Running News Daily

Catherine Reline eyeing Olympic glory next season

21-year-old Catherine Reline will be eyeing a debut at the Olympic Games after a fruitful 2023 season.

21-year-old Catherine Reline will be hoping to extend her good fortunes to the 2024 season as she eyes the Olympic Games in Paris, France.

Reline has enjoyed a great 2023 season, securing a podium place in most of her races. The highlight of her career this season was finishing third in the Half Marathon at the World Road Running Championships.

She also won the Chemasusu Dam Half Marathon and also finished second at the Trunsylvania International 10K where Agnes Ngetich broke the world record.

However, Ngetich’s world record was not ratified since the course did not meet the standards of World Athletics.

“I have another race in Brazil then after that, I will come back home to prepare for the Olympic Games where I intend to make Team Kenya for the 10,000m,” she said.

Speaking about her preparations ahead of the Chemasusu Dam Half Marathon, Reline said she did not prepare well for the race since she was just from the World Road Running Championships in Riga.

“I had not prepared well for the race since I was just from competing at the World Half Marathon.

I rested for a bit and then went to compete…I wanted to try the half marathon because my body was not very tired and I felt like I had the strength to run another race,” she said.

Courtesy of her win, she walked away with Ksh 100,000 and she expressed her excitement about walking away with the money noting that the economic times are hard.

Agnes Ngetich clocks second-fastest time in history with dominant win in France

Agnes Ngetich clocked 29:26, the second-fastest time in history, to win the 10km trail road race in Lille, France.

Reigning World Cross-country bronze medalist Agnes Ngetich was in a class of her own as she reigned supreme in the 10km road race in Lille, France on Saturday, November 18.

Ngetich clocked 29:26, the second-fastest time ever to win the race ahead of Emmaculate Anyango who clocked a Personal Best time of 30:01 to finish second. Christine Njoki completed the podium, clocking 30:41 to cross the finish line.

The 22-year-old has been in stellar form this season and will be keen to continue the winning streak to next year’s Olympic Games in Paris, France, where she intends to compete in the 10,000m.

Ngetich previously clocked a world record time of 29:24 at the Brasov Running Festival in Romania but the record was not ratified by World Athletics since the course did not meet the required standards.

She is also fresh from reigning supreme at the Athletics Kenya Cross-Country Meet held at Kyongong Grounds, Bomet County.

She clocked 31:55 to win the race ahead of Cynthia Chepngeno and Sandra Chebet who finished second and third in respective times of 31:59 and 32:11.

Ngetich’s time is the second-fastest time by a woman in history. She now comes behind former London Marathon champion Yalemzerf Yehualaw, who clocked a world record time of 29:14 to win the women's event in Castellón, Spain earlier this year.

Ngetich vows to break the world 10km record again if not ratified

World cross-country bronze medallist Agnes Ngetich has vowed to set another record if her current world 10km record is not ratified by the World Athletics.

Speaking in Kapsokwony after winning the 10km senior women's title in the second leg of the Athletics Kenya (AK) cross-country meeting at the Kapsokwony High School ground in Bungoma County, Ngetich said it was not her blunder that the course was short.

“If my world record will not be ratified, I still have time to set another one because I did not create the mess that happened on the course,” said the two-time East Africa under-20 champion.

She said even if the course was 25 meters less, she could have either set her personal best or even broken the world record. “I had a chance to go ahead and set the world record because I was not only also in great shape but determined to make history," she noted. 

"Even with the addition of the 25 meters, I believe I would have comfortably run 30:00 minutes. All the same, I still have time on my side and I will do it again," she insisted. 

Ngetich broke the women-only world 10km record in the Transylvania 10km in Brasov, Romania, last month after posting 29:24 to surpass the initial time of 30:01 set by the late Agnes Tirop in Herzogenaurach, Germany in 2021.

Meanwhile, former athlete Tegla Sang has welcomed the move by the government to change the name of Kericho Green Stadium to Wilson Kipkurugut Chumo Stadium.

During the Mashujaa Day celebrations held in Kericho County, President William Ruto announced that the facility will now be known as the Kipkurgut Chumo Stadium.

The move is aimed at celebrating the first Kenyan to win an Olympic medal—the 800m bronze —during the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan.

