2003 was a special world championships for distance running. In addition to the legendary men’s 5,000, there was an epic 10,000 duel between Gebrselassie and Bekele that included both men running the second 5K in under 13 minutes. Geb did everything he could to take the kick out of the younger Bekele, to no avail. It was a significant passing/taking of the torch moment.
Also noteworthy: at those same championships, a 17-year old Tirunesh Dibaba won her first gold medal.