Chebet wins wins 10,000m silver at Africa Senior Championships

Zena Rachel Chebet picked up Uganda’s first medal at the Africa Senior Championships with her 10,000m silver in the Cote D'Or National Sports Complex in Mauritius on Saturday.

The championships have been a bit difficult for Team Uganda seeing as the sprinters had failed to match up to the level that was brought to the championships by the likes of Kenya and South Africa.

Zena went into the championships as possibly one of the most experienced runners on the team and it reflected in how well she delivered on the grand stage. She was beaten to the finish line by Kenyan Caroline Nyanga with a time of 32:12.61, while Zena ran 32:17.66.

Ethiopian Meseret Dekebo came third at 32:25.97, followed by Meseret Alemu at 32:30.16.  Sarah Chelangat took fifth place, her second in days after she did the same in the 5000m.

In the Javeline throw, Josephine Lalam missed out on a medal after managing a throw of 49.11 to finish fifth in the women's javelin. It was won by South African Jo-ane Van Dyk with a throw of 60.65.

In the men's 1500m Emmanuel Otim qualified for the final with a time of 3:43.43 while Abu Mayanja missed out on the final after a dismal showing although he finished fifth in his heat.

 Female sprinter Jacent Nyamahunge missed out on qualifying for the Africa Senior Championships 200m final after she ran a 23.69. It was a disappointing day for Pius Adome and Haron Andoli could not progress past the heats in the men’s 200m.