"Allow me to celebrate Kiprugut Chumo, the first Kenyan to win an Olympic medal by renaming the Kericho Green Stadium in his name," he noted. 

Sang, a former All Africa Games 400m champion, said the government is doing a good thing to support the legends who brought fame to the country.

“This is a good move to celebrate legends that brought fame to the nation,” said Sang, the first Kenyan to compete for the country at the 1968 Olympic Games in Mexico City, Mexico.

The late Chumo, who was the first Kenyan to win an Olympic medal for the country, died last year aged 84.

Sang said as much as the government's move is good, it's long overdue. " We don't have to wait for some athletes to die to recognize them," she noted.

She said the government should also offer monetary awards to retired athletes because they did not earn much during their time. 

“Majority of former athletes did not earn any money from running, unlike the current athletes. With the government handing goodies to any medal winner, they should always remember those who laid that foundation,” she said.

She added that medical insurance for retired athletes would go a long way in cushioning them during their current old age.

Sang cited Nyantika Maiyoro, Amos Biwott, Kipchoge Keino, the late Naftali Temo, Naftali Bon, Ben Jipcho, Lydia Stephens, Elizabeth Jemeli Chesire, Hezekiah Nyamau, and Charles Asati as other deserving cases in as far as recognition and awards is concerned.

Why Agnes Ngetich's world record will not be ratified

Ngetich broke the women-only world 10km record at the Trunsylvania 10km but her record will not be ratified.

Agnes Ngetich made headlines two weeks ago as she oozed class to win the women’s 10km and break the women-only world 10km record at the Trunsylvania 10km, a World Athletics Elite Label road race held as part of the Brasov Running Festival in Romania.

Ngetich clocked 29:24 to cut the tape first ahead of Catherine Reline who finished second in 30:14 as Joy Cheptoyek of Uganda completed the podium in 30:34.

However, the 22-year-old’s record will not be ratified, as the course was found to be short by 25m. The race organisers made the announcement on their Facebook page, indicating that the course did not meet the standards of World Athletics.

When any world record is broken, World Athletics is required to re-measure the course to ensure it meets the required distance.

A part of the lengthy post on Facebook read: “During the homologation process of the World Record set by Agnes Ngetich, that required a remeasurement, it was indicated that the course used in Brasov, on September 10, differed with 25m from the certified circuit.

Although barely relevant in relation to the 36 seconds that Agnes Ngetich took from the previous World Record, this difference makes the result technically non-ratifiable.”

With her world record not being ratified, this means that the previous 10K record of 30:01, was set by the late Agnes Tirop. The women’s 5k record of 14:29, set by Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi in 2021 will also stand.

Agnes Ngetich becomes multi millionaire after smashing women-only 10km World Record

The 22-year-old broke the women-only world 10km record in Romania, surpassing the late Agnes Tirop's record, with Catherine Reline also shining for Kenya.

Kenya was once again thrust into the global limelight on Sunday after Agnes Ngetich shattered the women-only world 10km record by clocking 29:24 at the World Athletics Elite Label road race in Brasov, Romania, on Sunday.

At only 22, Ngetich covered the initial 5km in 14:25, eclipsing the previous record for that distance by four seconds. 

The significance of this feat becomes more profound when considering that the previous record was held by the late Agnes Tirop of Kenya. 

Running closely behind, Kenya was once again represented on the podium by Catherine Reline who clocked a solid 30:14, securing second place. Uganda's Joy Cheptoyek completed the top three with a commendable time of 30:34.

World Athletics, in its statement, lauded Ngetich's achievement by saying, “As well as being the fastest women-only 10km, Ngetich's time is the third-quickest by a woman in history." 

This achievement is only behind the remarkable runs of 29:14 and 29:19 by Ethiopia's Yalemzerf Yehualaw, both accomplished in mixed races.

The remarkable feat was not just a win for Ngetich in terms of accolades but also a significant financial windfall. 

The race organizers had initially placed the prize money at $5,000 (Ksh 731,000). However, smashing a world record comes with its unique set of rewards. and Ngetich is set to receive an additional bonus of $50,000 (Ksh7.3 million) from World Athletics.

