Medalists by country

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Rank Nation Gold Silver Bronze Total
1   Ethiopia (ETH) 6 3 8 17
2   Kenya (KEN) 5 6 3 14
3   Romania (ROU) 2 0 0 2
4   Ireland (IRL) 1 0 0 1
  Russia (RUS) 1 0 0 1
6   Spain (ESP) 0 2 0 2
7   Morocco (MAR) 0 1 1 2
  Netherlands (NED) 0 1 1 2
  Portugal (POR) 0 1 1 2
10   Italy (ITA) 0 1 0 1
11   Germany (GER) 0 0 1 1

Women's 3000 metres

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Championships Gold Silver Bronze
1980 Sittard
details
  Birgit Friedmann (FRG)   Karoline Nemetz (SWE)   Ingrid Kristiansen (NOR)
1983 Helsinki
details
  Mary Decker (USA)   Brigitte Kraus (FRG)   Tatyana Kovalenko-Kazankina (URS)
1987 Rome
details
  Tetyana Samolenko (URS)   Maricica Puică (ROU)   Ulrike Bruns (GDR)
1991 Tokyo
details
  Tetyana Dorovskikh (URS)   Yelena Romanova (URS)   Susan Sirma (KEN)
1993 Stuttgart
details
  Qu Yunxia (CHN)   Zhang Linli (CHN)   Zhang Lirong (CHN)

Multiple medalists

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Rank Athlete Nation Period Gold Silver Bronze Total
1 Tatyana Dorovskikh   Soviet Union (URS) 1987–1991 2 0 0 2

Medalists by country

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Rank Nation Gold Silver Bronze Total
1   Soviet Union (URS) 2 1 1 4
2   China (CHN) 1 1 1 3
3   West Germany (FRG) 1 1 0 2
4   United States (USA) 1 0 0 1
5   Romania (ROU) 0 1 0 1
  Sweden (SWE) 0 1 0 1
7   East Germany (GDR) 0 0 1 1
  Kenya (KEN) 0 0 1 1
  Norway (NOR) 0 0 1 1

Finishing times

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Top ten fastest world championships times (5000 metres)

Championship record progression

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Men's 5000 metres World Championships record progression[18]
Time Athlete Nation Year Round Date
13:43.36 Markus Ryffel    Switzerland (SUI) 1983 First round 10 August
13:32.34 Markus Ryffel    Switzerland (SUI) 1983 Semi-final 12 August
13:31.40 Dmitriy Dmitriyev   Soviet Union (URS) 1983 Semi-final 12 August
13:28.53 Eamon Coghlan   Ireland (IRL) 1983 Final 14 August
13:22.68 John Ngugi   Kenya (KEN) 1987 Heats 4 September
13:14.45 Yobes Ondieki   Kenya (KEN) 1991 Final 1 September
13:02.75 Ismael Kirui   Kenya (KEN) 1993 Final 16 August
12:58.12 Salah Hissou   Morocco (MAR) 1999 Final 28 August
12:52.79 Eliud Kipchoge   Kenya (KEN) 2003 Final 31 August

Women 5000 metres

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Women's 5000 metres World Championships record progression[19]
Time Athlete Nation Year Round Date
15:36.39 Elena Fidatov   Romania (ROU) 1995 Heats 10 August
15:13.88 Sonia O'Sullivan   Ireland (IRL) 1995 Heats 10 August
14:46.47 Sonia O'Sullivan   Ireland (IRL) 1995 Final 10 August
14:41.82 Gabriela Szabo   Romania (ROU) 1999 Final 27 August
14:38.59 Tirunesh Dibaba   Ethiopia (ETH) 2005 Final 13 August
14:26.83 Almaz Ayana   Ethiopia (ETH) 2015 Final 30 August
14:26.72 Hellen Obiri   Kenya (KEN) 2019 Final 5 October

Women 3000 metres

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Women's 3000 metres World Championships record progression[20]
Time Athlete Nation Year Round Date
9:04.7 Aurora Cunha   Portugal (POR) 1980 Heats 14 August
9:04.7 Birgit Friedmann   West Germany (FRG) 1980 Heats 14 August
8:48.05 Birgit Friedmann   West Germany (FRG) 1980 Heats 14 August
8:46.65 Svetlana Ulmasova   Soviet Union (URS) 1983 Heats 8 August
8:44.72 Tatyana Kazankina   Soviet Union (URS) 1983 Heats 8 August
8:34.62 Mary Decker   United States (USA) 1983 Final 8 August
8:28.71 Qu Yunxia   China (CHN) 1993 Final 16 August

References

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  1. ^ a b Championships Records. IAAF. Retrieved on 2015-07-12.
  2. ^ IAAF World Championships: IAAF Statistics Handbook Daegu 2011, pp. 595–6 (archived). IAAF. Retrieved on 2015-07-06.
  3. ^ Matthews, Peter (2012). Historical Dictionary of Track and Field (pg. 217). Scarecrow Press (eBook). Retrieved on 2013-09-08.
  4. ^ "World Athletics Championships - Budapest 23 Statistical Booklet" (PDF). www.worldathletics.org: 42–45.
  5. ^ Algerian stripped of silver medal. News24 AFP (2001-08-18). Retrieved on 2015-08-10.
  6. ^ Fuchs, Christian (2013-01-16). Alemitu Bekele verliert EM-Titel (in German). Leichathletik. Retrieved on 2015-08-10.
  7. ^ Butler 2013, p. 67–9.
  8. ^ (2004-11-05).Näin siinä kävi. Suomen Urheilulehti/A-lehdet. Retrieved on 2015-08-10.
  9. ^ O'Riordan, Ian (2013-05-23) . Sonia O’Sullivan’s Munich conqueror has biological passport anomalies. Irish Times. Retrieved on 2015-08-10.
  10. ^ Carveth, Jessy (2024-02-08). "Two-Time Word Medalist Mo Katir Suspended For Whereabouts Failure". Marathon Handbook. Retrieved 2024-02-16.
  11. ^ "KATIR BANNED FOR 'WHEREABOUTS FAILURES'" (PDF). Athletics Integrity Unit. 16 February 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Mohamed Katir: World 5,000m silver medallist given two-year ban for anti-doping rule violation". BBC News. 17 February 2024. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
  13. ^ Records raise doubts over the Orient excess. Herald Scotland (1993-09-13). Retrieved on 2015-08-10.
  14. ^ "O'Sullivan resigned to long wait in China doping probe". Reuters. 20 May 2016.
  15. ^ Rowbottom, Mike (1999-04-27). Athletics: Slaney doping ban upheld at IAAF hearing. Retrieved on 2015-08-08.
  16. ^ "Men's 5000m".
  17. ^ "Women's 5000m".
  18. ^ Main > Men, 5000 m > World Championships Records Progression. Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2015-07-07.
  19. ^ Main > Women, 5000 m > World Championships Records Progression. Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2015-07-07.
  20. ^ Main > Women, 3000 m > World Championships Records Progression. Track and Field Brinkster. Retrieved on 2015-07-07.

Bibliography

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