NAIROBI, Kenya, Jul 12 – The men’s 3000m steeplechase is one of the most anticipated races at this weekend’s World Championship in Oregon owing to the fierce track rivalry among the bigwigs in the race.
World champion Conseslus Kipruto will be seeking to restore Kenyan pride – as well as announce himself big after a considerable amount of time out of the international limelight – by successfully defending his title at the iconic Hayward Field at the University of Oregon come July 18.
However, Moroccan Soufiane El Bakkali – who he beat at the last edition of the World Championship in Doha in 2019 – will be keen on adding a world title to his medal collection, which is topped by an Olympic title.
His win at last August’s Tokyo Games was a rude shock to Kenya, which has for the last five decades established themselves as the kings of the men’s 3000m steeplechase.
The history of this race is incomplete without the mention of Kenyan-born legends who have brought so much glory to the country by dominating major international events.
Names, such as, triple world champion Ezekiel Kemboi, 1992 Olympic champion Matthew Birir, 2000 Olympic champion Reuben Kosgei and 2008 Olympic bronze medalist Richard Mateelong, among others, are examples of steeplechasers who have enhanced Kenyan profile as a giant of the race.
Apart from Kipruto, Kenya will be represented in the water-and-hurdles race by Olympic bronze medalist Benjamin Kigen, 2016 African bronze medalist Abraham Kibiwott and Leonard Bett.
The talk among Kenyans, going into the contest, is that Oregon represents a chance to redeem the country’s image, dented badly when Bakkali kicked away powerfully in the last lap to walk home with gold.
“It was painful to see us lose our Olympic title because this race (3000m steeplechase) has always belonged to us. I was disappointed to miss out on Tokyo and fail to defend my title. These are some of the things that have motivated me to work hard and to want to defend my world title in Oregon,” Kipruto said in a previous interview.
However, it is not only Bakkali that the Kenyans will have to deal with but also Ethiopian Lamecha Girma who won silver in Tokyo.
The 21-year-old also boasts a silver from Doha in 2019 and will surely be dreaming of inheriting the world crown from Kipruto who he beat by nine seconds to win at the Rome Diamond League.
Kipruto, on that occasion, timed 8:08.76 to finish fourth as Kibiwott was the highest-placed Kenyan, clocking 8:06.73 in second.
Another Ethiopian to watch out for is 2019 All Africa Games silver medalist Getnet Wale, who finished third at last month’s Rome Diamond League, only a second behind Kibiwott.
