Steeplechaser Beatrice Chepkoech, who thoroughly dominated this event in 2018, picked up where she left off last year. On Saturday she completely dominated the women’s 3000m Steeplechase, beating finishing a good 30 metres ahead of second placed compatriot Cellphine Chespol.
Chepkoech took the lead at the halfway point of the race taking the lead from compatriot Caroline Tuigong who was the pacemaker. From then on she started to widen the lead with her smooth strides and effortless jumps over the barriers. In the end she finished with a world leading time and a course record. She appears set to dominate this event again in 2019.
Race Results
| POS | ATHLETE | COUNTRY | MARK | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beatrice Chepkoech | KEN | 9:04.53 | 8 |
| 2 | Celliphine Chepteek Chespol | KEN | 9:11.10 | 7 |
| 3 | Peruth Chemutai | UGA | 9:17.78 | 6 |
| 4 | Winfred Mutile Yavi | BRN | 9:19.63 | 5 |
| 5 | Mercy Chepkurui | KEN | 9:23.59 | 4 |
| 6 | Maruša Mišmaš | SLO | 9:29.48 | 3 |
| 7 | Geneviève Lalonde | CAN | 9:29.82 | 2 |
| 8 | Fancy Cherono | KEN | 9:31.00 | 1 |
| 9 | Shuangshuang Xu | CHN | 9:33.89 | |
| 10 | Luiza Gega | ALB | 9:34.94 | |
| 11 | Weynshet Ansa | ETH | 9:43.32 | |
| 12 | Mel Lawrence | USA | 9:44.36 | |
| 13 | Lucie Sekanová | CZE | 9:49.23 | |
| 14 | Özlem Kaya | TUR | 9:58.95 | |
| Viktória Gyürkés | HUN | DNF | ||
| Caroline Tuigong | KEN | DNF |
Complete Dominance
Since the inception of this event in 2005, no athlete has dominated it as much as Chepkoech. Indeed her world record time of 8:44.32 is a good 8 seconds faster than the next best time.
Why is Chepkoech so dominant. Her running style appears very smooth and she uses very little energy in her strides. But even more important is the ease with which she clears each barrier. She is a natural leaper and her height which is well above average, makes it even easier for her to clear each barrier.
| Back to Kenya Athletics Page |
