10,000m

Turkish one-two: the pair went clear early on
EUROPEAN 10,000m running isn’t what it used to be. In 1971, 35 ran in the European Championships final and a certain Carlos Lopes was last. In 2015, eleven ran and just nine finished.
The winning mark this year would have finished just ninth in Helsinki in 1971 and the leading European-born athlete’s time here would have netted 15th place 35 years ago!
After a slow 68.21-second opener, Turkey’s former Kenyans Ali Kaya and Polat Kemboi Arikan sped up as 63-65-second laps took them clear. The Turks eased past halfway in 13:57.67 and then even more on the second half, only coming to life in the last 200m when 2012 champion Arikan’s 61-second last lap pulled clear of a then disinterested Kaya. Compare that with the winning 53-second last lap in a much faster race in 1971.