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Gebrselassie to run Vienna half marathon

Dec 21, 2010, 11:34 GMT

Vienna - Marathon world record holder Haile Gebrselassie will be the star attraction at the Vienna half marathon on April 17, 2011, local organizers said on Tuesday.

'We managed to convince him of our city, our event and our concept,' the APA news agency quoted organizer Wolfgang Konrad as saying.

Gebrselassie, who turns 38 the day after the Vienna race, last competed in the New York Marathon on November 7.

He announced his retirement after a knee injury forced him to quit that race, but the Ethiopian then decided to continue after all with the 2012 London Olympics now expected to be his farewell.

Gebrselassie will return to race action at the Tokyo Marathon on February 27.

Gebrselassie won four straight 10,000 metres world titles and two Olympic golds over the distance. His marathon world record from the Berlin 2008 stands at 2 hours 3 minutes 59 seconds.

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