Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru
Bengaluru, Apr 27: It was a historic day for Uganda at the TCS World 10K Bengaluru as Sarah Chelangat and Joshua Cheptegei claimed top honors in their respective categories, each taking home the prestigious title and a prize of USD 26,000. They became the first Ugandans ever to win the World 10K titles at this World Athletics Gold Label event.
In the women's race, starting at 5:30 AM, all eyes were on an elite field, with eight athletes boasting personal bests better than the event record.
However, 23-year-old Sarah Chelangat had other plans. Breaking away just two kilometers into the race, she widened the gap relentlessly, never once looking back. Passing the halfway mark at 15:23, she was already 20 seconds ahead of her nearest competitors, and she maintained her dominance to cross the finish line at 31:07 — just over 30 seconds shy of the event record.
"I felt the pace was slow, so I decided to push early and just kept going," Sarah shared after her victory. Already a double gold medallist at the 2018 Youth Olympics and a Paris 2024 Olympic finalist, Sarah’s future looks exceptionally bright.
Meanwhile, the men's race saw a fierce battle with a dozen runners staying packed in the early stages. At the 5K halfway point (14:01), Tanzania's Gabriel Geay led the field, but a slow pace signaled that breaking records was unlikely — it would come down to sheer grit.
Joshua Cheptegei, one of the world's top distance runners, showed his class as the group thinned to five athletes by the 8K mark. With 2 kilometers to go, Cheptegei turned on the afterburners, holding off an aggressive final surge from Eritrea’s 17-year-old prodigy Saymon Tesfagiorgis Amanuel. Joshua clocked 27:53 to claim the crown, with Saymon finishing just two seconds behind. Kenya’s Vincent Lagat secured third with a time of 28:02.
"Being the favorite comes with pressure, especially when younger athletes like Saymon are pushing hard," Cheptegei admitted post-race. "Patience always pays off in the long run."
Young Saymon, who called racing alongside Cheptegei "a big privilege," continues to impress, having recently clocked a national best of 27:10 in Lille.
On the Indian front, Abhishek Pal and Sanjivani Jadhav delivered stellar performances despite a grueling recent schedule. Fresh off the Federation Cup in Kochi, Pal improved his 10K best to 29:12, finishing seventh overall and setting a new Indian event record. He earned Rs 3,00,000 as the top Indian male finisher, with an additional Rs 1,00,000 for the record. Sawan Barwal impressed on his 10K debut, finishing in 29:45.
Among the women, seasoned runner Sanjivani Jadhav clocked 34:16 to top the Indian women's field once again, securing her Rs 3,00,000 prize.
The TCS World 10K Bengaluru once again lived up to its reputation, combining international star power, emerging young talent, and local grit in a celebration of world-class distance running.