Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda captures a 10,000-meter masterpiece on opening night at Olympic track
SAINT-DENIS, France (AP) — Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda took the lead with a little more than a lap left in a masterpiece of a 10,000-meter race Friday to win in an Olympic-record 26 minutes, 43.14 seconds in front of a roaring crowd on an electric opening night at the Stade de France.
The world-record holder raced in the middle of a strung-out pack for most of the 25 laps on the calm, cool evening outside of Paris. Then he took off, and held the lead over the final 500 meters against a crowd of Ethiopians who set a blistering pace all night.
Ethiopian Berihu Aregawi beat American Grant Fisher in a sprint to the line for silver. Fisher’s bronze medal marked the first for the U.S. in the longest race at the Olympic track since Galen Rupp took silver in 2012.
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AP Summer Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
Credit: Joshua Cheptegei of Uganda captures a 10,000-meter masterpiece on opening night at Olympic track