Winfred Yavi Completes Historic Golden Hat-Trick at Asian Games

Bahrain’s track sensation Winfred Yavi etched her name into the history books at the 20th Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, clinching victory in the women’s 5,000 meters to secure her third gold medal of the competition.

Fresh off a record-setting defence of her 3,000m steeplechase title the previous day, the reigning Olympic champion returned to Nagoya City Mizuho Park Athletic Stadium with another masterclass in distance running.

Yavi broke the tape in 15 minutes 10.18 seconds to complete an extraordinary treble, having also won the 10,000m crown earlier in the week.

Japan’s Nozomi Tanaka pushed hard to claim silver in 15:11.65, while India’s Parul Chaudhary took bronze in 15:14.61. Bahrain’s second entrant, Ruth Jebet, placed ninth in the 12-woman field with a time of 16:09.10.

The tactical battle saw Kazakhstan’s Norah Jeruto Tanui dictate the early pace, leading through 1,000m and 2,000m before Yavi surged ahead at the 3,000m split. Tanui briefly regained the advantage with a kilometer remaining, but the 26-year-old Bahraini delivered a decisive finishing kick over the final lap to pull away and win by nearly a second and a half.

Yavi’s stellar individual performance brought Bahrain’s total medal tally to 14—comprising nine golds, two silvers, and three bronzes.

The Kenyan-born star is in line for a bumper harvest going by what Bahrain has been offering in prize money to its medalists.

In previous Asian Games, gold medalists received $5,000 (Ksh648,350), with silver and bronze taking $3,000 (Ksh389,000) and $2,000 (Ksh259,000) respectively.