Can Team Kenya stop the history-chasing Kiplimo?
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Reading Time: 3min | Thu. 08.01.26. | 12:28
Uganda had dominated the men's individual title for the last three editions. The last Kenyan to lift the individual title is Geoffrey Kamworor, who went back-to-back in 2015 and 2017
Daniel Simiu Ebenyo-captained Team Kenya to Saturday's, 10 January World Athletics Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee have their work cut out as they go up against a stacked field, led by back-to-back champion Jacob Kiplimo.
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The Ugandan, already one of the defining cross-country runners of his era, is chasing a rare slice of sporting immortality.
Victory in Tallahassee would make the Ugandan just the fourth man in history to win three successive world cross-country titles, a feat previously achieved by John Ngugi, Paul Tergat and Kenenisa Bekele.
Since winning his second world cross-country title in 2024, Kiplimo has raced sparingly on the track and instead has focused more on the roads.
Last year, he placed second at the London Marathon in 2:03:37 on his debut at the distance, then went on to win the Chicago Marathon in a national record of 2:02:23, making him the seventh fastest man in history.
He has not raced since then and will arrive in Tallahassee with fresh legs and the motivation to make history.
His biggest rival on Saturday has, however, been touted to be Berihu Aregawi, who has followed Kiplimo home for silver at both the 2023 and 2024 editions of the World Cross Country Championships.
Nine seconds separated the pair in 2023; that gap shrank to just three seconds in 2024.
It is a narrowing that hints at a rivalry reaching boiling point and at the tantalising possibility that the balance could yet tip.
The Ethiopian arrives in Tallahassee with unfinished business and the knowledge that, on his day, he has the strength and speed to finally deny Kiplimo a hat-trick.
Having already won four global silver medals – two at cross country, one outdoors (10,000m at the 2024 Olympics) and one indoors (3000m at the 2025 World Indoor Championships) – the 24-year-old is long overdue for a first global gold.
Ethiopia’s depth ensures that Aregawi will not be carrying the nation’s hopes alone.
Bereket Nega emerged victorious at the Jan Meda Cross Country, which doubled as the Ethiopian trials, stamping his authority in a race that also saw Aregawi, Tadese Worku, and Hagos Eyob finish close behind.
That quartet gives Ethiopia a formidable blend of endurance, tactical nous, and championship experience, keeping them firmly in the frame for the team title.
Uganda has made the team podium at the past four editions, but this year they will be without 2019 world cross-country champion Joshua Cheptegei.
Dan Kibet, who finished 11th in 2024, should bolster Uganda’s chances alongside Kiplimo.
Beyond the traditional powerhouses, the contenders list reads like a roll call of modern distance running. World 10,000m champion Jimmy Gressier suffered a narrow defeat at last month’s European Cross Country Championships, where Spain’s Thierry Ndikumwenayo went on to take gold.
They will both be in Tallahassee, ready not only to renew their continental rivalry but also to challenge for individual honours.
Gressier is joined on the French team by 2023 European cross-country champion Yann Schrub.
Canada’s 2021 Olympic 5000m silver medallist Moh Ahmed makes his first appearance at the World Cross since 2013. World and Olympic finalist Adriaan Wildschutt, who holds the South African records from 3000m up to the half-marathon, makes his World Cross debut.
Australia’s Ky Robinson, who finished fourth over 5000m at last year’s World Championships, could also be one to watch.
Other contenders include Tanzania’s Gabriel Geay, runner-up at the 2023 Boston Marathon and 2022 Valencia Marathon, and Burundi’s Celestin Ndikumana, a regular on the World Athletics Cross Country Tour.
The US team is led by Parker Wolfe, the national champion, alongside Rocky Hansen, Wesley Kiptoo and outdoor US 5000m record-holder Nico Young.
The home soil advantage could inspire them to a prominent team finish.
As ever in cross country, conditions, tactics and the willingness to suffer will shape the outcome.
Additional information by World Athletics
