Step aside Boniface Kiprop, Stephen Kiprotich and Joshua Cheptegei, Uganda has a new star athlete in Jacob Kiplimo who just won 10,000m bronze at the World Junior Athletics Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
At only 15 years old, Kiplimo has already inked his name in history as the youngest ever Ugandan to qualify for the Olympic Games. On a mild, breezy Tuesday night at Zawisza Stadium, Kiplimo set a large crowd and fellow athletes on their feet when he assumed the lead with five laps left only to run out of steam and lose the lead to Kenyan Rodgers Kwemoi and Ethiopia’s Aron Kifle at the end of the 25-lap race.
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Kiplimo came home in a new personal best time over the distance before a duo of Ethiopians; Amedework Walelegn (28:00.14) and Gizachew Hailu (28:09.57) followed in pursuit. Kiplimo with his bronze medal did the Pearl of Africa well by continuing Uganda’s rich tradition of racking up medals at this event.
This medal happens to be the 11th won by a Ugandan at these championships. The last one was brought home by Joshua Cheptegei who won a 10000m God medal in 2014. Early May Kiplimo qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympic Games after winning a 5,000m race in Orvieto, Italy. He recorded a time of 13:24:40 to hit the Olympic qualifying mark which stands at 13.25:00.
Kudos Kiplimo Jacob, we are all proud of you.
