The 10,000 meters is a classic distance event. Twenty-five laps around the track, it is a moving chess match. ChristTurner, the IAAF communications manager said it best, ” a classic”–and it was. Here is how I saw the race.
Joshua Cheptegai begins his run to victory, photo by PhotoRun.net
Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda has the fastest time in the world at 10,000 meters for Juniors in 2014, with his 27:56.6. Any favorite will tell you that the pressure to perform is very difficult to deal with.
Joshua Cheptegei, Uganda, photo by Photorun.net
Early in the race, Keisuke Nakatani too the lead, hitting the 1000 meter mark in 2:55.87. He and his countrymen, Hazuma Hattori, built a lead that stretched, at one time to seventy meters. Nakatani hit the 2,000 meters at 5:51.11 as the group of thirty followers, lead by Elvis Cheboi and Joshua Cheptegei followed. How far would they give to the Japanese runners?
Keisuke Nakatani lead through the 3,000 meter mark at 8:46.07, the 4000 meters in 11:39.81 and 5,000 meters in 14:35.27.
The chase pack caught them just after 5,000 meters, and promptly slowed the pace down, as Nakatani took the lead again, through six thousand meters, in 17:31.04. He would not lead any more!
It was here that Joshua Cheptegei took over. Running a ho hum 2:56 for the seventh kilometer, (20;25.07), Cheptegei kept the lead and started to move during the eighth kilometer, hit in 23:10.02.
That kilometer broke the lead pack down to the real challengers, Cheboi, and Kosimbei, with Berhane and Mande there for only a short while longer. Cheptegai had run the kilometer 7 to 8 in 2:45, the fastest of the race!
In the ninth kilometer, Joshua Cheptegei keeps the pace hard. Elvis Cheboi and Kosimbei are the only two who can handle it, as the second kilometer at 2:46 is run, hitting kilometer 9 at 25:56.96.
And now, what does Cheptegei do to win this race? He tries to run Cheboi off his feet. Running the penultimate lap in sixty seconds. Cheptegai took 59.6 seconds to finish the last lap and insure himself victory!
Running the last 1000 meters in 2:35, the last 800 metes covered in two minutes and the last lap in 59.6!
Joshua Cheptegei wins the first championship medal of the meet for Uganda!
Cheboi, Cheptegei, Kosimbei, photo by PhotoRun.net
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