Ethiopia’s Berihu Aregawi secured the country’s first silver medal of the Paris Olympics on Friday, August 2, by finishing second in the men’s 10,000m. Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei claimed the title with an Olympic record of 26:43.14, holding off Ethiopian competitors to win the gold medal of the Games. Cheptegei, 27, earned his second Olympic title, three years after winning the 5,000m in Tokyo. Selemon Barega, who had won Ethiopia’s first track and field gold at the Tokyo Olympics, was unable to defend his title. Berihu Aregawi, Yomif Kejelcha, and Selemon Barega took turns setting a grueling pace (13:23.07 at halfway), but they were unable to overtake their Ugandan rival, who set the fastest 10,000m time in Olympic history. The 20-year-old Berihu finished strongly for silver in 26:43.44. Berihu, who finished 4th in the 10,000m at the Tokyo Olympics, previously broke Joshua Cheptegei’s record by 2 seconds, running a 5km in 12:49 at the Cursa dels Nassos 5K in Barcelona in December 2021. “The competition was a little difficult. With my compatriots, what we had in mind was to win the gold, bronze, and silver, but we failed to get the gold and bronze,” Berihu reflected after the match. “The problem was towards the finish. We were in the lead for a good part, but Joshua escaped us at some point. When I was left with 50 meters, I increased my speed, but I could not outsprint him. It was not a bad result overall, and personally, it was a good result for me, ” he said.

American Grant Fisher surprised with a bronze medal in 26:43.46, overtaking Canada’s Mohammed Ahmed for third place. It was the first medal in the 10,000 meters for Team USA since Galen Rupp won the silver at the 2012 London Olympics. Somali-born Canadian athlete Mohammed Ahmed finished 4th in the 10,000m final. Ahmed, born in Mogadishu, won silver in the 5000m at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics. Ethiopian Yomif Kejelcha finished sixth with 26: 44.020.