Aaron Kiplagat and Nympha Kiteta underlined their road-running ambitions with commanding victories in the men’s and women’s 10,000m races on the second day of the second Athletics Kenya track and field weekend meeting at Thika Stadium on Friday.
In the men’s race, Kiplagat executed a well-judged performance to claim victory in 29:33.7, holding off Athanas Kioko (29:42.1) and Nickson Koech (29:52.8) in the race to the podium.
The Keringet-based runner said the win came at the perfect time as he fine-tunes his form for the Nike Discovery Cross Country on January 25.
“I was preparing for the Discovery Cross Country race and this result is a morale booster,” said Kiplagat.
He credited patience for his success, noting that he only injected pace midway through the contest.
“The race today was good; the only challenge was the heat. After 5,000m, I decided to push to get a good time,” he explained.
Kiplagat’s weekend is not yet over, as he is also chasing a podium finish in the 5,000m final on Saturday.
“I did the 5,000m semis on Thursday and I made the final, so I am also hoping for another podium finish,” he added.
Despite finishing second, Kioko admitted frustration, saying the race did not go according to plan.
“I feel good, but I was expecting way better. My target was 28:40, but on this course it was not possible,” he said.
Nympha Kiteta crosses the finish line in the women’s 10,000m/ TEDDY MULEIKiteta dominated the women’s 25-lap race to win in 34:21.7. Fridah Ndinda followed in 34:36.0, while Tecla Cheserek finished third in 35:27.0.
Kiteta, who trains in ngong’ under coach Joseph Ngure, said the victory confirmed that her preparations are paying off.“The race was good and it showed that my training is working,” said the 25-year-old.
Kiteta hopes the performance will set the tone for a successful 2026 track season, while also boosting her prospects on the roads.
“I hope for a good season this year on the track. I specialise in road races, more so 21km, and I am also hoping for better results there,” she said.
The 68-minute runner over the half marathon targets further improvement. Her 2025 road campaign included a fifth-place finish in Zhenning, China (1:12:03) and victories in Accra (1:08:41) and Jakarta (1:13:45).
Ndinda, who won the women’s 5,000m title on Thursday, welcomed another podium finish but admitted fatigue set in late in the race.
“I feel good to have finished on the podium again. I had some fatigue during the 10,000m and slowed down at 7,000m,” she said.
On Thursday, Ndinda had claimed the 5,000m crown in 16:31.9 ahead of Gladys Cherop (16:32.9) and Tabitha Wanjiru (16:33.2).
Cheserek also celebrated consistency, earning her second podium finish of the meet after competing in Thursday’s 3,000m steeplechase.
“I ran the steeplechase yesterday and the performance was very good. Today, I decided to run the 10,000m just to gauge my body and I am happy with the result,” she said.
She credited recovery work for helping her overcome fatigue from the previous race.
“I had a bit of fatigue, but the massage helped ease the body ache.”
In the steeplechase, Cheserek finished second in 10:34.6 behind Mercy Chepng’eno (10:28.9).
Elsewhere, Emily Jerop produced a strong finish to win the women’s 800m in 2:06.6, edging Josphine Sempeyo (2:07.7) and Alice Ekiru (2:08.3).
Jerop said patience and speed work were key to her victory.
“I thank God for giving me the strength to finish first. The race was very difficult, but I am happy I won,” she said. “I decided to kick with 150m to go because I had done proper speed work.”
by TEDDY MULEI
