Brilliant Chebet makes Ethiopians stagger, kneel before her Down Under

Was it Lady Luck, fate or simply planning well for Beatrice Chebet, the 23-year-old police officer stationed in Kyuso, Kitui, who surprisingly won the 10km senior women’s race in Bathurst on Saturday.

Her victory could best be described as an act of pulling meat from the mouth of a lion.
Ethiopia’s Letesenbet Gidey — the 5,000m, 10,000m and half marathon world record holder — looked destined for certain victory only to be hunted down by a fast-finishing Chebet.

Gidey, who tracked Chebet the whole course to pass her in the closing stages, inexplicably collapsed metres to the finishing line. A grateful Chebet, the world 5,000m silver medallist said, thank you ma’am, and sped past to victory in 33 minutes 48 seconds.

Gidey, 24, had arrived in Bathurst as the world’s leading women’s distance runner.

“I remember watching Gidey starting to slow down as I started catching her up but I don’t know how I passed her or if she had fallen down.”

A sympathetic Ethiopian supporter jumped over the perimeter barrier and assisted her stand up, but this infringement caused her disqualification.

“I feel sorry for Gidey. It is not over in sports until one crosses the finish line, and sometimes miracles do happen. Today was my day.”

She was still dazed with her unexpected victory, and did not believe it until she received her medal at the University of Bathurst.

“I really cannot tell what happened. All I know is that I am the world champion but the best results I was expecting to get was a silver medal. It came as a surprise when I saw the finish tape with less than 10 metres to go.

“This was the most dramatic race of the day,” said Chebet, the 5,000 metres World Athletics Championship silver medallists and Commonwealth Games champion who had not expected to do well. 

“I have been nervous since we arrived in Australia. The media has been writing a lot about me that I was the person to beat Gidey (Letesenbet) who is the world and Olympics double 5,000/10,000m champion.

“But I knew I was going to run without having any set target.”

Such was her uncertainty that she even failed to make it in the national trials last December after being put down by pneumonia.

Athletics Kenya’s technical officials however, included her in the team confident that she was the only person who was capable of beating, or matching Gidey. 

But they did not tell her that. Instead they piled pressure on her during training.

“I don’t know why they picked me. But I thank God and Athletics Kenya but feel sorry for Gidey. Sports is painful,” said the former student of Saramek Secondary School in Londiani, Kericho, where she has been running since her early teens.

Also the U-20 world cross country champion in 2019, she clocked 33 minutes 48 seconds. 

“I didn’t expect to win but she was slowing,” Chebet said. “I saw my chance and I decided to kick. I felt she didn’t have any more. I knew she couldn’t threaten me. I knew I had the potential to go on and win. I was still feeling strong. I knew I could do it.

“This win has given me strength and courage,” Chebet said. “I am very happy. I have won this race as a junior and now as a senior. It was a matter of endurance and believing in myself,” said Chebet, who is trained by Gabriel Kiptanui.

She thanked her training partners Miriam Cherop, Faith Chepkoech and her cousin Emily Chebet, winner of the Eldoret City Marathon.