- Chebet won the women’s 10,000m in world record time in Eugene
- She now hopes for Olympic Gold
- Ferdinand Omanyala finished second in the meet
After breaking the 10,000m world record, Beatrice Chebet now says she plans on having a stab at winning the Olympic Gold medal in Paris in the summer. Chepkoech broke the women’s world record at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon over the weekend, when she clocked 28:54.14 to become the first woman under 29 minutes on track.
The record ran by Chebet, 23, is seven seconds faster than the previous world record of 29:01.03 set by Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey in 2021.
“I cannot say for sure what will happen at the Olympics because athletics competitions work out in unique ways. Anyone can win but for us, if we are in good shape and everything goes our way, I am hopeful we can bring back the medals that have been going to other countries for all those years,” Chebet said, as she jetted back into the country from Oregon on Tuesday.
In a tactical race, that was also used by the National Olympic Committee of Kenya (NOCK) and Athletics Kenya (AK) to select the Kenyan team for Paris, Ethiopian Gudaf Tsegay had asked for world record pace as she sought to lower her compatriot’s mark.
But, she had a difficult week and wasn’t fully fit as she battled a minor injury, but her request to still proceed with world record pace proved to be beneficial to Kenya’s Chebet.
Chebet stunned by World Record
Beatrice Chebet reacts after her world record run. PHOTO/Prefontaine Classic
“Breaking the world record was not even on my agenda on that day but I guess God had other plans for me,” Chebet said, speaking to reporters after jetting back from the US.
She added; “When I heard that Gudaf (Tsegay) was going for the world record, I thought to myself to see how it would go. I had decided to hang on to her for as long as possible but then I felt my body responding better than I expected.”
“I saw that she had passed the wavelight by a few metres and so I decided to push myself as well. When I passed her, I thought she would make an attempt to push on but then she lagged behind and that’s when I got the motivation to go for it,” she further narrated.
So blistering was the pace that Tsegay became the third-fastest all-time performer with her runner-up finish of 29:05.92, as four women ran faster than 30 minutes. Lilian Kasait Rengeruk finished fourth in 29:26.89 and joins Chebet on the plane to Paris.
In the men’s race, Daniel Mateiko won a competitive outing in 26:50.81 after a 56-second final lap to edge Nicholas Kipkorir, who ran a personal best of 26:50.94. The two have qualified for the Olympic Games.
Mateiko delighted with Olympic ticket
Daniel Mateiko wins the 10,000m race at the Prefontaine Classic. PHOTO/World Athletics
Mateiko was not only delighted to have won the race, but also earned a ticket to the Olympic Games.
“This is actually a big motivation for me. Actually, from now I see myself in another level and I’m hungry for more. It’s all about the confidence that I have, I believe in myself that I can do it. We had done a good program towards this trial. The program was perfect. I’m so very, very happy for this win<’ an excited Mateiko said after the race.
Meanwhile, African 100m record holder Ferdinand Omanyala ran his first sub-10 of the season, as he finished second behind American Chris Coleman who beat him by a whisker.
Coleman dipped on the line ahead of Omanyala, clocking 9.95, while Omanyala finished second in 9.98. It was a second consecutive second place finish for Omanyala, after last week’s Atlanta City Games.
“This season is all about progress and I’m glad that the progress is going on well, and we want just to time that Olympic period and get it right then,” Omanyala stated.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login