RIO 2016: Ethiopia's Almaz Ayana smashes the 10,000m world record set in 1993 and wins Africa's first gold medal

RIO 2016: Ethiopia's Almaz Ayana smashes the 10,000m world record set in 1993 and wins Africa's first gold medal

Ethiopian long-distance runner Almaz Ayana smashed the world record to win the women's Olympic 10,000 metres race on Friday, finishing in 29 minutes and 17.45 seconds.

In addition to winning the first gold medal for an African team in the 2016 Olympics, the 24-year-old beat the previous record, in place for the last 23 years, by a remarkable 14.46 seconds.