This sums up to a whopping total of $55,000 (Ksh8.4 million) that Ngetich will be taking home, a well-deserved reward for her impeccable performance.

Speaking after the race, an ecstatic Ngetich remarked, “It is quite a surprise to me. I didn’t expect to break the world record. All I ever wanted was a personal best (PB) of 30:00 or 30:02 but to set a new world record in the women’s 10km was the last thing I expected.”

As fans across the globe celebrate her achievement, many are confident that this is just the beginning for the World Cross Country bronze medalist. 

With youth on her side and a clear demonstration of her capability, the world waits in anticipation of her next move. Will she redefine another record, or perhaps set a new standard for future generations to aspire towards? Only time will tell. 

For now, Agnes Ngetich revels in her well-deserved moment of glory, inspiring millions and etching her name in gold.

Ngetich breaks women-only world 10km record in Brasov

Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich broke the women-only world 10km record* at the Trunsylvania 10km, clocking 29:24 at the World Athletics Elite Label road race held on Sunday (10) as part of the Brasov Running Festival in Romania.

In an impressive solo running display, the 22-year-old showed her intent from the start and covered the first 5km in 14:25 – four seconds faster than the women-only world record for that distance.

She had a lead of 10 seconds over her compatriot Catherine Reline at that point.

Racing on the loop course, Ngetich went on to pass 6.5km in 18:54 and 8.5km in 24:56 before crossing the finish line in 29:24 to record the fastest ever 10km in a women-only race, improving on the 30:01 set by the late Agnes Tirop in Herzogenaurach in 2021.

As well as being the fastest women-only 10km, Ngetich’s time is the third-quickest by a woman in history, behind only the 29:14 run by Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw in a mixed race in Castellon last year and the 29:19 Yehualaw clocked in Valencia earlier this year.

“The world record is a surprise to me,” said Ngetich, who started the 2022 race in Brasov as the pacemaker but went on to finish second in 30:30. “I didn’t expect to get the world record. I just wanted a PB, low 30 minutes to break the course record, but a world record is really a surprise.”

The race started at a fast pace right from the gun with Ngetich, Reline and Uganda’s Joy Cheptoyek leaving the pacemaker – who had been asked to lead the runners through 5km in 15:00 – quickly behind.

The trio sped through 1500m in 4:12 and Cheptoyek started to lose contact with the Kenyan pair a kilometre later. Ngetich and Reline went through 3km in 8:32 but it was only a few hundred metres down the road in the Coresi district on the outskirts of the Transylvanian city that the latter started to drift back. From then on, Ngetich was out on her own.

Ngetich, who claimed bronze at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships in Bathurst in February and then finished sixth in the 10,000m final at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 last month, set a women-only world 5km record with her split of 14:25, improving on the 14:29 achieved by Ethiopia’s Senbere Teferi in Herzogenaurach on the same day that Tirop set her 10km mark.

By 7km, Ngetich had built up an 18-second lead over Reline and the gap just kept on widening.

As Ngetich passed the 8.5km checkpoint in 24:56, Reline was second in 25:29, and the leader continued to fly over the final section of the three-lap course before gaining her second world record of the morning.

“I started the year with the World Cross, which was perfect, so I wanted to close the season with a good result,” explained Ngetich, who achieved that aim in sensational style.

Reline held on to finish second in 30:14, while Cheptoyek placed third in 30:34.

The men's race was won by Weldon Langat, who completed a Kenyan double in 27:05.

A group of seven athletes went through 5km in 13:30, with another four just two seconds further back at the halfway point.

Surges in the sixth kilometre by Kenya’s Amos Kurgat and Dennis Kibet saw the pair pull away, with Langat being towed along comfortably in their wake.

Kibet continued to regularly push the pace over the course of the next three kilometres but with just over one kilometre to go, he started to pay for his service at the front.

As Kurgat and Langat embarked on the final kilometre, the latter used that as a signal to change gears and made a decisive move that took him to victory just over two-and-a-half minutes later.

Kurgat took second place in 27:12, while the 2018 world U20 5000m champion Edward Zakayo Pingua came through strongly over the final kilometre, firstly overtaking the tiring Kibet and then almost catching Kurgat to complete an all-Kenyan podium in third place with 27:14.

