Uganda basks in Glory in Tokyo

If there was ever a time for a Ugandan to be proud of he's country in sports, it was 3 weeks back when the country witnessed the best performance ever at an Olympics event. The event took place in Japan this year after being pushed from last year as a result of the pandemic which was at it's peak at the time. That is why the name still stood as Tokyo 2020 yet it was occurring in 2021.

Uganda performed really well, taking second place in Africa below Kenya which is a neighbouring country. This was after registering 2 gold medals, a silver and a bronze medal shared among 3 players; Joshua Cheptegei(Gold, Silver), Peruth Chemutai(Gold) and Jacob Kiplimo(Bronze).

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This was indeed a fairy tale for Uganda which has never won more than a gold medal at the same olympics, say for the least more than 2 medals. And as if that was not enough, more records continued getting broken, as Joshua Cheptegei became the first ugandan to win 2 medals at the same olympics and Peruth Chemutai became the first Ugandan female to win an Olympics medal.

Joshua Cheptegei who is currently 24years of age came into this event with the stakes really high for him to achieve glory. He came holding the World records in both the 5000m and 10000m which he had broken last year.

In the 10000m race which opened the track and field event at the Olympics, Cheptegei finished second to claim silver while Jacob Kiplimo claimed the bronze. Cheptegei was not the happiest for finishing second as he himself confessed, and he turned he's attention to the 5000m to compensate for the missed Gold which he had been predicted by most to win.

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The 5000m race proved the immortality Cheptegei had reached in Athletics. He claimed Gold after winning the tightly contested race, completing an Olympics double. Kiplimo on the other hand did not manage to finish in the medal brackets but he's combined tactics played a key role in giving Cheptegei the win.

The 2 were seen exchanging positions for the most part of the race, Cheptegei leading the pack as soon as the starter gun sounded and allowing himself to fall back later to let Kiplimo lead, and then Cheptegei coming back in the lead, and then Kiplimo again as they continued running until the time when Cheptegei broke off from the pack to race to victory. The tactic proved to be fruitful in winning the race for Cheptegei.

Peruth Chemutai's achievement placed her among the greats in the Ugandan history books. At 22, she became the first Ugandan female to win an Olympic medal after winning gold in the women's 3000m steeple chase. The lesser known among the 3 shocked the world when she beat a field featuring Kenyan Beatrice Chepkoech who was holding the world record in this event.

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All these 3 athletes originate from the same district which is Kapchorwa located in the Eastern part of Uganda. Kapchorwa is well known for bringing up the best track and field athletes in the country probably due it's high altitude which provides a conducive environment for training.

This achievement will be inspiring many Ugandans for years to come. Especially for children who want to have a future in Athletics. They'll look upon the performance of Uganda at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and believe they too can do it.