Running News Daily

Joshua Cheptegei: It’s time to transition to the marathon

Three time World 10,000m champion Joshua Kiprui Cheptegei has announced his intention to transition from track events to marathon races, saying that the time has come for him to embrace a new chapter in his athletic career.

Cheptegei’s decision comes after securing his third consecutive world title in the challenging 10,000-meter race at the prestigious stage of Budapest.At 26 years, Cheptegei, who holds world records for both the 10,000-meter and 5,000-meter distances, displayed incredible determination despite sweltering temperatures, completing the race in 27 minutes and 51.42 seconds.

His exceptional performance saw him outshine competitors like Kenya’s Daniel Simiu Ebenyo, who finished with a time of 27:52.60, and his long-time rival, Selemon Barega from Ethiopia, who crossed the line in 27:52.72.Speaking after his gold-winning race, Cheptegei mentioned that it was a special moment for him to defend his title, especially considering his return from an injury.

He expressed his belief that it’s time for him to transition to marathons, as he feels his journey in the middle-distance races has been a successful one.

Cheptegei’s return to the 10,000-meter race marked his first participation since 2022, a year in which he faced an injury setback during the 5000-meter event.

However, this did not diminish his ability to outcompete a strong field of 27 athletes in Budapest. Prior to his victory in Budapest, Cheptegei encountered an unexpected challenge when his fellow athlete Jacob Kiplimo, a prominent figure on the track, had to withdraw due to a hamstring injury.Despite the increased pressure, Cheptegei rose to the occasion and emerged triumphant.

This latest gold medal signifies Cheptegei’s remarkable achievement of securing three consecutive world titles in the 10,000-meter race, a distinction previously attained by legendary athletes like Great Britain’s Sir Mo Farah and Ethiopian icons Haile Gebrselassie and Kennenisa Bekele.

This accomplishment solidifies Cheptegei’s status as one of the foremost athletes of his generation.Benjamin Njia, the coach of the Uganda Athletics Federation, expressed his support for Cheptegei’s decision to venture into marathons.

He explained that while Cheptegei will be using a marathon race in December to assess his potential, this doesn’t immediately mark his departure from track events.Cheptegei will still have two more years to compete, including the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, where he aims to win gold in the 10,000-meter race while continuing to excel in the 5,000-meter event.

Why are the best times run on Kenya soil so slow? Part 2: The Real Running Scene in the country of Kenya

The best times run on Kenyan soil are not nearly as good as times run by Kenyan runners outside the country. The best marathon time run on Kenya soil is 2:10:12 clocked by Moses Kigen in 2009. The best time for women is 2:28:04 clocked by Alice Chelangat. 

Even world record holders like Eliud Kipchoge who recently clocked 2:01:39 at the Berlin Marathon don't attempt to race on Kenya soil due to stiff competition from juniors or seniors who haven’t gotten the opportunity to run abroad. 

Most of the major races recognized by IAAF are run at very high altitude (2600m-8500 feet) above sea level.  In cities like Eldoret, Iten, Nairobi, Nyahururu, Nakuru, and Ngong there is less oxygen making it hard to run world record times.  

In cities at low altitude like Garrisa in Northern part and Mombasa where the marathon and world cross-country have been held, the humidity is very high and temperatures are so hot that a lot of runners faint due to dehydration. 

For example at the 2007 world cross-country championship in Mombasa, Kennenisa Bekele dropped out of the 10km cross country race due to high humidity and hot temperatures.

Kenya has thousands of athletes, but no race has ever been controlled at world record pace.  This is because most of athletes have no managers or even links to run abroad take out the pace of 2:40/K (13:20 5K pace) or even below in long distsance races like the marathon making it hard to break a world record due to fatigue.  

Other national records run on Kenyan soil include: 1:01:21 half marathon clocked by Philemon Baaru and 1:08:12 for women clocked by Paskalia Chepkorir. 

In the 10km for example Kamworor ran 29:11 in the 2018 cross-country while world leader in 3000m Beatrice Chepkoech ran 34:04 which is totally different when abroad. Many races are long and not measured correctly.  

Like many 10k's are actually 10.2 or 10.3.  Sometimes the clock does not start until the 200m to 300m out due to large number of athletes in a race. This has to be done to avoid athletes injuring themselves due to each athlete running very fast at the start. 

Most athletes do not have good training facilities or managers.  Pacing is a big problem in many races held in Kenya.  This is very noticeable in many major races (like the Nairobi Standard Charter Marathon) because Kenyans are used to being front runners and they run too fast at the beginning. 

Another factor is race terrain.  Most of Kenyan courses are very hilly and hard to run good times.  Many half marathons winning times in Kenya are like 65 minutes making race organizers avoid putting on marthons. 

All of these factors are why there is a big difference in best times run in Kenya and abroad.  This is why all Kenyans dream is to race outside Kenya.