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Chemutai has bright future, says coach Kasaija
Chemutai was disappointed with silver. PHOTOS/REUTERS
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Chemutai's 8:53.34 minutes was her personal best, and a National Record, but she didn’t embrace the silver. She was sad, because the gold was literally pulled off her neck.
Such is the power of expectation on the meaning of success that as the French crowds at Stade de France celebrated their girl Alice Finot for finishing fourth in the women’s 3000m Steeplechase final Tuesday night, a European Record time of 8:58.67 minutes, Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai was crying inconsolably for missing out on gold.
Perhaps Chemutai, the defending Olympic champion, looked back to how hard she worked to regain her form just in May and came within just 20 metres to unprecedented glory before Bahrain’s Winfred Mutile Yavi pipped her to gold in 8:52.76 minutes, a new Olympic Record.
Chemutai's 8:53.34 minutes was her personal best, and a National Record, but she didn’t embrace the silver. She was sad, because the gold was literally pulled off her neck.
However, Rapahael Kasaija, a renowned athletics coach, called it a great performance. “For us, she offered 100 percent. But she may have cried because she thought she could have done better because she expected gold,” Kasaija told Daily Monitor.
The race was remarkably fast, no wonder it’s the first time four women ran sub-nine minutes in the same race. But Kasaija said it should have been faster to favour Chemutai.
“Peruth knew that Yavi is a fast finisher, yet Beatrice (Chepkoech) dictated a slow pace which favoured her. Peruth realised it and chose to take control and speed it up. But I wish she had done it earlier, to tire Yavi.”
Chemutai (L) joins gold medalist Yavi (C) and bronze winner Cherotich on the podium.
Yavi, who left Kenya for Bahrain as a 15-year-old beaming with potential. The 2023 world champion knew what she was capable of and put Chemutai under serious pressure that even after slightly stumbling at the second-last barrier, she was at par with the Olympic champ by the last barrier, 50 metres to the finish line.
Kasaija added that Chemutai still had more gas when Yavi first showed intent, that’s why she charged back into the lead. But Yavi being a fast finisher, when she led with 20 metres left, Chemutai couldn’t catch up.
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Chemutai admitted she needs to work on her finishing. But Ugandans in Paris and across the world worry about the future. Since winning that historic gold at the delayed Tokyo 2020, Chemutai posted performances below her standards. Illness and injuries were the key culprits, until she regained her mojo in Oregon in May. Shall she be in Los Angeles 2028? Many wonder.
“Peruth is still young with a very bright future,” Kasaija said with conviction. Next year Chemutai may return to Tokyo for the World Athletics Championships. “She will be better in Tokyo, she will have improved on her weak areas. And she will be better in Los Angeles and at more events.”
Kasaija added that long distances nowadays races are no longer about endurance. “You must calculate the field well. That’s the intelligence that helped Joshua (Cheptegei) win gold.”
