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Cologne Track and Field : Aouita Easily Breaks World Record in 3,000 Meters

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<i> From Associated Press </i>

Said Aouita of Morocco broke the oldest major running-event world record with a time of 7 minutes 29.45 seconds in the men’s 3,000 meters at a Grand Prix track and field meet Sunday.

Henry Rono of Kenya had set the manually timed record of 7:32.1 on June 27, 1978, at Oslo, Norway.

“It was the hardest of all world records to get,” said Aouita, who also holds world records in the 1,500, 2,000 and 5,000, meters, as well as a world best in the rarely run two-mile race.

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“I wanted another world record. Three days ago, when I registered for the event, I knew I was going to win and set a world record.”

Aouita took over the lead with two laps to go, when pacesetter Charles Cheruiyot of Kenya dropped out.

Yobes Ondieki of Kenya tried to follow Aouita, but the Moroccan ran the last lap by himself.

“Every year I have gotten closer and closer to it (the record), but when I was younger I wasn’t so worried because I had time,” Aouita, 29, said. “Now I’m getting older.

“I like the track here. It’s very fast and the pacemakers did a great job.”

Aouita ran 7:32.23 at the same meet in 1986. That had been the second-fastest time.

The only individual world record older than Rono’s is in a field event--Bob Beamon’s long jump of 29 feet 2 1/2 inches set at the 1968 Olympic Games.

Rono, who set four world records within a 90-day span in 1978, no longer holds one.

Also Sunday, Rodion Gataullin of the Soviet Union barely missed breaking countryman Sergei Bubka’s world pole vault record of 19-10 1/2. In his third attempt at 19-11, Gataullin appeared to have the necessary height, but toppled the bar with his chest.

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Butch Reynolds of the United States, the world record-holder, won the 400 meters in 44.30, the second-fastest time of the year.

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