2025 World Championships: Oscar Chelimo and Dan Kibet Carry Nation’s Hopes as Uganda Look to Defend 10,000m Crown

Ugandans have been left worried over the prospects of returning the 10,000m crown to the country from the 2025 World Athletics Championships.

This is because defending champion Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo opted out of this year’s edition in Tokyo, Japan to focus on other races.

That has left Oscar Chelimo and Dan Kibet as the country’s flagbearers in the race and ahead of the 10,000m final on Sunday, there is a cautious optimism among Ugandans that the duo will deliver.

It is a hard act to follow for Chelimo and Kibet as Cheptegei, who has since moved to the marathons, won the title three times in a row in 2019, 2022 and 2023.

Of the two, Chelimo is Uganda’s best bet as he has been to this stage before and medaled. He won bronze in 5,000m at the 2022 edition but missed out of the final of the same race in Budapest two years ago.

“At the moment, I feel so nice. I will do both the 10,000m and 5,000m,” Chelimo told the Daily Monitor over his chances of winning in Tokyo.

Meanwhile, Kibet, still just 21, is relatively new to the stage although he has medals in cross-country and won gold in 5,000m at the 2023 Africa U20 Championships.

The Ugandan duo face a formidable line-up that includes Ethiopian trio Binian Mehary, the world leader and favourite, 2021 Olympics champion Selemon Barega and Berihu Aregawi, who won silver behind Cheptegei in 2023.