Mile wins for Van Riel and Mechaal

The Trunsylvania 10km took place on the second day of the Brasov Running Festival, with Saturday (9) offering elite mile races.

Robin van Riel of the Netherlands and Turkiye’s Emine Hatun Mechaal claimed victories in the European Road Mile, winning in national records of 4:05.5 and 4:41.7, respectively.

Mechaal was the first across the line as dusk started to fall over the Coresi district, after a well calculated run that saw the 2014 European U20 cross country champion pull away from her nearest rivals over the final 100 metres.

Romania’s Cristina Balan finished second in 4:43.0, while Greek 1500m champion Melissa Anastasakis was third in 4:44.0, both women also setting national records.

In the men’s race, runners in the leading pack were reluctant to go with pacemaker Stephen Masindet and they passed 1km in an unofficial 2:40.0, which made the anticipated sub-four-minute time and a world record highly unlikely.

In the end, Van Riel was able to outsprint his younger compatriot Stefan Nillessen in a thrilling duel as the finish line approached.

Van Riel clocked 4:05.5 to Nillessen’s 4:05.8, with Italy’s Giovanni Filippi third in 4:07.2.

Further elite mile action will be on offer in Riga next month as the World Athletics Road Running Championships hosts mile, 5km and half marathon races.

Ben Flanagan shatters Canadian record at B.A.A. 5K

For the second year in a row, the men’s Canadian 5K record was shattered at the B.A.A. 5K in Boston. Ben Flanagan of Kitchener, Ont., placed second in the race and broke the previous Canadian record by ten seconds in 13:26.

There was a lot of buzz around the Canadian 5K record heading into Saturday’s race, with Charles Philibert-Thiboutot of Quebec City coming in as the national record holder and defending B.A.A. 5K champion, while Flanagan came into the race as the reigning Canadian 5K champion, holding the second-fastest 5K time in Canadian history. 

The men’s elite race got out quickly, going through the first mile in four minutes and 12 seconds (13:00-flat pace). Flanagan and Philibert-Thiboutot found themselves in the chase pack after Ethiopia’s Tsegay Kidanu was off to an early lead. Philibert-Thiboutot drove the chase pack to catch Kidanu at the 3K point. 

In the final mile, a large pack of 15 runners was still in contention, lining up for a sprint finish on Charles St. through the Boston Common. Flanagan made a move with his Very Nice Track Club training partner, U.S. miler Morgan Beadlescomb,with 300 metres to go, and held on to finish second behind Beadlescomb in 13:26. Kenya’s Edwin Kurgat finished third in 13:27. 

Flanagan took a glance over his shoulder with one mile to go and couldn’t believe how many guys were in the lead group. “When Morgan made his move, I knew I had to keep myself close to him,” says Flanagan. “He and Charles are 1,500m guys, so you know they are explosive.”

“The race was awesome,” says Flanagan. “Even though I ran there four years ago, it well exceeded my expectations.”

This 5K record is the third Canadian road record Flanagan has broken in the last 12 months. Last June, he broke the long-standing Canadian 10K record at the B.A.A. 10K in Boston, finishing fourth in 28:11. Four months later, he ran the Canadian half-marathon record of 61-flat, beating Cam Levins by four seconds at the Valencia Half Marathon. Levins later took the half-marathon record back, running 60:18 at the Vancouver First Half in February. 

“My goal is to make a world’s team,” says Flanagan. “It annoys me that I haven’t been able to do it yet.”

Flanagan and Philibert-Thiboutot will head back to the track to chase the 2023 world championships 5,000m standard of 13:07:00 at the Sound Running Invitational in Los Angeles on May 6.

Canada’s Julie-Anne Staehli finished 13th in the women’s 5K, in 15:50. The 2022 world championship steeplechase bronze medallist, Mekides Abebe of Ethiopia, won the women’s race in a sprint finish ahead of Kenya’s Agnes Ngetich, in 15:01. American Annie Rodenfels of Boston finished third in 15:12.

Olympic Steeple Bronze Medalist Benjamin Kigen And World XC Champ Beatrice Chebet Lead Fields For BAA 5k

Patriots’ Day Weekend will kickoff with exciting competition, as international and U.S. stars take to the roads for the 2023 B.A.A. 5K presented by Point32Health, and the 2023 B.A.A. Invitational Mile on Saturday, April 15.

