Gudaf Tsegay, Beatrice Chepkoech and Kibiwott Kandie will go into the Olympic season with recent world records to their names, after their respective marks over 1500m, 5km and the half-marathon were ratified this week.
Tsegay achieved her 1500m feat at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais on 9 February, clocking 3:53.09 to take more than two seconds off the previous world indoor record of 3:55.17 set by her Ethiopian compatriot Genzebe Dibaba in Karlsruhe on 1 February 2014.
World bronze medallist Tsegay followed the swift early tempo at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Lievin, France, as the pacemaker led the field through 400m (58.97) and exited just before 800m, which Tsegay passed in 2:05.94.
With three laps to go, Tsegay had a four-second lead but she showed no signs of slowing down, passing through 1000m in 2:37.36. The clock read 2:52.9 with two laps to go and Tsegay maintained her pace with another lap just outside 30 seconds, digging in for the final circuit.
&ldquo;I have been training really hard and I set myself a target to break the world indoor record,&rdquo; said Tsegay. &ldquo;I had this record in my mind for a long time &ndash; maybe six or seven years.&rdquo;
<h3>Chepkoech&rsquo;s success on the road</h3>
For Kenya&rsquo;s Chepkoech, world 5km record success came at the Monaco Run on 14 February. Racing on Valentine&rsquo;s Day, the world 3000m steeplechase champion further demonstrated her passion for the sport by running 14:43 for 5km on the roads, improving on the previous women&rsquo;s record in a mixed gender race of 14:48 set by her compatriot Caroline Kipkirui on 8 September 2018.
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/6028f4510d6c397fd0421cdc.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="600" /> Beatrice Chepkoech breaks the world 5km record in Monaco&nbsp;(&copy;&nbsp;Global Sports Communication)
 It was also one second faster than Sifan Hassan's 14:44 record for a women-only race, which had previously been the fastest time ever produced over the distance since the 5km was introduced as a world record event in November 2017.
"I'm so happy because I didn't expect it," said Chepkoech, who broke the world 3000m steeplechase record with 8:44.32 also in Monaco in 2018. "It was cold and there was a lot of wind, but I tried to follow my pacemaker and everything was perfect."
<h3>Kandie set&nbsp;a new standard</h3>
Two months earlier, Kandie had also made road running history by clocking 57:32 at the Valencia Trinidad Alfonso EDP Half Marathon.
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/5fcdfa3e056bd8378930a182.jpg" alt="" width="900" height="590" /> Kibiwott Kandie breaks the world record at the Valencia Half Marathon (&copy; Getty Images)
 Running in near-ideal conditions on December 6, Kenya&rsquo;s Kandie gained his&nbsp;&ldquo;revenge&rdquo; after missing out on World Athletics Half Marathon Championships gold in Gdynia seven weeks before.
There he was beaten by Uganda&rsquo;s Jacob Kiplimo but in Valencia Kandie turned the tables in superb style, also shaving 29 seconds from the previous world half-marathon record of 58:01 which had been set by his compatriot Geoffrey Kamworor in Copenhagen on 15 September 2019.
In a race of incredible depth, the next three finishers &ndash; Kiplimo (57:37), Rhonex Kipruto (57:49) and Alexander Mutiso (57:59) &ndash; also dipped under the previous record.
Splits of 8:05 at 3km and 13:37 at 5km &ndash; 11 seconds inside world record pace &ndash; had suggested that a historic run was in the making. The 10km point was reached in 27:25, while 15km was passed in 41:10. The closing kilometre was a thriller as Kiplimo took the lead with around 900 metres remaining, but Kandie responded and took control some 500 metres from the finish, going on to add his name to the record book.
&ldquo;I can&rsquo;t believe it, I have beaten Kamworor&rsquo;s world record by half a minute,&rdquo; said Kandie. &ldquo;Today is a great day for me and also for Kenya.&rdquo;
World Athletics

Gudaf Tsegay, Beatrice Chepkoech and Kibiwott Kandie will go into the Olympic season with recent world records to their names, after their respective marks over 1500m, 5km and the half-marathon were ratified this week.

