Tokyo 2020 Olympics: Uganda gets 2 medals, Silver for Cheptegei, bronze for Kiplimo
Two Ugandan runners Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo bagged silver and bronze medals respectively during the men’s 10000m final during the second session of the first day of athletics at the ongoing Olympics games in Tokyo.
In the race on Friday afternoon, Ethiopia’s Seleman Barega who won gold clocked 27:43.22 to beat Cheptegei who posted a time of 27:43.63 whereas another Ugandan, Jacob Kiplimo came third.
The two runners have ensured Uganda bags its first two medals in the ongoing Olympics games in Tokyo, the Japanese capital.
Ethiopia’s Selemo Barega won the 10,000m final in a slow time of 27:43.22, denying Ugandans Joshua Cheptegei (27:43.63) and Jacob Kiplimo (27:43.88), who settled for silver and bronze.
After a tactical race that had Uganda’s Stephen Kissa set the early pace, the 21-year-old Barega outsprinted the pack in the final 400 meters.
It was a season best time for world record holder Cheptegei, but it was not enough for his much cherished gold.
“I have two feelings. One is that I’m very happy to have won an Olympic silver medal and I would say that this is really special for me as a world record-holder and as a world champion,” Cheptegei told Athletics weekly. ” But the other side of me is really not satisfied with the result because I came here expecting to win a gold, but you never know how someone has prepared and you just have to be grateful.”
Kissa told Athletics weekly, “It was a sacrifice for the team. We had a plan for me to go ahead to make it a fast race. I thought they were going to follow me but when I looked round they were not there. My team-mates stayed behind – they couldn’t do it.”
“We were planning for the gold but unfortunately we have a silver and bronze. But I’m happy. We have two medals. Maybe next time someone else will sacrifice themselves for me.”
Uganda’s only gold medals at the Olympics remain from John Akii Bua and Stephen Kiprotich.
Akii Bua clocked 47.82 in that Munich Olympics final in Germany to take a phenomenal 0.3 seconds off the world record set by the then greatest hurdler David Hemery four years earlier. More remarkable, was he run that final from the inside lane – considered the least favorite position in the one lap race.
In London 2012, Stephen Kiprotich was also an outsider going into the last event of the Olympics, the marathon.
Twice world champion Abel Kirui came second, with then London marathon champion Wilson Kipsang third.
