By Athletics Kenya
Aaron Kiplagat, Nympha Kiteta and Emily Jerop were a class above the rest, claiming dominant victories in their respective events on the second day of the 2nd Athletics Kenya weekend meeting on Friday at the Thika stadium.
In the men’s 10,000m, Kiplagat secured a well-measured victory, stopping the clock at 29:33.7. He held off Athanas Kioko, who settled for second in 29:42.1, while Nickson Koech completed the podium in 29:52.8.
How Aaron Kiplagat won the Thika 10k AK meet
The Keringet-based runner revealed that patience was key before making a decisive injection of pace midway through the contest.
“The race today was good; the only challenge was the heat. After 5,000m, I decided to push to get a good time,” he explained.
Kiplagat’s busy weekend is far from over, with the versatile runner also chasing another podium finish in the 5,000m final scheduled for Saturday.
“I did the 5,000m semis on Thursday, and I made the final, so I am also hoping for another podium finish on Saturday,” he added.
Despite finishing second, Kioko cut a slightly frustrated figure, admitting the race did not unfold as he had hoped.
“I feel good, but I was expecting way better. My target was 28:40, but on this course it was not possible,” he noted.
In the women’s 10,000m, Kiteta was in imperious form over the 25-lap race to claim victory in 34:21.7. She was followed by Fridah Ndinda in 34:36.0, while Tecla Cheserek secured third place in 35:27.0.
Training in Ngong under coach Joseph Ngure, Kiteta said the win was a clear validation that her preparations were bearing fruit.
“The race was good, it showed that my training is working,” Kiteta said.
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The 25-year-old revealed she stepped onto the track with quiet confidence, even as she acknowledged the depth of competition.
“I had come into the race expecting to win, but the competition was also tough.”
Kiteta hopes the strong showing in Thika will be the opening chapter of a dominant 2026 track campaign.
“I hope for a good season this year on the track,” she said.
Ndinda, who had claimed the women’s 5,000m title on Thursday, welcomed another podium finish but admitted fatigue caught up with her during the latter stages of the 10,000m.
“I feel good to have finished on the podium again. I had some fatigue during the 10,000m and I slowed down at the 7,000m mark. The muscles had some fatigue,” she said.
On Thursday, Ndinda stormed to victory in the 5,000m, clocking 16:31.9 ahead of Gladys Cherop (16:32.9) and Tabitha Wanjiru (16:33.2).
Another athlete celebrating consistency was Cheserek, who added a second podium finish after her strong outing in Thursday’s women’s 3,000m steeplechase.
“I ran the steeplechase on Thursday, and the performance was very good. Today I decided to run the 10,000m just to gauge my body, and I am happy with my results,” said Cheserek.
She admitted lingering fatigue from the steeplechase but credited recovery work for helping her bounce back.
“I had a bit of fatigue from yesterday’s race, but I got a massage, which eased the body ache.”
On Thursday, Cheserek clocked 10:34.6 to finish second in the steeplechase behind Mercy Chepng’eno, who won in 10:28.9.
Meanwhile, Jerop produced a well-timed finish to win the women’s 800m in 2:06.6, edging Josphine Sempeyo (2:07.7) and Alice Ekiru (2:08.3).
Jerop revealed she relied on patience and speed to unleash her finishing kick with 150m to go.
“I thank God for giving me the strength to finish first. The race was very difficult, but I am happy I won. I had decided that I would kick with 150m to go because I had done proper speed work,” said Jerop.
