Posted: August 14, 2005

Athletics: Ramzi Completes Unprecedented Double

From David Monti

© 2005 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved RaceResultsWeekly.com

By Bob Ramsak

HELSINKI - In just his second season of elite international racing, Rashid Ramzi of Bahrain completed the first-ever middle distance double at a world athletics championship after his 1:44.24 victory in the 800 meters.

Fifth heading into the homestretch, the 25-year-old Moroccan native again displayed the kick that propelled him to the 1500 meter title by steadily moving through the field and into the lead for good some 40 meters from the finish.

"It was the first time I tried to do this double, and I thought I had the ability to do it," said Ramzi, whose feat was last accomplished at a major competition by New Zealand's Peter Snell at the 1964 Summer Olympic Games. "After winning the gold in the 1500, I wasn't sure about the 800. I knew it was going to be decided in the final straight and I was ready for that."

After Friday's semi-finals, Kenyan Wilfred Bungei, a perennial world leader in the event, warned that if the pace was relatively slow, "52 or 52.5," the 1500 specialists in the field would be a real threat. With Bungei in the lead, the tightly-knit pack reached the half in 52.48, with Ramzi and fierce-kicking Yuriy Borzakovskiy, the 2004 Olympic champion, bringing up the rear. Down the home straight, Borzakovskiy too moved past Kenyans Bungei and William Yiampoy to reach the line in 1:44.51 for his second consecutive silver medal.

"I made the same mistake here that I made in Paris," Borzakovskiy said. "I began my finish too early an had to catch up. I did the same thing tonight." Borzakovskiy said that he lost five days of training recently following the death of his grandmother two weeks ago. "At the beginning, I wasn't sure I'd get a medal at all."

"Yuriy has the best speed from 400 meters out and I was worried about him," Ramzi said. "So I was trying to do what Yuriy was doing." Ramzi's performance was his second personal best in three days. In his semi-final, he clocked 1:44.30.

Yiampoy, fourth in Edmonton four years ago, finished third in 1:44.55, the first podium finish for the 31-year-old. While Ramzi has surprised many here this week, Yiampoy said he wasn't at all surprised by the Bahraini.

"After his 1500, we were all expecting that he was the man to beat."

After running at or near the front for nearly 600 meters, Bungei faded to fourth (1:44.98), well ahead of defending champion Djabir Said-Guerni of Algeria (1:45.31).