The women’s 10,000m final result was a wake-up call for Team Kenya that their East African neighbours, Ethiopia, are not over the hill as has been widely assumed.
Even the hundreds of Kenyans spotting Team Kenya colours and waving flags inside the magnificent Olympic Stadium appeared dazed after the race as confidence seemed to have gotten the better of them before the race.
Tirunesh Dibaba retained her Olympic title in a season best time of 30:20.75 after pulling away from the Kenyans at the bell with a kick that Sally Kipyego and Vivian Cheruiyot failed to react to.
Unlike Beijing four years ago when the Ethiopian pulled away with three laps to go to win from Abeylegesse Elvan of Turkey, here she waited until the bell to engage her famous high sprint gear.
“I would be lying to say I had any energy to chase her. In fact, I was just hanging on there, absolutely tired, hoping the race would end,” Kipyego confessed.
The race started on an unusually fast pace for a championships. Japanese Niiya Hitomi, Kayoko Fukushi and Mika Yoshikawa shot to the front from the start, exchanging the lead among themselves until the ninth lap with Irish Fionnuala Britton breathing on their necks.
The rest took the cue with Joyce Chepkurui taking the first initiative. She closed the gap, with Worknesh Kidane, Cheruiyot, Dibaba and Kipyego in tow.
At the 10th lap, the Kenyans and Ethiopians had taken charge from the Japanese and Irish pretenders. Chepkurui took the lead with Cheruiyot following. Kipyego joined them upfront as the Ethiopian and their Kenyan nemeses made the single file now bear the familiarity of the 25-lap race in many a championship. Ethiopia’s third contender Beleynesh Oljira joined in.
The Kenyans started communicating, using hand signals. The leaders crossed the 13th lap in 17:20 as the race now threatened to spiral into an all-out war between Kenya and Ethiopia. Kidane sprinted past the Kenyans with Cheruiyot, Oljira and Kipyego in hot pursuit. The pace was becoming hotter as Kenyan Chepkurui struggled.
As they approached the 17th lap, she slowed down considerably and eventually stopped, walked slowly inside the stadium, and sat beside the track.
Kidane, Cheruiyot, Kipyego and Dibaba upped the tempo. Three stewards went to Chepkurui’s rescue, helped her out of the pitch into the medical room.
The leaders, Kidane, Cheruiyot, Kipyego and Dibaba overlapped the tail-enders in the 20th lap as Kipyego took over with Kidane and Cheruiyot in hot pursuit. The four had, at this stage opened a 50-metre lead from the rest of the field.
With some 10 metres to the bell, Dibaba engaged a faster gear and accelerated down at the bend. As she hit the 300m mark, the reality downed on Kenyans that former twice world champion at 5,000m and 10,000m was not going to let gold out of the Ethiopian vault.
Cheruiyot was helpless behind Kipyego, but they soldiered on to the finish with Kidane and Oljira fourth and fifth. Kenyans are now asking whether Dibaba will also retain her 5,000m title on Friday.
