Running News Daily

Latvian distance-running sensation Agate Caune has announced her retirement from professional athletics at just 22 years old, bringing an unexpected end to a promising career that saw her rise from a highly decorated junior athlete to an Olympian and one of Europe's most exciting young distance-running talents.

Caune made the announcement on Monday, November 9, opening up about the difficult experiences behind her decision to walk away from competitive athletics at an age when many distance runners are only beginning to reach their full potential.

In reflecting on her journey, the young Latvian revealed that her career was not always as straightforward as it appeared from the outside. She spoke candidly about periods when she questioned whether her body could continue coping with the physical demands of professional running and whether she would ever achieve the performances she had worked so hard to reach.

She also disclosed that certain hurtful words and experiences affected her more deeply than those around her may have realised, offering a glimpse into the personal challenges she faced away from the competition arena.

Despite the difficult moments, Caune looked back on her athletics journey with gratitude, emphasising that the experiences and achievements she collected along the way had given her more than she could have imagined.

"Some may say my athletic career was short, but I would say it was long enough to experience and achieve a lot," she reflected.

She also expressed appreciation to the people who supported her throughout her career, extending her gratitude to her coaches, physiotherapists, doctors, family members, supporters and everyone who played a part in her development and stood beside her during both the successful and challenging periods.

Although she is stepping away from professional competition, Caune has made it clear that running itself is not leaving her life. She intends to continue running for fitness, personal enjoyment and occasionally alongside friends, while turning her attention towards new ambitions, opportunities and challenges beyond professional sport.

Her departure marks the conclusion of a career that delivered several outstanding achievements, particularly during her remarkable junior years. Caune first attracted international attention at the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia, where she secured silver in the women's 5000m, establishing herself among the most promising young distance runners in Europe.

She continued her impressive progression in 2023, producing a memorable double victory at the European Athletics U20 Championships in Jerusalem, Israel, where she captured gold medals in both the 3000m and 5000m. The performances confirmed her status as one of the continent's leading emerging talents.

That same year, she added another significant achievement by winning the women's 5000m title at the European Games in Poland, further strengthening her growing reputation on the international stage. She also established several Latvian age-group records during her development, underlining the scale of her potential.

One of the defining moments of her career came at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, where she demonstrated remarkable courage against some of the biggest names in women's distance running.

Competing in the 5000m heats, Caune took an aggressive approach, surging into a commanding lead ahead of established stars including Ethiopia's Gudaf Tsegay and Kenya's Beatrice Chebet. Although the experienced contenders eventually caught and passed her in the closing stages, her fearless performance earned her a place in the final and attracted widespread attention.

In 2024, she reached another major milestone when she represented Latvia in the women's 5000m at the Paris Olympic Games, taking her place among the world's finest distance runners on the biggest sporting stage.

Her competitive journey also extended beyond the track, with Caune exploring road racing as part of her development. During the 2026 season, she competed in the women's half marathon at the World Athletics Road Running Championships, finishing 72nd in 1:14:27.

For an athlete who had achieved so much in such a relatively short period, the decision to leave professional athletics at 22 represents a particularly unexpected turning point. Her journey, however, is a reminder that the life of an elite athlete involves challenges that are not always visible through medals, records and championship appearances.

From junior championship podiums and European titles to the World Championships and Olympic Games, Caune leaves professional competition having represented Latvia on some of the sport's biggest stages.

While her professional racing career has come to an end, her connection with running remains. The Latvian now looks forward to a different chapter, one in which she can enjoy the sport without the pressures and demands of elite competition, while pursuing new goals beyond the athletics track.

Ejgayehu Taye came within two seconds of the world 5km record she set two years ago at the Cursa dels Nassos, while Adisu Girma made it an Ethiopian double at the World Athletics Label road event in Barcelona on Saturday (31).

Paced by Latvia's Dmitrijs Serjogins, 22-year-old Ethiopian Taye went through the opening kilometer in a swift 2:49, well on schedule to challenge her own world record of 14:19 she set exactly one year ago at the same venue. By then, Taye had Germany's Konstanze Klosterhalfen for company as the newly-minted European cross country silver medalist was aiming to break the European record of 14:44.

Taye, the world indoor 3000m bronze medalist, maintained her pace over the second kilometer which was reached in 5:39 and shortly afterwards that cadence proved to be too fast for Klosterhalfen who began to lose ground. Running always at the pacemaker's shoulder, Taye was timed at 7:04 at halfway, well inside the world record pace, and 8:33 at 3km while Klosterhalfen was 10 seconds in arrears by then. Surprisingly, Norway's European cross-country champion Karoline Grovdal was never a factor and passed 3km a further eight seconds behind Klosterhalfen.

Taye, who was fifth over 5000m at the Olympic Games, slowed slightly during the fourth kilometer to clock 11:29 at 4km and then desperately tried to find another gear in the final kilometer to revise her own world record. She crossed the line in 14:21, the second-fastest 5km performance in history and just two seconds off her world record.

Klosterhalfen was a distant second, 31 seconds adrift in 14:52, eight seconds outside the European record but gaining revenge on third placed Groval, timed at 15:06.

“Maybe I went off too fast and I finally could not maintain the required pace to break the record but anyway I'm satisfied as it's a great performance,” said Taye, who has a 5000m track PB of 14:12.98 and who finished sixth over 10,000m at the World Championships in Oregon. “I'll run next in the Valencia 10K in a couple of weeks' time.”

World 5000m champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen had been due to compete in the men’s race in what would have been his first race on Spanish soil, but the Olympic 1500m champion was forced to withdraw on the eve of the race due to illness.

In his absence, attention turned to Ethiopia's Adisu Girma, a 3:35.81 1500m specialist, Spain's Abdessamad Oukhelfen, a creditable 10th at the recent European Cross Country Championships, Switzerland’s Jonas Raess, and Spain's 2016 European 5000m champion Ilias Fifa.

The leading group covered the opening two kilometers at 2:40/km pace, but the cadence decreased over the following couple of kilometers and the lead quartet reached 4km in 10:50. Fifa was the first to launch a serious finishing kick some 800 meters from home, but 23-year-old Ethiopian Girma responded with a devastating burst of speed to break away from the Spaniard with ease and cross the finish line in 13:25 to Fifa's 13:30 and Raess's 13:31.

Leading results

Women

1 Ejgayehu Taye (ETH) 14:21

2 Konstanze Klosterhalfen (GER) 14:52

3 Karoline Grovdal (NOR) 15:06

4 Miriam Chebet (KEN) 15:36

5 Agate Caune (LAT) 15:44

Men

1 Adisu Girma (ETH) 13:25

2 Ilias Fifa (ESP) 13:30

3 Jonas Raess (SWI) 13:31

4 Andessadam Oukhelfen (ESP) 13:37

5 Mohamed Al Garni (QAT) 13:41.