Over a crackling phone line between Dubai and Addis Ababa, Betlhem Desalegn Belayneh expressed her joy at booking an elusive qualifying spot in next month’s London Olympics, where she will be one of the few women representing the UAE at the Games.
The 20-year-old middle-distance runner had come close to meeting the B-Standard qualifying time in her previous few meets – including one in Dubai last month – but for some odd reason, her competition form had not been as good as her form in training.
But she finally clinched a place in the 1500m event in London when she won the gold medal at the Meeting National Elite Casablanca in Morocco last week, clocking 4:08.87, to become the first Emirati to qualify for the Olympic Games in Athletics without the virtue of a wildcard invitation.
While I expected pure relief from Belayneh, commonly referred to as Betty, she was quick to note that she had no doubt she would make it to the Games and is determined to improve her timing before she flies to the British capital.
“I’m very happy. I’m still training hard to get a better time but of course I’m happy,” Betty told Sport360°. “I was pushing alone, I’m lucky that I qualified. It was very windy, it was hard but I’m happy for now. I’m not nervous. I know I’m confident and that I was going to make it. I was 100-per-cent confident. I just needed the right race.”
She tried to explain what exactly constitutes a ‘right race’ for her by saying: “No stress. I need everything to be good. Good conditions for everything. Having good competitors is a good thing because it makes it a fast race.”
Preparations
Betty has been training in Addis Ababa and having just received news that her European visa is ready, she is prepping for some additional meets in Europe to try to improve her timing.
Manager Larry Barthlow believes she has a “legitimate chance” of making the final in London, claiming she has the right tactics when it comes to tackling the 1500m race. Belayneh seems to agree and says if she manages to get through the heats, anything can happen.
She said: “Before London I want to run faster and look for good races for London and make good results for UAE. I want to make the final at the Olympics. And after that, everything is possible I think.
“In the 1500km you have less time to make a mistake. When you make your move, you have to make it stick. But I think I’m good when it comes to tactics. I have a good natural instinct in races,” she added confidently.
Hopes of a nation
UAE Athletics Federation President Mr. Ahmad Al Kamali also says he has faith Belayneh can make the final in London. He said: “This is the very first time that someone qualifies to the Olympics for us so we are very happy. I think Betty can run 4:04 or 4:05 in London and that means she has a chance of making a final.”
Betty may have barely made the B-Standard cut so far, but she has made rapid progress in the sport. She says she only started running four years ago in high school in Addis Ababa, before she joined a local club.
Since she started representing the UAE a couple of years ago, she has made her mark, together with her good friend Alia Saeed, on the running scene in the Gulf. Both Emiratis alternated on the top of the podium in several races including one-two finishes at the 10k race of the 2011 Standard Chartered Dubai Marathon, the 2010 and 2011 Women’s 5k Run, and the 5000m at the Arab Games in Doha last December. She also won this year’s Dubai Marathon 10k.
Having shined on the local stage here in the UAE, Belayneh admits she feels she is making a real difference to female sport in the nation. She said: “It’s good especially for women in the Emirates. It’s good motivation. It’s changing society. If you do well, they gain confidence because they feel that they can do this too.
“I think me and Alia are making a difference. We met some girl athletes, and they are so happy and they have good motivation now, they want to reach the Olympics and things like that. I see a lot of difference now.”
Betty explained how hard she’s been training and says she isn’t worried about getting nervous on the big stage in London. She represented the UAE at the World Indoor Championships in Istanbul earlier this year, so she is no stranger to performing on big occasions, and she believes the right preparation is all she needs.
“If you train well you will be confident. You have a lot of support and you get good advice from your coach, your manager and I will try my best," she said. "Sometimes I’m training with other girls, sometimes with a pacemaker. I have a personal coach as well.”
But that intense regime was in jeopardy of disruption when her family home caught fire around a month ago. “You have to help your family if something happens," she said. "They are helping me and supporting me a lot. I’m living with my mum and I love to help out as much as I can my sister and my brother.
“There was an electricity problem and there was a fire. I was training at the time, I wasn’t home. It wasn’t too big but my parents’ bedroom was damaged. But we’ve been working on getting everything better now and it’s fine.
“Athletics is like this, I live with my family and this happened but this is life. I still have to focus on my training and thankfully it didn’t affect me a lot.”
A BET FOR SUCCESS
Age: 20 Place of Birth: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Nationality: UAE
Career highs – Hangzhou Asian Indoor Championships 2012, 1500m, Silver, 04:16.97 – Hangzhou Asian Indoor Championships 2012, 3000m, Silver, 08:53.56 – IAAF World Indoor Championships 2012, Istanbul 3000m, 5th (heat), 9min 12.63 – Arab Games 2011, Qatar, 5000m, Silver, 16:12.71 – Arab Games 2011, Qatar, 1500m, Bronze, 04:21.50
Personal Bests Outdoor 1500m: 4:08.87, Casablanca, June 2012 Indoor 1500m: 4:16.97, Hangzhou, February 2012 3000m: 8:53.56, Hangzhou February 2012
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