In what was set to be a world record attempt in the 10,000m, Kenya’s Beatrice Chebet made history with a time of 28 minutes, 54.14 seconds* at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene on Saturday (25th).
This time is an astonishing seven seconds faster than the previous world record of 29 minutes 1.03 seconds set by Letesenbet Gidei in 2021.
Gudav Tsegay also took second place in 29 minutes 5.92 seconds, moving into third place on the world all-time list. A total of nine women went under 30 minutes. Entering the day, only 22 times in history had that time been achieved.
Tsegay and Chebet were just a step away from the lights throughout the race, running on world record pace, but with three laps to go, Chebet took the lead. He held the lead to himself and was feeling the weight of the world record challenge.
With 800 meters to go, the Chevette was two steps ahead of the light and fans inside Hayward Field began to rise from their seats.
After finishing, Chebet collapsed on the track in exhaustion and Tsegay joined him on the track after finishing. They both rose to their feet and embraced as the new world record flashed on the scoreboard behind them.
More to come…
Andrew Greif of World Athletics
*Follow normal ratification procedures