Joy as Kipsiro ends nearly-man status with Delhi double

There is a big conversation in the sports’ living room at the moment about who tops the list of Uganda’s greatest athletes after Joshua Cheptegei’s 5000m world record in Monaco, France last week.

One may suggest as many names like the late John Akii-Bua, Stephen Kiprotich, Davis Kamoga, Cheptegei too but there is genuine consensus that Moses Kipsiro ought to be part of that elite list.

He has achieved it all in the long-distance running journey, except one - an Olympic medal.
And similarly, medal class and quantities may vary but, that is where Cheptegei lays too.

Making history
But Kipsiro is a man who cleared barriers that many Ugandans among other athletes had never reached.
Kipsiro’s most outstanding moment stretches back to 2010 when he became the first man in more than 70 years to scoop a Commonwealth long-distance double after he swept the 5000m and 10000m titles in New Delhi, India. Cheptegei emulated this feat two years ago in Gold Coast, Australia.

With that feat, Kipsiro, then 24, made for Uganda in-roads into the global conversation about long-distance running, which is heavily dominated by neighbours Kenya and Ethiopia with that feat. “It feels great to be a double champion,” said Kipsiro on October 11, 2010 after winning the 25-lap race to complete the double at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.

A Ugandan beats Kipchoge
For Kipsiro to earn the double, he had to first beat his familiar foe Kenyan Eliud Kipchoge over the 5000m final five days prior.
Kipchoge, now 35, is currently referred to as the greatest marathoner of the modern era with 11 wins out of 12 marathons including 2016 Olympic gold.

It is difficult to imagine or think of any time he has lost a race to a Ugandan in his illustrious career.
But Kipchoge bowed to Kipsiro on October 6, 2010 which underlined perhaps that latter’s finest season ever in a career that humbly began in 1993.

“2010 is by far Kipsiro’s best season,” recalls former Daily Monitor sub-editor Sande Bashaija who closely covered Kipsiro over the years and at the Games a decade ago in India. “I think he was at his peak even as we expected more from him,” he says.

Series of misfortune
But this was at a time Kipsiro often crumbled under the weight of expectation. “Going into the Commonwealth Games, he had recorded some decent but heart breaking performances,” Bashaija states.

“At the 2009 World Cross-country in Jordan, Kipsiro had gold in his fours. We had even started celebrating, then from nowhere, Ethiopia’s Gebremariam (Gebregziabher), beat him to the line with less than five metres to run,” he explains.

“Then later that year, at the World Championships in Berlin, most Ugandans expected him to get a medal. He was sure he would be among the medallists. He was in contention entering the final 100 metres of the race. He finished fourth. Broken, he refused to be interviewed in the mixed season. He actually passed me like he had never seen me. It was understandable. A day later, he called me to apologize and express his disappointment.”
But the short falls were not over yet.

“Two months before Delhi, Kipsiro got us on our feet during the 10000m final (at the Africa Senior Championships) in Nairobi. He was in the lead only to surrender the gold in the final five metres. His final kick let him down, again. He expected to make amends in the 5000m but fell to Team Kenya’s clever tactics orchestrated by Kipchoge.

He went back to work and promised to come better in Delhi. Going into the Games, he was so confident. He wanted the double and delivered superbly. He got his revenge on Kenya and Kipchoge in particular,” the former runner Bashaija adds.

A long battle with Kenyans
In that 5000m final, Kipsiro held his nerve with a powerful resolve against Kipchoge in the last two laps, winning in a time of 13 minutes and 31.25 seconds.

“The duel between Kipsiro and Kipchoge was breathtaking.
Kipsiro hit the front with about 800m to run and we thought he would choke. Teammates and coaches were actually screaming at him to hold it a little longer. But he cruised as Kipchoge pressured till the finish line in vain,” Bashaija memoirs.

Kipchoge settled for silver with a time of 13:31.32 whereas his compatriot Mark Kiptoo won bronze after posting 13:32.58. But Kipsiro’s battles with Kenya were not done yet. The following week on that Monday of October 11, 2010, he was up against another Kenyan trio of Daniel Salel, Joseph Birech and Titus Mbishei in the field of 16.

53.96 for the last lap
This was equally a thrilling race to the finish, Kipsiro winning it in 27:57.39, 18 micro-seconds ahead of the trio.

“He (Kipsiro) was under immense pressure. He ran that final lap like he was competing in a 400m sprint, starting from the bell. Salel and Mbishei were breathing down his neck. I think they were also determined to avenge Kipchoge’s loss.

“Stunningly, Kipsiro ran the final lap in 53.96 seconds. That’s a record that went unnoticed by many,” Bashaija says. “Even in his current shape, Cheptegei would struggle to produce such a fast lap be it in 5000m or 10000m. I think his fastest lap in Monaco was 59.64.” Athletes, especially champions, are normally subject to doping tests immediately after races. Bashaija waited for Kipsiro for four hours after his 10000m triumph.

“He had been confined in the stadium by the anti-doping team. They wanted a urine sample yet his body was drained. Delhi was so humid and I think the long race had sucked the last drop of water from his body through sweating.”

“So, the anti-doping team gave him litres of water and asked him to jog around the track to awaken the system so it could produce urine. He jogged around 10 laps and eventually provided the sample. All the while, the late Godfrey Nuwagaba and I were there waiting. Back in the newsroom, they were on my neck waiting for the story,” adds Bashaija.

Kispiro would later talk to the then frustrated sub-editor: “I came here to win gold and nothing else. I was very confident and had studied the Kenyans’ strategy before the race.”

That Monday was iconic as Kipsiro ensured Uganda’s 67-man team comprising 12 runners returned from the Indian capital with double delight. Uganda finished 18th on the medal table.

Kipsiro returned to the Commonwealth Games four years later and successfully defended his 10000m crown in Glasgow, Scotland and would a year later switch from track to road.

He will be almost 35 by the time the Tokyo Olympics in Japan come next July which could be his last realistic chance to attempt an Olympic medal.

2010 CW GAMES
MEN’S 5000M FINAL
1. Moses Kipsiro (UGA) 13:31.25
2. Eliud Kipchoge (KEN) 13:31.32
3. Mark Kiptoo (KEN) 13:32.58

MEN’S 10000M FINAL
1. Moses Kipsiro (UGA) 27:57.39
2. Daniel Salel (KEN) 27:57.57
3. Joseph Birech (KEN) 27:58.58

At a glance

Full Name: Moses Ndiema Kipsiro
Date of Birth: September 2, 1986
Manager: Ricky Simms
Kit Sponsor: Adidas

PERSONAL BESTS ON TRACK
1500m: 3:37.60 (2008)
3000m: 7:30.95 (2009)
5000m: 12:50.72 (2007)
10000m: 27:04.48 (2012)

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