Hamburg welcomes Chesang to marathon arena

Previously, a long-distance running athlete would have to first exhaust all available opportunities but now; a quick transition from track to road is becoming a common thing in Uganda.

Top stars like Joshua Cheptegei will still maintain the old tradition and wait for later, like Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele and Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge have done.

But, the country now boasts of fairly younger marathoners than before. Stella Chesang is taking that route. 

She made the bold decision with plans from her Dutch management Global Sports Communication (GSC) upon return from maternity last year.

At 26, she will, on Sunday, make her debut over the 42km event she lines-up in the women’s elite field at the Hamburg Marathon in Germany.

This moment has been built by a series of sub-plots led by her performance managers Valentin Trouw and Jurrie van der Velden.

Last year, she won the Cape Town 10K in South Africa and took third place at the Seven Hills 17K Run in Nijmegen as well as the New Delhi Half-Marathon in India, setting national records in both races.

In between, she bid farewell to track with 14th and fourth place finishes some 18 days apart at the Oregon World Championships in the USA and the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in England.

Upon winning the national cross-country title in Tororo in December, Chesang has since switched camp from Iten, Kenya to Kapchorwa, working with a programme under coach Addy Ruiter and his assistants like Denis Okudach.

“I want to qualify for the World Championships and the Paris Olympics,” she said in an interview early this year. Already, she took a strong 10th place finish at World Cross-country Championships in Bathurst, Australia back in February.

After her training partner Mercyline Chelangat debuted with a strong second place finish at the Enschede Marathon in the Netherlands a week ago, Chesang has some work to do to qualify for the Budapest World Championships set for Hungary in August.

The 2018 Commonwealth 10000m champion must post under the qualifying standard time of two hours and 28 minutes. 

Three Ugandan women have already filled up the available marathon quota slots to Budapest but Chesang must beat Linet Chebet’s time of 2:26:22 from fourth place at last year’s Madrid Marathon in Spain to be safe.

“We hope for a very good result,” said Okudach before travelling to Hamburg. “2:21:00, that’s the plan,” he added.

Chesang will be tested by a field comprising fellow debutant Tiruye Mesfin of Ethiopia and compatriot Sintayehu Tilahun who posted a personal best of 2:22:19 in second place at last year’s Milan Marathon in Italy.

But, Chesang will have company of other Ugandans including 2021 winner Martin Musau who will run the men’s 42km event, hoping to post under 2:07:14 to qualify for Budapest.

Matthew Chekwurui and Bernard Cheptoch will be pace makers in Hamburg and so will be Boniface Sikowo at the London Marathon in England today.

CHESANG AT A GLANCE

Date of birth: December 1, 1996

Major races: 5000m, 10000m, 10km, 21km

Personal Best: 15:00.72 (5000m), 31:01.04 (10000m), 30:40 (10km), 1:08:11 (21km)

Major Honour: 2018 Commonwealth Gold (10000m)

Manager: Jurrie van der Velden

2023 BUDAPEST WORLD ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

MEN’S MARATHON - TEAM UGANDA QUALIFICATION

1 Rebecca Cheptegei; Abu Dhabi Marathon (4th, 2:22:47 on Dec 17, 2022)

2 Mercyline Chelangat; Enschede Marathon (2nd, 2:24:12 on Apr 16, 2023)

3 Linet Chebet; Madrid Marathon (4th, 2:26:22 on Apr 24, 2022)

Entry Standard: 2:28:00, Qualifying window: Dec 1, 2021 - May 30, 2023

2023 BUDAPEST WORLD ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS

MEN’S MARATHON - TEAM UGANDA QUALIFICATION

1 Stephen Kissa; Hamburg Marathon (2nd, 2:04:48 on Apr 24, 2022)

2 Victor Kiplangat; Hamburg Marathon (4th, 2:05:09 on Apr 24, 2022)

3 Andrew Rotich Kwemoi; Milan Marathon (1st, 2:07:14 on Apr 2, 2023)

4 Solomon Mutai; Venice Marathon (1st, 2:08:10 on Oct 23, 2022)

5 Filex Chemongesi; Linz Marathon (8th, 2:08:42 on Oct 23, 2022)

6 Martin Musau; Amsterdam Marathon (12th, 2:09:04 on Oct 16, 2022)

7 Geofrey Kusuro; Madrid Marathon (2nd, 2:09:23 on Apr 24, 2022)

Entry Standard: 2:09:40, Qualifying window: Dec 1, 2021 - May 30, 2023