Uganda's Joshua Cheptegei eyes another world record

World 10,000m record holder Joshua Cheptegei will be attempting to break another record at the Golden Strike Meet in Ostrava, Czech Republic on Wednesday.

Uganda's Cheptegei, who has been training in Kapchorua under the Global Sports Communication stable, will run in the 3,000m race.

Kenya’s Daniel Komen holds the world record time of 7:20.67 set 25 years ago and at one time  offered his Mercedes Benz to any athlete who breaks the record.

 “The first thing to think about the 3,000m race is to run as fast as possible and I will just focus on the race tomorrow and hope the weather will be favourable for better results,” said Cheptegei.

He further said that he will be testing his speed ahead of the Olympic Games where he will compete in the 10,000m race.

“It’s a unique year for me and I will be testing my speed ahead of the Olympics Games where if I was to choose a race, I will go for my favourite and that is what I’m going for in Tokyo,” added Cheptegei.

He will be competing against USA’s Paul Chelimo, his compatriot Oscar Chelimo, Belgium's Isaac Kimeli among others.

Speaking to Nation Sport, Komen said that Cheptegei has what it takes to break his record.

“If Cheptegei has trained well and got the endurance required for the race, he might break the world record time. I have seen him running and he is a good athlete who is going for nothing but the best,” said Komen.

In October 2020, Cheptegei broke the 10,000m record previously held by Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele after clocking 26:11.0, a month after breaking the 5,000m record.

Cheptegei is the 10th man in history to hold the 5,000m and 10,000m world records concurrently.