BEIJING (AP) – This world title came in a tactical race for David Rudisha, so very unlike the wire-to-wire run at the London Olympics that earned him a gold medal and a world record in the 800 meters.
For the 26-year-old Kenyan, it felt just as good.
Rudisha missed the chance to defend his world title two years ago in Moscow because of an injured right knee which restricted him to just two races that season. He endured the doubts and the pain, and some hard-to-take losses before arriving in China as an outside contender for gold.
On top of that, his first-round race was only hours after Kenya’s highly-rated marathon runners bombed out in the opening event of the championships on Saturday, with two failing to finish and none making the top 20. It cast a long shadow over the whole Kenyan squad, something Rudisha promised to lift.
And lift it, he did. His win on Tuesday gave Kenya its fourth gold medal – and the top spot in the standings – after four days.