TOKYO2025: Kenya’s gold drought continues as 5,000m favourite strumbles

Defending champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen endured a disappointing outing after finishing 10th in the men’s 5,000m final at the 2025 World Athletics Championships on Sunday, 21 September in Tokyo.

The Norwegian, who had dominated the event in recent years with back-to-back titles in Eugene (2022) and Budapest (2023), failed to replicate his winning form as he fell out of contention in the closing stages.

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Kenya’s only representative, Matthew Kipsang, also struggled to make an impact, eventually crossing the line in 11th place with a time of 13:03.67.

The result means Kenya’s long wait for a medal in the 5,000m continues, as the country last won in 2005 through Benjamin Limo in Helsinki.

The final opened at a brisk pace, with Americans; Cole Hocker and Grant Fisher dictating the tempo early on, closely shadowed by Australia’s Ky Robinson.

By the 600m mark, Ethiopia’s Hagos Gebrhiwet and Binjam Mehary had worked their way into the leading pack, while Bahrain’s Birhanu Balew also loomed large.

Kipsang briefly surged into the top five at 600m but struggled to maintain momentum, dropping back to ninth by the halfway point.

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At 2,200m, Gebrhiwet hit the front, with Fisher and Mehary in pursuit, while Ingebrigtsen remained tucked in the mix.

By the 3,500m mark, Balew and Gebrhiwet continued to exchange leads, while Kipsang hovered around fifth.

Ingebrigtsen seemed to be positioning himself for a late charge, taking the lead at 3,800m, but his challenge quickly faded in the final laps.

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With 600m to go, Belgium’s Isaac Kimeli powered into second place, France’s Jimmy Gressier followed in third, and the Americans dropped off the pace.

Kipsang briefly fought back to fourth but could not hold on.

In the decisive stretch, Cole Hocker produced a remarkable finish to take gold in 12:58.30.

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Kimeli claimed silver in 12:58.78, while Gressier delighted the French camp with bronze in 12:59.33.

Ingebrigtsen crossed in 10th (13:02.00), a stark contrast to his past dominance, while Kipsang’s 11th-place finish underlined Kenya’s continued struggle in the distance.