Kiplimo eyes gold as 10 000m final takes centre stage

Uganda will look to maintain its stranglehold on the men’s 10 000m final as the track and field programme gets underway at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on Tuesday.

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The Pearl of Africa nation has won the last four 10 000m titles starting way back in 2006 when Boniface Kiprop triumphed in Melbourne. Moses Kipsiro followed with two victories in Delhi (2010) and Glasgow (2014) before Joshua Cheptegei won in Gold Coast four years ago.

This year, the task to defend Uganda’s dominance in the race will fall on Jacob Kiplimo. The 21-year-old certainly has the pedigree, having clinched bronze in the 25-lap race last month at the World Athletics Championships. It was the second bronze in the distance after also finishing third in Tokyo last year.

A world-class road runner, he is the reigning World Half Marathon champion as well as the world record holder, having run 57.31 over 21K in Lisbon last November.

Predictably, the Kenyan trio of Daniel Ebenyo, Kibiwott Kandie and Edward Zakayo will provide the stiffest challenge. Kandie in particular will be looking forward to the race, having lost both the half marathon world record and the world title to the Ugandan. The 26-year-old scorched the rest of the field during Kenya’s trials and his finishing speed might prove crucial should it come to a sprint battle.

On his part, Zakayo who made a name by winning the 5000m gold at the World U20 Championships in Tampere back in 2018, is slowly working his way back into reckoning after several lean years while Ebenyo will hope to compete better than in Oregon where he placed 10th in 5000m in 13:16.64.

Fellow East African nation Tanzania will have Joseph Tiofil Panga looking to build on the silver medal won by the marathoner Alphonce Simbu last weekend.

Other highlights of the opening day of track competition will see Commonwealth Games 100m champion Akani Simbine begin the defence of his title in the heats. The South African speedster has peaked at the right time after reaching the final at the Worlds in Oregon two weeks ago.

Africa’s 100m champion Ferdinand Omanyala will also be on show, with the duo hoping to reproduce their thrilling final race in Mauritius where the Kenyan edged out his competitor by 0.003s.

Other notable Africans in the 100m heats include Ghana’s Benjamin Azamati, who has a seasonal best time of 9.90s, countryman Joseph Paul Amoah (9.94s) as well as the Nigerian duo of Udodi Chudi Onwuzurike (10.03s) and Favour Oghene Tejiri Ashe (9.99s)

In the women’s 100m, Nzubechi Grace Nwokocha, Joy Chinenye Udo Gabriel and Rosemary Chukwuma will all look to make the semis.

World 800m bronze medallist Mary Moraa will look to build on her Oregon heroics when she lines up in the heats. The 22-year-old will be buoyed by winning her first senior global medal a week ago and setting a new personal best time of 1:56.71.

South Africa’s Prudence Sekogdiso, who reached the semifinal in Oregon, will also be in contention as will former world champion Halima Nakaayi, who had a championship to forget in the US, failing to make the final.

Ezekiel Nathaniel of Nigeria will be the man to watch in the 400m hurdles heats going by his seasonal best time of 48.42s. Other African interests in the race include the Kenyan trio of Wiseman Were, William Mutunga and William Raiyan.

Southern Africa will be well represented by South Africa’s Sokwakhana Zazini and the Botswana duo of Keitumetse Maitseo and Victor Ntweng.