Olympics: Kenyan Kipyegon Awarded Silver in Women’s 5,000m
Kenyan athletes in Paris, Aug. 6, 2024. Photo: X/ @nanana365media
August 6, 2024 Hour: 10:22 am
Beatrice Chebet and Faith Kipyegon managed to impose their power in the Olympic competition.
On Monday, Kenya’s Faith Kipyegon was awarded the silver medal in the women’s 5,000m at the Paris Games after her disqualification in the final was overturned.
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The two-time Olympic 1,500m champion crossed the line in second place behind compatriot Beatrice Chebet before she was disqualified for obstruction.
Kenya appealed the decision, arguing that she was not at fault during a brush with Ethiopia’s world record holder Gudaf Tsegay with two laps remaining.
“Faith Kipyegon of Kenya, who had been disqualified for an apparent obstruction, has been reinstated to silver after an appeal from Kenya,” read a Paris 2024 statement, adding that “It means the final podium is Beatrice Chebet, Kipyegon, and Sifan Hassan, as confirmed by World Athletics.”
Double world cross-country champion (2023 and 2024), Chebet did not give up, she finished a tactical race in better conditions, and won with a long and sustained attack ahead of Kipyegon.
Chebet won with a time of 14:28.56 to Kipyegon’s 14:29.60, while behind her the Dutch Sifan Hassan, who was trying to defend her Olympic title, at least scraped together a bronze in 14:30.61, unable to match the Kenyans.
The Italian Nadia Battocletti, who was third for a few hours due to Kipyegon’s initial disqualification due to alleged elbowing in the race, finally finished fourth with a national record (14:31.64), while the first Ethiopians, Ejgayehu Taye and Medina Eisa, were sixth and seventh, respectively.
teleSUR/ JF Sources: XInhua – EFE