Athletics: Bekele's hat-trick confirms Ethiopia's world domination

History repeated itself here in the Ossegempark yesterday, but the result was anything but a farce. At the conclusion of the 32nd World Cross Country Championships, two facts of athletics life were confirmed - Ethiopia are the new Kenya, and nobody can beat their main man, Kenenisa Bekele.

The 21-year-old farmer's son from the Arsi Province that has provided Ethiopia with the outstanding talents of Haile Gebrselassie and Derartu Tulu maintained his domination of this event by concluding his third consecutive double yesterday, as he added the long-course gold medal to the one he had won over 4km on Saturday.

Bekele acknowledged that he could have done no less if he was not to incur the wrath of his countrymen who have seen him eclipse the excellence of the multiple Olympic champion and world-record holder Gebrselassie. "The whole of Ethiopia expects me to win at cross- country," he said before the championships started. "If I were to lose they would be angry. They would not understand."

The only thing the Ethiopian public need to understand now is that their runners have completed their takeover from Kenya at the peak of world distance running. Ethiopia finished these championships with five out of six team titles, and four of the six individual titles.

In taking the team gold in the men's long event, where Bekele was followed home by fellow countrymen Gebre-egziabher Gebremariam, last year's world junior champion, and Sileshi Sihine, Ethiopia ended one of the longest winning streaks in modern-day sport - Kenya had previously won the prize every year since 1985.

"Kenyans have dominated cross country running for 20 years, so this result is a cause for joy for ourselves and our country," Bekele said.

There was an inevitability about his victory over 12km yesterday after he and his colleagues moved clear of their last challenger, Kenya's world 5000m champion Eliud Kipchoge, with two of the five laps remaining. Bekele's rhythmic cadence remained unaltered on the twisting, muddy course as his two team-mates began to betray signs of human frailty on their faces as they slipped backwards.

It was a sight to behold - and it is unlikely to be repeated. Bekele announced afterwards that he would not seek any further doubles at these championships, even if the current two-day format is retained.

The International Association of Athletics Federation's Cross Country Commission meets today to consider whether to reduce the event to a single day, the format that applied until 1998. But their findings will be irrelevant to Bekele.

"I don't think I will attempt to win both again," he said. "If it remains at two days there may be other athletes who can do it, but I am happy with what I have achieved."

The British women's short-course team could also be happy after earning a bronze medal on Saturday despite the absence of the hamstrung Paula Radcliffe, with Kathy Butler (11th), Liz Yelling (13th), Louise Damen (22nd) and Natalie Harvey (28th) filling the top four scoring places. Jon Brown, too, had a satisfactory outing in yesterday's long-course race, finishing 19th, the second highest European.

The women's long course individual title - which Radcliffe had hoped to secure for a third time before she injured herself last Sunday week - went to Benita Johnson, who claimed Australia's first medal at these championships.

Britain could lay a small claim to some of the glory, however, as the 24-year-old world half-marathon bronze medallist trains in Richmond Park, and is a member of Britain's oldest cross country club, Thames Hare and Hounds.

Johnson had planned to run in yesterday's short-course race, won by Kenya's Edith Masai, but not before she had celebrated Saturday's win by sampling "some of those famous Belgian beers". For some reason, she didn't appear on the starting line.