Kiwi Beamish stuns tearful El Bakkali for world steeplechase gold / Photo: Yuichi YAMAZAKI - AFP
Kiwi Beamish stuns tearful El Bakkali for world steeplechase gold
New Zealand's Geordie Beamish produced a last-gasp spurt to edge defending two-time champion Soufiane El Bakkali for gold in the men's 3,000m steeplechase at the world championships in Tokyo on Monday.
Beamish left it late, sprinting through the crowded field to finally come alongside the Moroccan, who has also won the last two Olympic golds, and pinch a dramatic victory at the line.
The New Zealander, who was spiked in the heats that saw him fall to the track before recovering, clocked a winning time of 8min 33.88sec to halt El Bakkali's dominant streak on the global stage.
El Bakkali was seven-hundredths of a second adrift in second, while Kenya's Edmund Serem rounded out the podium (8:34.56).
The reactions of Beamish, the 2024 world indoor 1,500m champion, and El Bakkali could not have been further apart.
The Kiwi was left gasping in disbelief as he looked at the results on the giant screens while the Moroccan burst into inconsolable tears and collapsed to the floor.
L.Scott--EWJ
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