Bekoji, Ethiopia, Oct 2 (AFP/APP):Just eight months ago, 16-year-old Hanna Awugichew believed she was well on her way to becoming Ethiopia’s next elite runner, having qualified for a national competition in the 400-metre dash. But the coronavirus pandemic threw an obstacle in her path, prompting officials to cancel the race and, under a nationwide state of emergency, place restrictions on how athletes could train. “We had prepared for the competition and trained well, but we couldn’t compete because of coronavirus, and that was very disappointing,” said Hanna, adding she had been “very excited to win”. It’s a common story in Bekoji, a town 225 kilometres (140 miles) south of the capital Addis Ababa that is renowned for producing running stars who have collectively bagged some 18 Olympic medals. On Sunday, Bekoji’s favourite son, five-time world champion Kenenisa Bekele — himself winner of three Olympic golds, will face off against Kenyan icon and marathon world record-holder Eliud Kipchoge in the London Marathon. Fatiya Abdi, who coaches Hanna and around 40 other girls in Bekoji through an organisation called Girls Gotta Run, hopes the event will shake her athletes out of their pandemic funk. “The race in which Kenenisa will compete will … Continue reading Ethiopia’s ‘town of runners’ tries to outpace pandemic