Faith Cherotich/ FILE
Despite producing a commanding display to clinch the Commonwealth Games women's 3,000m steeplechase title on Wednesday night at the Scotstoun Stadium in Glasgow, Scotland, world champion Faith Cherotich has admitted she never expected her golden run would also rewrite the Games record books.
Cherotich underlined her growing supremacy in the water-and-barrier event with a flawless front-running performance, storming to gold in 9:01.76.
The 22-year-old obliterated the previous Commonwealth Games record of 9:15.68, set by compatriot Jackline Chepkoech at the 2022 Birmingham Games, slicing more than 13 seconds off the mark.
Cherotich led England's Elise Thorner, who claimed silver in 9:05.45, while Uganda's Peruth Chemutai settled for bronze after clocking 9:09.96. Fellow Kenyan Celestine Biwot missed out on a podium finish, placing seventh in 9:33.61.
Cherotich was delighted with the outcome of the race. "The race was good. I feel so good and happy because I ran well," Cherotich said.
The youngster revealed she had gone into the final confident of striking gold, having put in solid preparations ahead of the championships. "I was expecting to win because I was well prepared for this competition."
However, while thrilled to have secured the title, Cherotich admitted breaking the Commonwealth Games record had not crossed her mind. "My mind was on winning. I did not pay much attention to the clock. I didn't expect to break the Commonwealth Games record," she said.
Cherotich added that she sensed victory was within reach after the opening three laps and decided to make her decisive move.
"After three laps, I felt that I was strong, so I decided to break away and go for it."
Cherotich's rise to the summit of women's steeplechase has been nothing short of remarkable since bursting onto the international stage at the 2021 World Under-20 Championships in Nairobi.
She announced her arrival with a bronze medal in 9:44.76, finishing behind fellow Kenyan Jackline Chepkoech, who struck gold in 9:27.40, while Ethiopia's Zerfe Wondemagegn claimed silver in 9:35.22.
A year later, Cherotich confirmed her immense potential by capturing the World Under-20 title in Cali, Colombia, clocking a championship-winning 9:16.14.
Her transition to the senior ranks proved equally impressive. At the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, she bagged bronze in 9:00.69 behind Bahrain's Winfred Yavi (8:54.29) and Kenya's Beatrice Chepkoech (8:58.98).
Cherotich followed that with another bronze medal at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, lowering her personal best to 8:55.15 as Yavi retained her dominance in 8:52.76, with Uganda's Peruth Chemutai taking silver in 8:53.34.
Her defining breakthrough came at last year's World Championships in Tokyo, where she finally captured senior global gold spectacularly, producing a commanding performance to win the world title in 8:51.59.
Yavi settled for silver in 8:56.46, while Ethiopia's Sembo Almayew completed the podium in 8:58.86.
Elsewhere, national 400m hurdles champion Kipkorir Rotich fell short in his quest to secure a place in the men's 400m hurdles semi-finals.
Competing in Heat Two of the preliminary rounds on Wednesday night, Rotich clocked 50.39 to finish fourth behind Nigeria's Ezekiel Nathaniel (48.69), England's Jake Minshull (48.88) and India's Santhosh Tamilarasan (49.51).
Rotich attributed his disappointing outing largely to the cold and rainy conditions in Glasgow. "The biggest challenge was the weather, which did not favour me. Coming here, we had not expected such cold, rainy weather," he said.
Despite missing out on qualification, Rotich remained upbeat about his performance. "The race was good, but my body refused to respond. I am thankful to God for what I have achieved here."
