Kenya’s Conseslus Kipruto stormed to victory in the men’s 3,000 metre steeplechase final yesterday, ensuring the East African nation maintained its iron grip on the event it has won in every Games since 1984.
The 21-year-old had long been touted as the young pretender to Kenya’s steeplechase crown but he produced a final lap sprint that saw him grab gold in an Olympic record of 8 minutes 3.28 seconds.
A winner of two silver World Championship medals, Kipruto was so far ahead of his rivals that he started celebrating and waving to the crowd at the start of the final straight.
Evan Jager won a rare medal for the United States in the race – their first since 1984 – after overtaking Kenya’s double Olympic champion Ezekiel Kemboi in the last 50m to take the silver.
Kemboi, who won his fourth steeplechase World Champion-ship in a row last year, announced his retirement from athletics after the race.
“After 18 years I have done my best,” said 34-year-old Kemboi, who won gold at the Athens and London Games.
Earlier, Mo Farah survived another stumble to get through to the final of the 5,000 metres and remain on course for the prized Olympic distance double-double.
Farah recovered from a fall to win the 10,000 gold four days ago and almost went down again in the last lap of his heat yesterday after being clipped by American Hassan Mead, who did fall to miss out on qualification.
Farah is seeking to become the second man after Finland’s Lasse Viren (1972/76) to retain both the 10,000m and 5,000m titles but, said he still felt the effects of the longer race in his legs during yesterday’s run in 32 degree heat.
“It’s hot, I’ve just got to recover – I haven’t recovered (from the 10,000m) as well as I’d wanted,” Britain’s Farah said.
“I got clipped, I just had to stay on my feet. But now I just have to recover, chill in my room.”
Paul Chelimo, who switched allegiance from Kenya after joining the US Army, was the fastest qualifier, running a personal best 13 minutes, 19.54 seconds, while another Kenyan-turned-American Bernard Lagat, at 41 appearing in his fifth Olympic Games, also made it.
Lagat won a bronze for Kenya at Sydney in 2000 – three months before Ugandan teenager Jacob Kiplimo was born. The 15-year-old missed out on the final.