
Timothy Cheruiyot set to take on elite field in 3000m Diamond League debut
Reading Time: 2min | Fri. 07.04.23. | 12:52
Also in the race will be world indoor 3000m record holder Lamecha Girma who posted an incredible 7:23.81 in February
Olympic 1500m silver medalist Timothy Cheruiyot will make his debut in the 3000m event when he takes on an elite field in the opening leg of the 2023 Wanda Diamond League in Doha on 5 May at the Qatar Sports Club.
Cheruiyot, who claimed silver in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics- is expected to battle it out against world indoor 3000m record holder Lamecha Girma, World and Olympic steeplechase champion Soufiane El Bakkali and two-time world indoor 3000m champion Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia.
As if that was not enough competition, also joining the four will be Olympic 10,000m champion and world indoor 3000m champion Selemon Barega, world mile indoor record holder Oscar Chelimo of Uganda and world cross country U20 champion Ishmael Kipkirui (Kenya).
“This is a big year for me as I prepare to defend my world title in Budapest and I want to get it off to a good start,” Moroccan Soufiane El Bakkali - a man who is unbeaten since September 2021 told World Athletics.
“By racing against such a strong field in this opening meeting of the Wanda Diamond League, I will see how much work I still have to do,” he added.
The defence is ON 👊
— Wanda Diamond League (@Diamond_League) April 6, 2023
Morocco's 🇲🇦 3000m steeplechase Olympic champion Soufiane El Bakkali will begin his defence of the #DiamondLeague 💎 title in @dldoha on May 5th 🔥
He will also be joined in Doha by Lamecha Gurma 🇪🇹 Selemon Barega 🇪🇹 Timothy Cheruiyot 🇰🇪
Cheruiyot - a second place finisher in last year’s Zurich Diamond League meet - will be making his first attempt in the outdoor 3000m flat event in what sets up to be a thriller of a race as the 28 year old looks forward to a blistering start to the year.
The five-time Diamond League winner holds a personal best of 3:28.28 in the 1500m that he set at the Stade Louis II, Monaco in July 2021.
The leg in Doha will mark the beginning of the 2023 Wanda Diamond League calendar that will comprise 14 total meetings concluding with a single final across two days in Eugene mid September.













