Defar takes the world by storm in 2-mile

It was no indoor record, but Jenn Stuczynski clears the bar at 15 feet 1 inch to triumph in the women's pole vault. (Barry Chin/Globe Staff)

It wasn't even close.

In the final women's event of the 2008 Reebok Boston Indoor Games, Ethiopian Meseret Defar won the 2-mile in stunning fashion.

She finished in 9 minutes 10.50 seconds, easily beating the previous world standard of 9:23.38 set by Regina Jacobs in 2002. Although that mark was considered "soft" because the event is rarely contested, Defar's 3,000-meter split was just six seconds off the meet record she set three years ago at that distance.

"I didn't think I'd break the record by so much," said Defar. "I could have run faster. I'm always trying to run my very best.

"If it means a world record, that's it."

Defar, the 2007 IAAF female World Athlete of the Year, looked surprisingly at ease in the race. Then again, she has plenty of experience setting records. Last year, the 24-year-old Defar set five world records, including the 5,000 meters, 3,000 indoors, 5 kilometer on the roads, and 2-mile outdoors (twice). She started 2008 the same way she finished 2007 - undefeated on the track.

With the Beijing Olympics in August, Defar hopes to add to her medal collection, which includes the 2004 Olympic gold medal in the 5,000 meters.

As Defar ran a victory lap around the sold-out Reggie Lewis Center draped in the Ethiopian flag, she was cheered by a large, vocal contingent of fans with ties to her home country. Off to the side, runner-up Kim Smith of New Zealand cooled down with a light jog and received congratulations for a well-run race. She finished second in 9:13.94, also beating the previous mark by a sizable margin.

"I knew I was in good shape," said Smith, a Providence College graduate who usually trains near her alma mater. "It wasn't a very strong record, so I thought I could run under it. It's always nice to run under a world record."

Smith jokingly added: "It's a pity Meseret was there or I could have claimed [the record] for myself."

The final event of the evening also was a record-setter, though Australian Craig Mottram had a much closer call than Defar. Mottram set a meet record, running 7:34.50 in the men's 3,000 meters, narrowly beating Haile Gebrselassie's 7:35.24 in 2004. Mottram's time is the fastest 3,000 run on American soil.

"[The race] was a bit of a time trial and that's why we came out with a fast time," said Mottram. "It was opening slowly, very slowly, every 200. You've just got to keep pushing, keep pushing. I knew if I pushed the first 2 [kilometers] hard, I'd finish strong. I'm happy with it."

After learning he had broken the record of the legendary Gebrselassie, Mottram was even happier.

"I didn't know it was Haile's [record]," said Mottram. "I was pushing pretty hard to keep on pace. Had I known it was Haile's, I would have pushed a little harder. It's one record I'll be proud to have."

While Defar, Smith, and Mottram have their long-distance sights set on the Summer Games, they didn't see the Boston Indoor Games as a start to their Olympic quest. Defar mentioned her concerns about the heat and pollution in Beijing. Meanwhile, Mottram knows a strong start in January doesn't necessarily translate to a strong finish in August.

"I've got to make sure my body is healthy for a full workload," said Mottram. "I've got to keep a lid on things and keep tightening the screws. There are a couple of things that happened last year that I didn't get on top of right away. It's just a great start for me. This time of year is about base training and a bit of fun."

But nothing is more fun than winning and setting records in the process.