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Kenya hopes to end 24-year wait for men’s 10,000m gold in Tokyo
Edwin Kurgat (left) hug Ronald Kwemoi (222) during the 5000m men final during Athletics Kenya Paris Olympics Trials on June 15, 2024 at Nyayo National Stadium.
Kenya has begun its bid to reclaim gold in the men’s 10,000m at the upcoming World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. The country last won the title 24 years ago, at the 2001 Championships in Edmonton, Canada. This year’s edition is scheduled for September 13–21.
Kenya will be represented over the distance in Tokyo by a strong team selected during trials at the Prefontaine Classic in the US on July 5. The three athletes who qualified to represent the country at the prestigious global event include US-based Edwin Kurgat, who is the national Collegiate Athletics Association champion in the 10,000m race.
He will be working with the World Cross Country bronze medallist Benson Kiplangat to bring the country glory in the 25-lap race that has eluded Kenya for years.
Also, in the team is the World Under-20 Cross-Country Champion over the distance, Ishamail Kipkurui. The runner was the individual winner of the 2023 World Cross Country Championships U20 race as he led his team to a gold medal finish.
Since the inception of the global event in 1983 in Helsinki, Finland, Kenya has bagged three gold medals through Paul Kipkoech (1987), Moses Tanui (1991) and the last one won by Charles Kamathi (2001).
Despite the prolonged drought, Kenya has remained competitive in the race, consistently winning silver and bronze medals.
At the 2023 Budapest games, Kenya won a silver medal through Daniel Simiu in a race that was won by Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei. The Ugandan was defending the title, which he retained for the third time in a row.
Countries have stepped up their preparations ahead of the Tokyo event. They include non-traditional athletics nations as they seek glory in Japan.
The 10,000m race will come up on the second day of the championships, on September 14, with the fresh blood in the Kenyan team hoping to recover the country its lost glory over the distance.
In an interview with Nation Sport, Kipkurui, who has been at the High-Performance Training Centre residential camp in Kazi Mingi in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, for the last one month with his teammates, believes Kenya can do well if the runners can employ teamwork.
Even with the absence of Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei, who was the defending champion but has since switched to marathon, Kenya still faces a strong challenge from a stellar Ethiopian team.
Kipkurui said the training he went through in the US, ahead of the national trials, helped him to win a slot in the national team.
“I want to go out there to compete and impress,” he said.
He added: “Our training has been going on well, and we are aware we have a big task ahead. We are not taking any chances because of the stiff competition we are expecting.”
“We have had discussions with my teammates on the need to apply teamwork so we can do well and hopefully go for all the medals on offer.”
Kurgat said he is well prepared for the race. “ I took part in the 2025 Lausanne Diamond League and finished sixth in 5,000m. I was using the race to gauge myself. It gave me confidence ahead of Tokyo. We will do well,” he said.
Tactician Gideon Chirchir, the coach of the team in Eldoret, exuded confidence that the runners would do well, but urged them to apply teamwork.
“It is a new team and everyone is eager to end Kenya’s drought in the men’s 10,000m race. However, I have urged them not to forget to work as a team. That is how we will beat our rivals.”
Former World champion Charles Kamathi, commenting on the preparations of Team Kenya, said: “For one to do well and go on top of the world, they must ensure good training. One has to be physically and mentally fit to emerge the winner.”
Kamathi, who is a police officer, bagged gold at the 2001 World Championships in Edmonton, beating Ethiopians Assefa Mezgebu and Haile Gebrselassie, who finished in second and third positions respectively.
“The race has become competitive nowadays but what athletes need to do is to stay focused and have good calculations towards the end. You have to be mentally and physically fit and always ready to make a move when your opponents do. Always relax before the race and stay focussed. Then you will finish on top,” Kamathi told Nation Sport.
Another 10,000m specialist, Paul Tanui, who bagged three bronze medals at the 2013, 2015 and 2017 World Athletics Championships, said there is a need for Kenyans to put in more work in the last 800 metres stretch.
Tanui said he believes the time for Kenyans to reclaim the title has come and teamwork has to be applied during training and also on competition day.
“I was very good at lapping, but I had a problem within the last 100 metres. That is where they would beat me,” said Tanui.
“The team must now work on the last 800m because sometimes athletes start kicking in the last two laps, and when they get that right, medals will be home.”
