Joshua Cheptegei realized that the winds Friday night were too strong to make a world record attempt, but he still won handily. Photo by Chloe Montague
As he rounded the backstretch at the 2,000-meter mark, Joshua Cheptegei made the decision to pull back a bit.
Entering the Prefontaine Classic, he had hopes of breaking his own world record in the 5,000 meters. As he fought the headwind on the backstretch, it became clear it was not the day to reach that goal.
He still won the race in 12 minutes, 57.99 seconds and remained positive despite finishing 24 seconds behind his world-record time.
On Aug. 14, 2020, Cheptegei set the 5,000-meter world record of 12:35.36 in the scorching heat of Monaco. On Saturday, he learned Eugene’s conditions are far different from the coastal town of France.
“One thing about Monaco, you are always pretty sure of the weather,” Cheptegei said. “But then here, it was really cold and a lot of headwinds.”
Following the race, Cheptegei set his sights on another Hayward Field-hosted stage — the World Athletics Championships.
“It was a good rehearsal,” Cheptegei said. “I hope that I come back again… and win the world championship.”
When Cheptegei does return to Eugene, it will be alongside his Ugandan countrymen as part of a team that has been experiencing an immense amount of growth in recent years.
Alongside his coach, Addy Ruiter, Cheptegei has helped to build a training center in the Kapchorwa District of Uganda.
“I think we are really going in the right direction,” Cheptegei said. “Representing my country really means a lot because I stand for a lot of good values and aspirations of the young men.”
