By Ben Efe

Ethiopian long distance legend, Haile Haile Gebrselassie can smile even in times of difficult situations. But there was no smile on his face last Sunday, when a swollen knee force him to pull out of the New York Marathon, he announced his retirement shortly afterwards.

But on Monday he was having a second thought. His manager Jos Hermen disclosed that Gebrselassie took the decision to retire under pressure and was considering returning to training to have a last go at the London 2012 Olympics.

“Now it is time for me to think about a lot of things. I still love running. I will always run. Just give me some time to think things over,”Gebrselassie twitted during the week.

However, retirement or not the world acclaimed Ethiopian is still the joy of the athletics world.
“He is a role model for all of Africa,” said Wanjiru, who was in New York to receive $500,000 for winning the World Marathon Majors title. “This entire generation, whether in Kenya, Ethiopia or Eritrea, look up to him because Haile ran many years, and he won many races at many distances. He is a great champion. Since I was in high school, he was the runner I looked up to.”

The statement carried particular weight given the fact that Gebrselassie has been, for years, the scourge of the Kenyans and at times a bitter rival of his East African rivals.
“Before he gets out of training, I hope that he comes back one more time because I want to run against him,” Wanjiru added. “I need him to come back again, only to run once.”

The World Marathon Majors reception, which also saw women’s winner Liliya Shobukhova of Russia receive a $500,000 prize, was full of speculation surrounding Gebrselassie’s comeback. Among other things, for example, he has signed to race the Tokyo Marathon in April. The prospect of winning his first Olympic marathon title in 2012 also beckons.

Hermens said of his comments at the post_race press conference: “I think it’s just emotion. It’s normal. He was in good shape, then something stupid happens to the knee.”

If he remains retired, though, there will be no doubting his place in the sporting pantheon. Seb Coe was one of many to heap praise on his exploits, saying: “The litmus test for a successful athlete is longevity at the very highest level and he had that in abundance.
“There is nothing he couldn’t do – and he did it with style. I believe he is the greatest athlete of the last 50 years and arguably the best of all time.”