Whenever Joshua Cheptegei has had a shaky diamond league season, there has been the notion that he is probably done. He wasn’t part of the regular conversation this season, his hardest season ever.
Heading to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Cheptegei had not won any race after his marathon debut in Valencia in December 2023.
Based on this season, he probably wasn’t a top bet to win the 10,000m Olympic title in Paris – a title he so badly craved for after settling for silver in Tokyo. But he is the reigning 5000m Olympic champion, he is the three-time 10,000m world champion and the 5000m and 10,000m world record holder.
High accolades. Above all, he is a man of utmost faith too on top of his hard work and passion for athletics.
“Everybody says Cheptegei is done, but I come back, I come back for them,” he says.
“Always I get disappointments in the Diamond League [series] but I use it in a positive way then I come out strongly in the championships.”
“It is a God-given talent. Normally for me what is so amazing for me is God has been able to lift me up when the moment comes.”
The 10,000m was one of the best assembled fields featuring defending champion Selemon Barega from Ethiopia, as well his compatriots’ Berihu Aregawi, who won silver, and 2019 world championships silver medallist Yomif Kejelcha.
The Ethiopian trio dictated the pace. But it was a tactical run for the three-time world champion in 10,000m who sat calmly in the middle of the pack timing the right moment to make a move.
“I knew that this field was going to be fast after looking at the start list, the level was very high, and my body responded at the right time.” – Joshua Cheptegei
Cheptegei made the decisive move with 500m to go and crossed the line in 26:43.14, setting a new Olympic record previously owned by the legend Kenenisa Bekele for 16 years. What a legacy for the night!
The 27-year-old is the only second athlete after Kenenisa Bekele to hold the Olympic and World Championships 10,000m titles alongside the world record. Cheptegei has truly stepped fully in the footsteps of the Bekele.
‘Swan song’
“For me this being my last Olympics on the track, it is so special for me,” he says.
“Three times world champion, now I can add the Olympic title to this. This one is for my family. Success is not only for me but for my family, my coach, my management. The whole team around me. I couldn’t have done it without them.”
Under the open skies and floodlights, the Stade de France cheers blew over the roof, it was refreshing and deafening at the same time.
“Today was really amazing, it is most rewarding that I am winning today in Paris the crowd was wild and I knew that when I was going to the front the last 2 laps, I knew this was going to be amazing for me,” Cheptegei.
The joy of being an Olympic Champion in his favorite distance was evident, he posed next to the timing board, the lap of honour as Ugandans in the media tribune cheered. And when he walked to the mixed zone, Joshua Cheptegei was beaming with joy.
Even with such a decorated track athletics resume, Cheptegei remains gracious in victory. He paid tribute to his competitors – one of the top assembled 10,000m fields on the track.
“I really respect every athlete who lined up today, they are the best from their country, the best in the world, so it can be everybody’s chance and I am so privileged today,” Cheptegei said.
Cheptegei’s 10,000m gold medal is a culmination of 10 years since he won his maiden 10,000m golden medal as a junior in the 2014 World Junior Championships in Athletics in Oregon.
“I wanted to inspire a whole generation of young athletes who are looking at me, this win means everything to me.”
About the upcoming 5000m, he says, “Normally you don’t talk about your future, what is important is to celebrate this title”.
Paris 2024 was Cheptegei’s last track event at the Olympic Games, as he’s easing his way to marathon running.
He still has the 5000m to compete in, but the world’s great distance runner will leave a lasting legacy that will inspire not only kids in Africa but the entire next generation of distance running.
