Cheptegei, Kiplimo face off ahead of World Championships
Joshua Cheptegei celebrates winning gold with Jacob Kiplimo after the Men's 10,000 metres final during athletics on day nine of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games at Carrara Stadium on April 13, 2018 on the Gold Coast, Australia.
What you need to know:
- The national team will be selected this weekend before entering camp at Kapchorwa ahead of the global event.
Kampala. The athletics season officially kicks off with what promises to be exciting races at Tororo Golf Club, a venue that last hosted the event 22 years ago when a barefooted Dorcus Inzikuru, running in an oversized dress, launched her career in 1997.
Thomas Ayeko should ideally be defending his title after triumphing at Jinja King’s Park last season before the facility was rendered unavailable by developers, yet the best two distance runners in the world, Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo are assured of stealing the limelight.
Cheptegei, winner of 5000m and 10,000m titles at the Commonwealth Games last April coupled with his resounding world best for 15km record, has already faced the in-form Kiplimo, who boasts of the new 10km world best time, at the Cross Internacional De Italica Cross Country in Spain in January with the junior emerging top.
Uganda will be seeking to challenge Kenya for honours in Aarhus Denmark on March 30.
And with belief that he will make it to Denmark, Cheptegei has been working out intensively.
The national team will be selected this weekend before entering camp at Kapchorwa ahead of the global event.
“I’m really hoping to win a gold medal at the World Cross Country Championships and in the 10,000m at the World Championships in Doha,” he told Iaaf.org.
