Kiplimo wants to make statement in Copenhagen
Kiplimo has some scores to settle. PHOTO/COURTESY
What you need to know:
The race has 39 runners including Eritrean Aaron Kifle and seven pace makers. It is clear that the Copenhagen course record time of 58:01 held by Kenyan Geofrey Kamworor, depending on conditions, could go lower if Kiplimo attempts it.
Long-distance Jacob Kiplimo has endured forgettable summers in the last two years.
Last year, he suffered an acute hamstring problem and missed the Budapest World Athletics Championships in Hungary and a month later, the World Road Running Championships in Riga, Latvia.
And recently in August, Kiplimo left French capital Paris in disbelief after he missed out on a medal in the men’s 10000-metre final won by compatriot Joshua Cheptegei during the Olympic Games.
Kiplimo, who won Olympic 10000-metre bronze medal at the Tokyo 2020 Games in Japan three years ago, was in frame for a medal coming into the final bend only to wither and finish a distant eighth at the Stade de France on August 2.
That still hurts him to-date. “It’s sport and sport is like a teacher,” he said. But one thing hasn’t changed. Kiplimo is still a prolific runner, especially on the road.
He has a big chance for redemption when he competes in the 21km race of the Copenhagen Half-Marathon in Denmark on Sunday.
“We are not done,” Kiplimo sent a message after Paris. Over the half-marathon, he has won six out of the seven races, finishing second only at the Valencia Half-Marathon in Spain about four years ago.
There is one target for this race in Copenhagen: “Running well,” said coach Peter Chelangat in Entebbe before departure this week.
Chelangat took to Copenhagen with Kiplimo, Ezekiel Mutai, Isaac Mande Kibet, Victor Kwemboi and Elijah Cheptoyek to Copenhagen but first enjoyed the Lake Victoria shores.
Cheptoyek is tasked with pace-making duties over the first 5km. Kiplimo, who holds the 21km world record (WR) at 57 minutes and 31 seconds, is in top shape.
“He has done his best in training and so we hope for good results from him,” added Chelangat. In 2024, no man has come close to Kiplimo’s WR with Kenyan Sabastian Sawe the fastest at 58:24 while winning the Prague Half-Marathon in Praha, Czech Republic on April 6.
Yet, the 23-year-old Kiplimo must show his prowess over the star-studded field which pits him against Kenyan Sawe for the first time over the 21km distance.
Sawe, 29, last October won the 21km race during the global stage in Riga and Kiplimo too must contend with another Kenyan Kennedy Kimutai who is a 58:21-minute runner.
The race has 39 runners including Eritrean Aaron Kifle and seven pace makers. It is clear that the Copenhagen course record time of 58:01 held by Kenyan Geofrey Kamworor, depending on conditions, could go lower if Kiplimo attempts it.
Kiplimo’s last 21km race came in March, 2023 and he won it: the New York Half in the USA.
COPENHAGEN HALF-MARATHON
UGANDANS IN ACTION - SUNDAY
Men’s 21km: Jacob Kiplimo, Ezekiel Mutai, Isaac Mande Kibet, Victor Kwemboi, Elijah Cheptoyek (Pacer)
ABOUT COPENHAGEN HALF-MARATHON
Location: Copenhagen, Denmark
Event type: Road
Distance: Half marathon
Established: 2015
Course records: Men’s: 58:01 (2019) by Geoffrey Kamworor (KEN) | Women’s: 1:05:08 (2021) by Tsehay Gemechu (ETH)
KIPLIMO AT A GLANCE
Date of birth: November 14, 2000
Major events: 5000m, 10000m, Half-Marathon
Coach: Iacorpo Brasi
Personal Bests: 12:40.96 (5000m), 26:33.93 (10000m), 57:31 (21km)
Manager: Federico Rosa
Management: Rosa Associati
KIPLIMO’S 21KM CAREER
Sept 11, 2022: Great North Run (1st, 59:33)
Feb 19, 2022: Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon (1st, 57:56)
Nov 21, 2021: Lisbon Half-Marathon (1st, 57:31)
Dec 6, 2020: Valencia Half-Marathon (2nd, 57:37)
Oct 17, 2020: World Half-Marathon (1st, 58:49)
Nov 24, 2019: Kampala Half-Marathon (1st, 61:53)
Mar 18, 2023: New York Half-Marathon (1st, 61:31)
