Tired Kenyan world champion beaten in Zurich as Kemboi, Cheruiyot triumph

BY FEVERPITCH REPORTER

Kenyans posted mixed results at the Weltklasse Z¸rich meeting, the first of the two finals of the Samsung Diamond League on Thursday night in front of a full house of enthusiastic spectators in the city’s famous Letzigrund Stadium.

With organisers paying double prize money rather than time bonuses after the stamina sapping schedules some of the 5,000m entrants undertook in Daegu, double world champion Vivian Cheruiyot still produced a solid performance to retain her Diamond Race title.

Cheruiyot, with only Sentayehu Ejigu of Ethiopia having sufficient points to possibly fetch her downfall, was content to follow the pace from the middle of the pack set by Poland’s Renate Plis who went through the first two kilometres in 2:56.98 and 5:54.34.

Fellow Kenyan Mercy Cherono passed 3km (8:52.37) and Linet Masai the next in 11:48.99, before Cheruiyot moved alongside her colleague with 800m remaining.

With 600m left, the double World champion hit the front and although pressurised over the final circuit by Sally Kipyego, who took silver in Daegu, she held on to win with an impressive meet record of 14:30.10.

Personal best

The runner-up lowered her personal best by over eight seconds to 14:30.42, with Masai completing a clean Kenyan sweep, third in 14:35.11.

The post-World Championships fatigue which seemed to be engulfing a lot of the competitors who had been to the Far East location, was really apparent in the 1500m where there was a predictable Kenyan clean sweep but not the expected composition of names.

Nixon Chepseba, who wasn’t selected for the Kenyan team in Daegu, pulled off a coup when not only beating his higher profile rivals with a time of 3:32.74, but also collecting the overall Diamond Race title.

His finishing sprint ahead of world season leader Silas Kiplagat, who clocked 3:33.56, and Haron Keitany, who finished in 3:34.57, won him an unexpected US$40,000 and a Diamond Race Trophy.

Olympic and World 1,500m champion Asbel Kiprop, who arrived at the meet as the leader had only himself to blame for throwing away the title by just a single point. Lying third with 20m remaining he ground almost to a halt, virtually walking across the line in seventh in an unremarkable time of 3:34.89.

Koech takes Diamond Race title

Paul Kipsiele Koech retained his Diamond Race 3,000m steeplechase title although on the night had to settle for second best to World champion Ezekiel Kemboi.

Kemboi hit the front with 800 remaining but his fellow Kenyan was sticking to his back like a piece of Elastoplast and the tactic paid dividends when they got clear of third placed Benjamin Kiplagat on the final circuit.

Koech tried desperately to get past the newly crowned World champion at the final barrier but Kemboi came off it to clinch victory by 0.12sec in 8:07.72, with Kiplagat succumbing to their finishing pace, clocking 8:12.08.

The final final will be in Brussels, Belgium, next Friday

— Additional reporting by IAAF.org