Ratified: World records for Tsegay, Chepkoech and Kandie

For a man whose fame and fortune has been defined by how quickly he can run between two very specific points on the map, Kibiwott Kandie was somewhat vague about the distance between his home and that of his famous near-neighbour Paul Tergat.
&ldquo;Let&rsquo;s just say between 10 and 15 kilometres apart,&rdquo; mused Kandie after reducing the world half marathon record* to 57:32 in Valencia on Sunday (6).
Nevertheless, Kandie was clear and precise about the influence Tergat has had on him, the pair both hailing from Baringo county in the west of Kenya.
After all, Tergat was the first official world record-holder over the half marathon distance that Kandie conquered by the Mediterranean, running 59:17 in Milan back in April 1998 when Kandie was not even two years old.
Even in a country like Kenya which has produced a plethora of superlative runners over the past 55 years since Kip Keino set the country&rsquo;s first world record, Tergat has a special place in the pantheon of athletics greats with further world records over 10,000m and the marathon to his name as well as his memorable five consecutive world cross-country titles.
&ldquo;Yes, I know Paul Tergat very well and, when I was young, I used to hear everyone saying, &lsquo;Paul Tergat, world records&rsquo;,&rdquo; said Kandie. &ldquo;This has stayed in my mind.
&ldquo;He became a kind of role model and I used to think &lsquo;When I grow up I would like be like him, I would like to run like him, I would like to do the things he has done.&rsquo; He still inspires me, he&rsquo;s still a role model for me. The work that I am doing (in training) is because of him. I feel I can&rsquo;t let him down because one time when I met him, he said to me: &lsquo;You can follow me, you can follow in my footsteps&rsquo;.&rdquo;
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<h3>Revenge a dish served fast</h3>
The words of Tergat were still echoing in Kandie&rsquo;s ears as he embarked on the journey back to Kenya after finishing second at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, Poland seven weeks ago.
He had to settle for second there to Uganda&rsquo;s Jacob Kiplimo in that race, losing out by five seconds to bring his 2020 four-race unbeaten streak to an end and he had been unable to achieve his ambition of emulating his hero, who took back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000. 
<img src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/5fcdfad7321c0ec30df50687.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="665" /> Kibiwott Kandie in action at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 (AFP / Getty Images)
&nbsp;
&ldquo;You could say this race (in Valencia) was revenge. After the world championships, I went home, and I have been focusing on this race ever since.
&ldquo;I was very motivated for this race after losing at the World Half Marathon. At that race, I pushed a lot but Kiplimo won so I said to myself &lsquo;In Valencia, I have to beat Kiplimo and break the world record&rsquo;.&rdquo;
&ldquo;I knew I was able to run alone for the last four or five kilometres but we got to three kilometres here (in Valencia, with Kiplimo his last remaining rival and still on his shoulder) and that&rsquo;s where I started to move on.
&ldquo;I thought: &lsquo;I am not going to make the same mistake as I did at the World Half Marathon Championships and push too late&rsquo;. I knew we could get the world record and I really wanted the world record, not just make the pace for Kiplimo (to break the world record).&rdquo;
<h3>Hitting the heights</h3>
Another factor in Kandie&rsquo;s victory in Valencia, according to the runner himself, was also changing his training environment from the Ngong Hills near Nairobi to the Kenyan running mecca of Iten in the interim after Gdynia.
&ldquo;I just sat down, worked out what my problem was (in Gdynia). Iten is at a higher altitude than Ngong and I adapted very well there, and I trained very hard with no injury problems.&rdquo;
In little more than a year, Kandie has gone from being an unknown to entering the annals of athletics history with his world record.
Unlike many top-level Kenyan runners, Kandie passed under the radar during his teenage years and only started appearing in local road race results in Kenya at the start of 2017 when he was already 20. However, according to the runner, he started running when he was 16, just before finishing secondary school and joining the Kenyan Army a year later. &ldquo;But it was only in 2019 that I started training seriously, and putting in the hard work, and then I got invited to run in some races abroad,&rdquo; he added.
Kandie&rsquo;s breakthrough performance was in August 2019 when he won the Lille Half Marathon in 59:31 and backed that up less than two months later with an impressive third place, finishing just two seconds in arrears of his time on French soil, in the always-competitive and high quality Delhi Half Marathon. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Original/5b66623b-6ff9-4ac1-8074-d5c5f1925280.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="664" /> Kibiwott Kandie wins the Corrida Internacional de S&atilde;o Silvestre in Sao Paulo (AFP / Getty Images)
&nbsp;
His feats in these two races led to Kandie elevating his ambitions radically.
&ldquo;At the start of this year, I started to think about having a record. I didn&rsquo;t know whether it was going to be the half marathon or maybe 10km, but I said to myself &lsquo;I have to break a record this year&rsquo;. I started well, I was running well at cross country (he won the hotly contested Kenyan cross-country title in February) but then the epidemic destroyed everything, all my racing plans.&rdquo;
<h3>Back on track</h3>
&ldquo;But I never gave up; I carried on training knowing that one day there would finally be a race. I stayed in good shape and in Prague I ran a personal best (58:38 on 5 September).
&ldquo;But really, I have been working for 10 months for this record (since he won the RAK Half Marathon in what was then a personal best 58:58),&rdquo; he added. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Original/4ea45727-48c7-441e-bf4d-be252fe63e84.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="750" /> Kibiwott Kandie in action at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 (Getty Images)
&nbsp;
Kandie was inevitably asked about his plans for the future but he was quick to dismiss any notions that he would do another marathon in the near future, not least because he had one unhappy outing at the Kuching Marathon in Malaysia last year &ndash; prior to his races in Lille and Delhi &ndash; when he finished third in 2:22:48, clearly not a true reflection of his talent.
Like his role model Tergat, and obviously having found his niche at distances shorter than the marathon, Kandie first intends to seek other avenues for glory before considering the possibility of another journey over the classic distance of 26.2 miles.
&ldquo;I will try to qualify for the Olympics at 10,000m,&rdquo; said Kandie, who has never run internationally on the track and whose modest personal best over 25 laps stands at a hand-timed 28:45.7 set last year in Nairobi.
In the wake of his world record in Valencia, his next outing &ndash; regardless of the surface or distance &ndash; will certainly bring in big crowds, subject to the world returning to something akin to what was once thought of as normality.
Phil Minshull for World Athletics
*Subject to the usual ratification procedures

Kandie credits hero Paul Tergat with inspiring him to world record

For a man whose fame and fortune has been defined by how quickly he can run between two very specific points on the map, Kibiwott Kandie was somewhat vague about the distance between his home and that of his famous near-neighbour Paul Tergat.