Among the professional athletes entered in the B.A.A. 5K are reigning champions Charles Philibert-Thiboutot (Canada), Marcel Hug (Switzerland), and Jenna Fesemyer (USA), while recently crowned world cross country champion Beatrice Chebet of Kenya will make her Boston road racing debut. Local Bay State stars Johnny Gregorek and Ellie Shea will compete in the B.A.A. Invitational Mile, a three-lap race starting and finishing on Boylston Street.

“This year’s professional fields blend together experience with up-and-coming stars for the B.A.A. 5K and B.A.A. Invitational Mile,” said Mary Kate Shea, B.A.A. Director of Professional Athletes. “Participants, spectators, and running enthusiasts will get to witness world class competition at shorter distances two days before the 127th Boston Marathon."

International standouts will be at the front of the B.A.A. 5K, led by Kenya’s Benjamin Kigen – an Olympic bronze medalist in the 3000m steeplechase from 2021—and Philibert-Thiboutot, who set a Canadian national record at the 2022 B.A.A. 5K en route to winning in 13:35. Philibert-Thiboutot’s countryman Ben Flanagan, a three-time Falmouth Road Race winner, as well as reigning B.A.A. Half Marathon champion Geoffrey Koech of Kenya, are also entered. Leading the American contingent is Olympian Mason Ferlic, two-time World Cross Country participant Emmanuel Bor, U.S. Road Mile champion Eric Avila, and NCAA All-American Morgan Beadlescomb.

On the women’s side, 2023 World Cross Country champion Beatrice Chebet and bronze medalist Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) will take on World Athletics Championships 3000m steeplechase bronze medalist Mekides Abebe (Ethiopia), all racing the B.A.A. 5K for the first time. The United States will be well represented in the women’s professional ranks, with reigning USA 5K national champion Weini Kelati, defending B.A.A. Invitational Mile winner Annie Rodenfels, 2022 USA Club Cross Country champion Bethany Hasz, Olympian Marielle Hall, and 2022 USATF 10,000m bronze medalist Natosha Rogers all racing. Rodenfels and Hasz are members of the B.A.A. High Performance Team, training in Boston under coach Mark Carroll.

International standouts will be at the front of the B.A.A. 5K, led by Kenya’s Benjamin Kigen – an Olympic bronze medalist in the 3000m steeplechase from 2021—and Philibert-Thiboutot, who set a Canadian national record at the 2022 B.A.A. 5K en route to winning in 13:35. Philibert-Thiboutot’s countryman Ben Flanagan, a three-time Falmouth Road Race winner, as well as reigning B.A.A. Half Marathon champion Geoffrey Koech of Kenya, are also entered. Leading the American contingent is Olympian Mason Ferlic, two-time World Cross Country participant Emmanuel Bor, U.S. Road Mile champion Eric Avila, and NCAA All-American Morgan Beadlescomb.

On the women’s side, 2023 World Cross Country champion Beatrice Chebet and bronze medalist Agnes Ngetich (Kenya) will take on World Athletics Championships 3000m steeplechase bronze medalist Mekides Abebe (Ethiopia), all racing the B.A.A. 5K for the first time. The United States will be well represented in the women’s professional ranks, with reigning USA 5K national champion Weini Kelati, defending B.A.A. Invitational Mile winner Annie Rodenfels, 2022 USA Club Cross Country champion Bethany Hasz, Olympian Marielle Hall, and 2022 USATF 10,000m bronze medalist Natosha Rogers all racing. Rodenfels and Hasz are members of the B.A.A. High Performance Team, training in Boston under coach Mark Carroll.

WXC Bathurst 23 senior women's preview: Gidey goes for gold against tough opposition

Had the World Athletics Cross Country Championships Bathurst 23 gone ahead in 2021 as originally planned, there’s a strong chance that Letesenbet Gidey would already be a world champion at the discipline.

The Ethiopian was in sensational form in 2020 and 2021, setting world records of 14:06.62 for 5000m and 29:01.03 for 10,000m. She had to settle for bronze at the Olympic Games at the longer event, but she prioritized global honors over records in 2022 and was rewarded with her first world title on the track, winning the 10,000m in Oregon in a nail-biting race.

