Surprises in Birmingham

If you managed to watch the Norwich Union Birmingham Grand Prix, there were lots of surprises. First. Meseret Defar did not make it to the starting line. She fell victim to food poisioning, according to the BBC commentators. Next, the race distance was changed to 3K instead of 2-miles. Finally, Kara Goucher was not a factor in the race. The event was won by Ethiopia's Gelete Burka in 8:31.94. Burka was on world record pace with a 4:11 opening 1,500 meters, but slowed over the final laps.