Kibiwott Kandie and Joshua Cheptegei to extend their rivalry to the streets of Valencia

ATHLETICS Kibiwott Kandie and Joshua Cheptegei to extend their rivalry to the streets of Valencia

Abigael Wafula 13:50 - 30.09.2023

Kandie and Cheptegei first locked horns at the World Cross-country Championships where Cheptegei floored the Kenyan and they will once again clash at the Valencia Marathon.

Kibiwott Kandie and Uganda’s Joshua Cheptegei will renew their rivalry one more time at the Valencia Marathon in December.

This season, they have only met once, at the World Cross-country championships where Cheptegei finished second while Kandie went on to finish fifth.

Focus now turns to the marathon, where the Ugandan will be debuting and facing off against Kandie, who has the mastery of marathon running.

Kandie suffered an injury setback earlier this year and missed out on the World Championships in Budapest, Hungary but he has since announced that he will be running in a couple of races before the do-or-die assignment in the streets of Valencia.

The Kenyan displayed impressive results before the injury setback and when he returns, he will be hoping to extend the winning streak.

On his part, Cheptegei has basked in glory in almost all his races. He successfully defended his 10,000m world title and has competed in a couple of races.

He has not faced any major injury challenges apart from the slight injury he had in Budapest that did not allow him to compete in the men’s 5000m.

When the two meet in the streets of Valencia, they will surely promise a thrilling show since both of them will be hoping to prove themselves to the whole world.

Great opposition is also expected from the Ethiopian charge that comprises Sisay Lemma, Leul Gebreselassie, and Chalu Deso. Others to also watch out for are Alexander Mutiso who leads the field and Titus Kipruto, an able runner in his own capacity.

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