The 24-year-old is now focused on winning her first individual senior world cross-country title. She won back-to-back U20 crowns in 2015 and 2017, joining an elite club of athletes to achieve the feat, alongside Faith Kipyegon and Genzebe Dibaba.

Gidey finished third in the senior women’s race in 2019 and earned gold in the team competition, but this time she heads to Bathurst as one of the big favorites.

If her performance at the Jan Meda Cross Country – Ethiopia’s trial event for the World Cross – is anything to go by, Gidey is certainly in form to challenge for gold in Bathurst. In that race back on 1 January, she bided her time until the last kilometer of the race and then soon opened up a gap of about 20 seconds on a strong domestic field.

It looked as though she was running within herself, too.

As much as individual glory will be Gidey’s biggest goal on Saturday, she will also want to earn gold in the team standings, and Ethiopia will once again be in with a great shout of doing exactly that.

Gete Alemayehu, who has a 1:06:37 half marathon PB, was second in the trial race, just ahead of 30:06.01 10,000m performer Tsigie Gebreselama, bronze medalist in the U20 race in Aarhus in 2019. Fellow Ethiopian Fotyen Tesfaye just missed out on a top-10 placing in Aarhus, so will be keen to improve on that in Bathurst.

But Gidey and her Ethiopian compatriots won’t have an easy ride, as they’ll be up against someone who is undefeated in international cross-country races for more than a year.

Eritrea’s Rahel Daniel has dominated the World Athletics Cross Country Tour and currently tops the season standings thanks to her three victories last month. She won at the prestigious Campaccio meeting in San Giorgio su Legnano, then two days later triumphed in Elgoibar, winning by eight seconds. More recently she won in Hannut, racing in heavy snow, showing she can cope well in any conditions.

Daniel enjoyed a successful 2022 campaign on the track, setting national records for 5000m (14:36.66) and 10,000m (30:12.15), the latter when placing fifth at the World Championships in Oregon.

But the 21-year-old is clearly more at home on cross country, and despite this being her World Cross debut, Daniel will have high hopes for a podium finish.

Beatrice Chebet is just as formidable an opponent, though. The Kenyan took 5000m silver at the World Championships last year and won the U20 women’s title at the 2019 World Cross in Aarhus. She is also the African, Commonwealth and Diamond League 5000m champion, and is a former world U20 champion on the track.

She has raced just twice in cross-country events since the end of the track season, but won both of her races. She won by 13 seconds in Atapuerca in November and by 15 seconds at the Cinque Mulini in January.

In the absence of Chebet at the Kenyan trials, teenager Grace Loibach Nawowuna was a surprising winner of the senior women’s race, beating Olympic semifinalist Edinah Jebitok by four seconds. The Kenyan team also includes two-time world cross-country champion Emily Chebet and Agnes Ngetich.

Burundi’s Francine Niyonsaba missed the peak of the 2022 track season through injury, but still managed to win three races on the Wanda Diamond League circuit, and then triumphed at the Venta de Banos Cross Country in December. In her latest appearance, though, she was a distant fifth in Elgoibar, some 47 seconds behind Daniel.

Stella Chesang, the 2018 Commonwealth 10,000m champion, was a dominant winner of the recent Ugandan Cross Country Championships and is keen to improve on her 21st-place finish from the 2019 World Cross. She is joined on the Ugandan team by world U20 5000m bronze medallist Prisca Chesang.

Olympic finalist Nozomi Tanaka, who holds national records for 1000m, 1500m and 3000m, leads the Japanese team. The 2018 world U20 3000m champion placed 39th at the last World Cross when she was still just 19 years of age, so she’ll be hoping for a higher position this time. Ririka Hironaka, who earned U20 team bronze in 2019, will also be flying the Japanese flag in Bathurst.

Ednah Kurgat and Weini Kelati feature on the US team, while Australia’s Rose Davies and Leanne Pompeani will aim to give the home crowd something to cheer for. Other contenders include Canada’s Regan Yee, Mexico’s Laura Galvan, and Britain’s Abbie Donnelly.