For the last couple of years, Uganda’s long distance runner Joshua Cheptegei had eagerly set his eyes onto the 10,000m men’s gold medal at the prestigious Olympic Games.
All his effort, focus and target was channeled towards this gold medal.
He finally achieved the feat with a record setting 26:43.14 time, coming top of Ethiopian Berihu Aregawi (26:43.44) and USA’s Grant Fisher for bronze.
The Ugandan kneeled and thanked God after a powerful kick in the last lap at Stade de France.
“I am so excited.” Cheptegei boldly acknowledged.
“It took a lot of courage. It’s really amazing, this one was still missing.” He added.
“Three times world champion, now I can add the Olympic title to this. This one is for my family. Success is not only for me but for my family, my coach, my management. The whole team around me. I could not have done it without them” Cheptegei appreciated.
With a lap to go, Cheptegei moved to the front of the pack and energized more with the sound of the bell.
He opened the gap and the rest of the race is now history with a treasured 10,000m gold and new Olympic record.
The whole sold out stadium was electrifying as the crowd cheered virtually every passing minute.
The battle for silver remained between Fisher and Berihu Aregawi of Ethiopia.
Aregawi 26:43.44 scored for silver and Fisher just 0.02 further back for bronze.
