OLYMPIC 1500m gold medallist Noah Ngeny, who ended middle distance legend Hicham El Guerrouj's four-year unbeaten run, will star in Tyneside's BUPA Great North Run Mile on Saturday.
The 22-year-old Kenyan, who won the 1500m in the Goodwill Games in Australia last week, was orginally due to race in a road mile in Melbourne but opted to fly halfway round the world when approached by the organisers of the big event on Newcastle Quayside.
Race director Peter Elliott said: "We always wanted Ngeny for our race. But with him being in Brisbane for the Goodwill Games I thought I had lost out on getting him back here.
"He was contracted to run in Australia, but I know the organiser there quite well and he agreed to Ngeny's request to be released."
Ngeny shot to instant stardom a year ago when he beat El Guerrouj in the Sydney Olympics, bringing the Moroccan's incredible run of 49 finals victories to an end. Ngeny, the world 1000m record holder, is no stranger to the North-East, having won the 800m at last month's Norwich Union Classic at Gateshead International Stadium.
He said: "I am looking forward to the race - on reflection I thought it would be better to end my season in England."
Top North-East athlete Martin Scaife, troubled by an ear infection, was forced to drop out of the Inter Counties 10K Road Race Championships at Cheltenham just after the halfway mark.
The Chester-le-Street AC runner had tried to keep up with the furious early pace in a race which produced the fastest time in the UK this year.
Kenyan Julius Kibet clocked 28 mins 35 secs to avenge his defeat in last month's Auckland Castle at the hands of George Okworo, who was third (28.57), two seconds behind former Gateshead Harrier Rob Denmark.
The seriously depleted North-East team - the defending champions - finished 8th and the times were: Daniel Flint (Morpeth) 31.03, Chris Samson (31.36), Peter Embleton (Chester-le-Street) 32.14, Ian Bloomfield (ClS) 32.56.
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