It was a perfect start to the 2022 season for Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist, Jacob Kiplimo during the National Mountain Running Championships hosted in Kapchorwa on Saturday, September 25, 2021.
Kiplimo comfortably won the 12.5km race in 41:30.3 in the similar event where the Uganda Athletics Federation discovered him and after emerging champion at the age of 15 in 2015.
The World Half Marathon Champion announced immediately after winning the 2021 Mountain Championships in Kapchorwa his intentions to defend his world title along participation in the World Championships, Commonwealth Games among others next season.
“ I decided to participate in the National Mountain Championships as launching pad to achieve my set goals. And I have to start early preparations. I have lined up national and international build-ups to the competitions I am targeting.
“I still recall how the Covid-19 situation in the country affected my training and performance. This time round I don’t want to take chances,” Kiplimo said.
Meanwhile, Annet Chelangat Chemengich (Arua Club) emerged new champion in the women category clocking 51:10.2.
Chelangat also said that the two Covid-19 sports lockdowns adversely affected her past two-year ambitious plan of running international marathons and other road races.
“This championship is God sent because I have been starved of competition for over two years now. It has given me chance to test my form. I now set my eyes on the StanChart International Marathon due in Kenya this season and other future races,” Chelengat said.
The National Mountain Running Championships attracted a massive 500 runners.
