This archive report was first published on 23 December 2019.
Beatrice Chepkoech's Journey to World Championship Glory ¶
Beatrice Chepkoech, Kenya's 3,000m steeplechase queen, was motivated to attempt the world record after a mistake at the water jump cost her a place on the podium at the 2017 World Championships in London.
She opened her account with a 10km race at the World Cross Country Championship in Aarhus, Denmark in 2019, finishing seventh. However, this did not dampen her morale, and she set her sights on the Diamond League season as preparation for the Worlds in Doha, Qatar.
"I was looking for speed endurance towards world record. The more I attend races, the more I get courage and also to keep my speed and energy," she said after the Doha heroics.
On July 20, 2018, Chepkoech shaved eight seconds off the women's world record in the 3,000m steeplechase, winning the IAAF Diamond League Monaco race in 8:44.32.
"When I saw that I had missed the world championships and Diamond League finals, I came home and made up my mind to start training for the world record. I knew Monaco will be the deal due to weather conditions which were favourable. It took me only six months and that plan worked well," said the Queen of Steeplechase.
At the Africa Championships in Asaba, Nigeria, Chepkoech led team Kenya to sweep the podium, clocking 8:59.85 ahead of Cellephine Chespol and Fancy Cherono.
She then qualified to compete at the IAAF Continental Cup in Ostrava, the Czech Republic, in September 2018, and won the race in a time of 9:07.92.
It was to be the first of three meeting records that Chepkoech would break on the Road to the Final, as she later clocked 8:55.58 in Stanford and 9:05.55 in Birmingham.
At the Worlds in Doha, Chepkoech showed her intent early, easily winning from the qualifiers. Her mark was made in the final, where she led from start to finish, opening up a 50m gap in the final rounds, recording a time of 8:57.84 and rectifying a mistake that cost her a place on the podium two years ago.
"I had mastered each and everyone's race in Diamond League that's why in World Championship I had to run in front of them because I knew the moment I am ahead no one will overtake me, everyone else will run their own races," added Chepkoech.
However, the year ended rather badly for her as IAAF, now renamed World Athletics, axed the 3,000m steeplechase from Diamond League, dealing a hammer blow to a discipline of her specialty.
"I was so surprised since I only specialize in steeplechase, it will kill our careers, I will have to move to 1,500m and 3,000m races or move to the road races starting with 10km," she explained.
Chepkoech is now shifting gears to the Olympics next year, being the only medal she misses in her medal haul.
"I have the following titles: World Record, World Championship and World Championship Record, my aim now is the Olympics record and hopefully winning it. I am preparing to see if I can reduce my record may be to 8:38 or 8:40," she concluded.
The summer Olympics is scheduled to take place from July 24 to August 9, 2020, in Tokyo, Japan, with the trials slated for June 19-21 in Kipchoge Stadium, Uasin Gishu County.
