Ugandans bow out of men's 3000 steeplechase

IAAF WORLD ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS - DOHA 2019

By Joseph Kizza

@joekizza

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DOHA - Uganda's Benjamin Kiplagat set a new season's best time of 8:24.44 as he and his two compatriots Albert Chemutai and Boniface Abel Sikowo failed to make the final cut of the 2019 World Championships men's 3000m steeplechase.

Of the trio, Chemutai did the best time - 8:23.08 - in the heats Tuesday evening. Sikowo finished in 12th place with a time of 8:27.96.

Racing in Heat 1 in the highly technical steeplechase, Sikowo was in the company of the likes of Ethiopian Getnet Wale, who won the race ahead of Frenchman Djilali Bedrani and Kenya's Leonard Kipkemoi Bett.

This was the fastest group, illustrated by the fact that four of the six next fastest runners to qualify came from here. Sikowo's time was not good enough.

Heat 2 was relatively slower, but again had an Ethiopian take it - Lamecha Girma. The towering figure of Moroccan Soufiane El Bakkali crossed the finish line second while Kenyan Abraham Kibiwot took third.

Chemutai was not far behind, coming through in fifth. His time, though, let him down.

Albert Chemutai came up short

The steeplechase is a very technical race, requiring power as well as endurance

Kiplagat carried Uganda's hopes in the final heat, but a sixth-place finish in the slowest group could not do him any favours. It was game over for Uganda in this discpline.

Kenyan duo Conseslus Kipruto and Benjamin Kigen comfortably took first and second place in Heat 3 albeit in dramatic fashion.

During the race, defending champion Kipruto appeared to want to dictate matters on the track, and on the home straight, he waved his teammate to slow down - presumably so as not to burn themselves out ahead of Friday's final showdown.

USA's Hillary Bor took the third automatic qualification spot.


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