By I. Hansana, Jadetimes News
Uganda's Joshua Cheptegei triumphed in the men’s Olympic 10,000 meter race at the Stade de France, overcoming strategic efforts from the Ethiopian team. Cheptegei, a three time world champion, set an Olympic record with a time of 26 minutes and 43.14 seconds on Friday.
Ethiopia’s Berihu Aregawi narrowly secured the silver medal, edging out American Grant Fisher by two hundredths of a second with a time of 26:43.44. Cheptegei, who also holds the world record for the event, added the Olympic 10,000 meter title to his collection, earning the first track gold of the Games. His final time shaved 18 seconds off Kenenisa Bekele’s 2008 Olympic record.
Throughout the race, Aregawi was part of a coordinated Ethiopian front running trio. The field of 13 athletes remained closely packed for the final two thirds of the race, all finishing under 27 minutes. Early in the 25 lap race, Ethiopian runners Selemon Barega and Yomif Kejelcha accelerated to break up the field. Cheptegei and teammate Jacob Kiplimo's strategy faced a setback when Martin Magengo Kiprotich fell off the pace early on.
As Aregawi and Kejelcha increased their pace at the halfway point, the main pack reduced to 15 runners. With 10 laps remaining, Barega led, with Canada’s Mohammed Ahmed and Kenya’s Benard Kibet closely following. Cheptegei and Fisher gradually moved up the pack while Kejelcha continued to push the pace.
In the final kilometer, Aregawi led, but the race remained tightly contested. Just before the final lap, Cheptegei surged ahead, leading a dramatic finish. Despite a strong challenge, Ahmed took fourth, Kibet fifth, and Fisher managed to secure a medal. Barega finished seventh in 26:44.48, one place behind Kejelcha.
In another notable event, the USA set a new world record in the 4×400 mixed relay during the opening heats on the purple track, finishing in 3 minutes and 7.41 seconds. This surpassed their previous record of 3:08.80 set at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. The American team led a fast field, with four national records broken alongside the world mark.
American Shamier Little expressed confidence in their performance, noting that setting a record was necessary to win a medal. The French team, supported by a passionate home crowd, finished second in 3:10.60, ahead of Belgium (3:10.74) and Jamaica (3:11.06). The Americans were keen to avoid the mishaps of the previous Olympics, where they were initially disqualified from the final before being reinstated and eventually winning bronze.
