Kenya’s formidable team of three sensational athletes will aim to end a 10-year dry spell of winning gold medals in the 10,000m at 3:30pm on day 1 of the 20th edition of the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.
The last time Kenya bagged gold in the 25-lap race at the global championships was back in 2015 in Beijing, China ,through Vivian Cheruiyot.
Team Kenya’s team, led by double Olympic champion Beatrice Chebet, 10 km world record holder Agnes Jebet Ng’etich and African Games champion Janeth Jepng’etich, will have a herculean task as they take to Japan’s National Stadium as they search for a 5th title over the distance.
Beatrice Chebet
She has been in scintillating form since last year when she won gold medals in both 5,000 m and 10,000 m in last summer’s Olympics in Paris.
The 24-year-old has 4 world records to her name: 5000 m (13:58.06), 10,000 m (28:54.14), 5 km women-only (14:13) and 5 km mixed (13:54).
She finished 3rd during the Kenyan trials behind Janeth and Agnes.
Chebet is the 3rd fastest at 30:27.52 in the world this year and ranked 1st in the world over 10,000 m.
Agnes Jebet Ng’etich
Ranked 10th in the world in 10,000 m, the 24-year-old is the 2nd fastest in the world with a 30:27.38.
She is the current record holder in the 10 km (28:46) and has been sensational, and she returns to the global championship for a 2nd time after finishing 6th in Budapest 2 years ago in her debut.
Ng’etich finished 2nd during the national trials.
Janeth Jepng’etich
She is the fastest of the three members in team Kenya this season, also boasting a world-leading time of 30:27.02, which she posted during the trials for the World Championships in July at the Ulinzi Sports Complex.
Currently ranked 25th in the 25-lap race, the 27-year-old will target her 1st medal at the global stage after claiming gold at the 2024 All African Games in Ghana.
Both Chebet and Agnes Jebet Chepngetich will also be doubling in the 5000 m in Tokyo.
Past Kenyan winners in the 10,000 m at the World Athletics Championships are Sally Barsosio (1997), Linet Masai (2009), and Vivian Cheruiyot (2011, 2015).
