Machine-translated from Faroese and not yet reviewed. Read the original.
The Icelanders were left completely stunned, and the TV commentator nearly tied his tongue in knots, when Bjørk, with a fantastic finish, swept past the legendary Fríða Rún Thorðardóttir to become the first Faroese winner in athletics at the Reykjavík International Games.
Bjørk 50 metres before the finish line.
(Photo: www.fri.is)
Although Bjørk kept an even pace all the way, it did not look as though she would make the podium. While Bjørk lay at the back for the first laps, Fríða Rún had already broken away on her own. But Bjørk slowly worked her way up through the field, and with 400 metres to go she had moved into 2nd place. There was still a fair gap to Fríða Rún, though. But it was closing, and with barely 200 metres left, Bjørk really smelt blood. With every last drop she chased her down, and the reward came on the finish line itself, when Bjørk edged ahead by 8/100 of a second and stole the gold from under the nose of Fríða Rún Thórðardóttir.
Bjørk had more than the gold medal to celebrate. Her time is also a new personal best and a Faroese indoor record. The old record of 4:44.83 was improved to 4:38.04.
A delighted Bjørk Herup Olsen on the podium in Reykjavík
Rebekka Fuglø and Rúni Seloy also competed at the Reykjavík International Games. Rúni’s training in November and December was badly hampered by a knee injury. On top of that, he had caught a cold just before the competition, so Rúni knew full well that he would not be able to run at his very best. Still, he had hopes of beating Jóan Karl Joensen’s Faroese indoor record, and perhaps also getting under 2 minutes.
But early in the race it was clear that this was not Rúni’s day. Although the first lap flew by in 27.2, the air started going out of the balloon between 300 and 400 metres. The second half was mostly a battle to get home in a respectable time. In the official results list Rúni is given a time of 1:59.10, but this is an error. His correct time is around 2:03–2:04, but that is still a fantastic time for a 15-year-old, even though he has previously run 1:56.73!!
Rebekka was not happy with her result in the 400 metres either. Last winter she ran the distance in 61.65 sec. This time it did not go as well, because although Rebekka fought hard all the way, she finished in 63.95. The Faroese women’s 400 metres record once stood from 1991 to 2007 – for 16 years. That record was 68 seconds, so seen in that light, this is a good time for Rebekka after all.
After long spells of training without any competitions, our runners now have a fair idea of their form. Now preparations for the Danish Indoor Championships in March get properly under way.
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