Lagat Breaks U.S. 5K Record In Oslo
Solinsky sixth as two Americans break 13-minute barrier in the same race for the first time in history.
Former world champion and Olympic medalist Bernard Lagat ran 12:54.12 Friday night at the Exxon Mobil Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway to take two seconds off Dathan Ritzenhein’s less-than-a-year-old American record of 12:56.27 in the 5,000 meters. Lagat ran a five-second personal best to finish third in the event behind Ethiopians Imane Merga (12:53.81) and Tariku Bekele (12:53.97) in the third stop on this summer’s IAAF Diamond League tour.
Sixth across the finish line in the 5,000 on Friday was American 10,000-meter record holder Chris Solinsky, who took nearly 16 seconds off his previous personal best with a 12:56.66 clocking, making him just the fifth American ever to break 13 minutes for the distance behind Lagat, Ritzenhein, Matt Tegenkamp and Bob Kennedy, who first broke the barrier in 1996 by running 12:58.21 in Zurich. It was the first time in history two Americans have gone under 13 minutes in the same race.