The World U20 1,500m champion Purity Chepkurui and Shadrack Chirchir today bagged U20 titles in the 6km and 8km categories respectively at the Agnes Tirop classic Cross Country championships which is the fifth edition of World Athletics Cross Country Gold Tour at Lobo village in Kapseret, Uasin Gishu County.
Addressing the media, the champion Chepkirui said she was delighted to win another race. “I am so happy to win another race. I think this is good progress as we look forward to the World Championships and the World U20 Championships. We have already discussed this with my coach,” she said.
It was head to head clashes as top athletes from different countries faced it off spectacular head to head battles. Joyline Chepkemoi took the top honors in 5km Under18 Girls cutting the tape in 18:05 and she was followed by Maureen Jepkoech who came home nine seconds later. Pamela Kosgei closed the first three podium finishes in 18:26.
World under 20 champions Shadrack Chirchir and Gideon Rono battled it out in the men’s category with Chirchir clocking 23:55 to win the 8km U20 men, Gideon Rono (24:02) finished second with Dennis Kipkirui taking bronze in 24:10. Chirchir overtook Rono inside the last lap to win the men’s race that saw National Cross Country Under-20 champion Benson Kiplangat, who is also the World Under-20 5,000m champion dropping out with a kilometre to the bell.
The Agnes Tirop classic cross Country Tour championships is in the memory of the late Tokyo Olympic star Agnes Jebet Tirop who died last year. Tirop was part of the Kenyan contingent that did the country proud in Tokyo Olympics.
She died an accomplished athlete winning the 2015 World Cross Country Championships senior women’s title in Guiyang, China at 19 years and retained the crown two years later in Kampala, Uganda. The Olympic figure also bagged the 2017 and 2019 World Athletics Championships 10,000m bronze medalist as well as the 2012 and 2014 World Athletics Championships junior bronze medalist.
Tirop was just killed a month after she broke the women-only 10km world record at an Adidas event in Germany, with a time of 30:01 minutes, dipping 28 seconds inside the previous record.
