Korir of Kenya and Chemutai of Uganda take gold in tight races

Last updated on September 11th, 2021 at 07:56 am

At the Olympics, Emmanuel Korir won gold and led a Kenyan one-two finish in the 800 meters. Korir drove past Peter Bol of Australia on the final turn and stormed home to win in 1 minute, 45.06 seconds. Kenya won the 800 meters for the fourth time in a row at the Olympics.

Ferguson Rotich, a teammate, won silver with a late kick, beating Patryk Dobek of Poland, who claimed bronze ahead of Bol. Since Beijing 2008, Kenya has won this medal at every Olympic Games.

David Rudisha, the world record holder in the 800 meters, won the last two Olympic gold medals in the event, but he did not make Kenya’s team this year due to long-term injury issues.

Clayton Murphy, the 2016 bronze medallist from the United States, came in last. Meanwhile, Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai made her move on the penultimate lap and won the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase final at the Tokyo Olympics.

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Chemutai’s time of 9 minutes, 1.45 seconds was a new national record for her. With around 2 1/2 laps remaining, American Courtney Frerichs broke away from the pack. Chemutai pursued her down the stretch for silver, but she managed to hold on. Third place went to Kenya’s Hyvin Kiyeng.

After finishing at the back of the race, Emma Coburn of the United States was disqualified for a lane infringement. At the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics, she won bronze. Chemutai, 22, came in fifth place at the Doha World Championships in 2019. Frerichs finished second in the 2017 World Championships in London, winning a silver medal.