Faithful in Gold: Chepng’etich stands firm as Obiri fades to sixth in 1,500m

Kenya's Faith Chepngetich competes sprints to the finish line during the women's 1,500m race at the Hampden Park in Glasgow Commonwealth Games. [PHOTO:AFP]

Faith Chepng’etich has earned more than what most of her peers around the world have achieved.

At an age, when most people would be trying to rediscover their true self, Chepng’etich, 19, has asready won World Youth and World Junior Championships titles, with the Africa record of 3:56.98 set at the IAAF Diamond League in Doha, Qatar, last year.

A Form Three Student at Winner’s Girls’ High School in Kuresoi, exhibited the exceptional courage to snatch Commonwealth Games 1,500m gold medal here at Hampden Park Stadium on Tuesday night.

She beat a classy field that included World Indoor silver medalist Hellen Obiri and a strong Australian and Canadian challenge to win her maiden track championship race since graduating to seniors, having won the Africa cross country championships in Kampala, Uganda, last March.

A beaming Chepng’etich then borrowed a famous Nigerian proverb ‘a determined hunter is never frightened in the jungle’ to re-affirm her prowess.

“I thank God for the win. I went to the race with confidence and when I realised Obiri could not catch up, I decided to sprint. Our chances for a 1-2-3 sweep had dimmed but I was still very strong and I could not stop fighting,” said Chepng’etich.

Not bad for a girl who initially wanted to improve on her father Samuel Koech’s shows on the track.

In the genes

“My father was a good 800m and 1,500m runner. Unfortunately, he did not board any plane to showcase his talent. He could only win his races up to nationals and return home as there were no big competitions like we have these days,” Chepng’etich, a two-time world cross country junior champion, said.

The 19-year-old Chepng’etich has impeccable credentials from the time she won the World Cross-Country junior race in Punta Umbria (2011), running barefoot. She has an insatiable hunger to expand her fledgling collection with IAAF World Youth and World Junior 1,500m titles safely tucked into her trophy cabinet.

“We will rectify the miscalculations we made here in Morocco (at the Africa Championships in August). We want to get the two positions to Inter-Continental Championships,” said Chepng’etich, who will compete in Zurich Diamond League meeting.

She bagged the gold medal in 4:08.94 ahead of England’s Weightman Laura (4:09.24) and Canada’s Van Buskirk Kate (4:09.41), who settled for silver and bronze.

Obiri, who set the new 4:04.08 games record in the semifinal and shattered the games record mark of 4:05.26 set by former Olympic champion Nancy Jebet Lagat in New Delhi Games, miscalculated in the final 200m to finish fifth in 4:10.84. Sela Jepleting (4:17.88) scooped the wooden spoon.

Obiri was also fresh from breaking two records this season, where she made a night for Kenya to remember when she set the Africa 3,000m record in 8:20.68 at the IAAF Diamond League opening leg in Doha, Qatar, last May, before breaking the US all-comers 1,500m meet record at the Diamond League race in Eugene, Oregon.