TOKYO2025: Best friends Faith Kipyegon, Beatrice Chebet to battle in 5000m final
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Reading Time: 2min | Thu. 18.09.25. | 14:16
In the second heat, Faith Kipyegon started conservatively, trailing in 19th over the opening 100m
Kenya’s rich tradition in long-distance running was once again on display on Thursday, 18 September, after Faith Kipyegon, Beatrice Chebet, and Agnes Jebet all secured places in the women’s 5,000m final at the Tokyo World Championships.
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The trio, who boast glittering résumés: triple Olympic champion Kipyegon, double Olympic champion Chebet, and World 10km record holder Jebet, navigated their respective heats with grit and poise at the National Stadium, ensuring a strong Kenyan presence in the medal chase.
Heat One
Fresh from clinching the 10,000m gold on Saturday and seeing her 5,000m world record recently ratified, Beatrice Chebet lined up with the composure of a seasoned champion.
The race began cautiously for her, as she sat back in 11th at the 100m mark before briefly drifting to 18th. By the 500m mark, however, Chebet had slotted into fourth, keeping close tabs on early leaders Nozomi Tanaka of Japan and Canada’s Gabriela Stafford.
The tempo remained steady through the middle stages, with Chebet carefully positioned in the leading pack.
With two laps to go, she dropped briefly to fourth as Tanaka and Maureen Koster of the Netherlands pushed the pace.
But when the bell rang, Chebet unleashed her trademark finishing kick, surging past her rivals to take control and storm to victory in 14:45.59.
Italy’s Nadia Battocletti (14:46.36) and USA’s Shelby Houlihan (14:46.52) also booked automatic qualification spots, with Koster (14:46.57) and Tanaka (14:47.14) following closely behind.
Heat Two
In the second heat, Faith Kipyegon started conservatively, trailing in 19th over the opening 100m as Japan’s Ririka Hironaka set the pace. Fellow Kenyan Agnes Jebet also began deep in the pack, hovering around 16th.
By the halfway point, Kipyegon had climbed steadily to ninth while Jebet remained close in 10th. Then, with 1,000m to go, the Kenyan duo injected pace, moving into the leading group.
The final lap saw Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay take charge, holding off Kipyegon who settled for second in 14:56.71. Jebet, unable to sustain the closing speed of the leaders, crossed in eighth with 14:57.90 but still qualified for the final on time.
Other qualifiers from the heat included Rose Davies of Australia, Spain’s Marta Garcia, Ethiopia’s Medina Eisa, USA’s Josette Andrews, and Australia’s Linden Hall.
The final is slated for Saturday, 20 September.