For the first time in the 28-year history of this event, a Ugandan athlete stood proud atop the podium, but it wasn&rsquo;t the one most expected. In the men&rsquo;s race at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 on Saturday (17), it was Jacob Kiplimo and not Joshua Cheptegei who reigned supreme, the 19-year-old coming of age with his first global title at senior level.
With a devastating surge over the last of the four laps, no one could live with Kiplimo and he hit the line a delighted champion in a championship record of 58:49, with Kenya&rsquo;s Kibiwott Kandie second in 58:54 and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Amedework Walelegn third in 59:08.
Next in was Cheptegei, who had lost contact with the leaders with a little less than five kilometres to run, the king of the track demoted to fourth place on the roads but rewarded with a swift time of 59:21 on his debut at the distance.
&ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t give more than that,&rdquo; said Cheptegei, who set a world 10,000m record in Valencia just 10 days ago. &ldquo;I have been training more for 5000m and 10,000m so I was not well prepared for it, but I&rsquo;m very happy &ndash; running a sub-60 is really special for me. My body was really going very well but I discovered I still had some fatigue in the legs.&rdquo; 
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 In a race of outstanding quality, the first 10 runners broke 60 minutes, the first time that ever happened at the event and just the second time it has ever happened. And a record 28 men finished inside 61 minutes. This, despite a relatively pedestrian start that saw the leading contenders cruise through the opening lap waiting for one another to make a decisive move.
No Ugandan had ever won an individual medal in 23 previous editions of the event &ndash; their one team medal a men&rsquo;s bronze in 2004 &ndash; but the nation has been a rising force in distance running these past few years so today&rsquo;s result came as no surprise. Kiplimo, after all, had clocked a world-leading 7:26.64 for 3000m in Rome last month and 12:48.63 for 5000m so his credentials were unquestioned, and he had followed Cheptegei home at last year&rsquo;s World Cross Country Championships.
His only half marathon before today was the 1:01:53 he ran in Kampala last year but from the outset today, he looked most at home at the distance.&nbsp;
In contrast to the women&rsquo;s race, the men&rsquo;s race set off at a conservative tempo, the leading contenders happy to coast through the opening 5km in 14:20 as Switzerland&rsquo;s Julien Wanders towed them along out front. 
&nbsp;
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The start of the men's race at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020</div>
&nbsp;
 A leading pack of 23 went through 10km in 28:23, and the gears slowly began to shift in the third lap, with Kandie and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Guye Adola applying some pressure. Kandie stepped the pace up even more as he clicked through 15km in 42:17 and clocked the first sub-14-minute 5km split of the race with 13:54.
It whittled the leading pack to 11 with a lap to go, with Cheptegei passing the bell a few seconds behind Kandie in eighth place. Kandie was soon joined by Kiplimo as they ran uphill and as he saw the gaps open behind to Cheptegei, Kiplimo kept the pressure on, building a 15-metre lead over his teammate.
Kandie, too, began to fall off pace behind the smooth-striding Kiplimo, but with less than 3km to run he clawed his way back to Kiplimo&rsquo;s shoulder. The pace now was red-hot, Kiplimo surging to 20km in 55:55, a 13:37 5km split giving him a four-second lead over Kandie as he ran downhill towards the coast for the final time. 
&nbsp;
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Kibiwott Kandie in action at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020</div>
&nbsp;
 Kandie refused to lie down, chasing Kiplimo for all he was worth as they neared the finish in a bid to keep the men&rsquo;s crown in Kenya for the fourth successive championships, following Geoffrey Kamworor&rsquo;s three straight wins between 2014 and 2018. But he simply couldn&rsquo;t close down the advantage and he had to make do with silver.
&ldquo;I feel great, it was my first time at the World Half Marathon Championships and I won!&rdquo; said Kiplimo. &ldquo;It is hard to explain, because I am full of emotion. Unbelievable. The weather was really good, as were the conditions and course. I'm so grateful for everyone who has supported me.
"My favourite surface is the road," confirmed Kiplimo, somewhat surprisingly, given he has raced on the roads sparingly so far in his career. "I&rsquo;m still young and I have to focus for next year on the Olympics. You remember in Denmark (at the World Cross)? I was thinking I didn&rsquo;t want to do that again.
"It&rsquo;s very difficult (to win gold). After winning in Rome, I started preparing for the half marathon," added Kiplimo, who also confirmed that he'll be targeting the 5000m and 10,000m at next year's Olympics. "Joshua Cheptegei and Moses Kipsiro have given me a lot (of inspiration)."
Kandie led Kenya to gold in the team event, with Leonard Barsoton&rsquo;s 59:34 and Benard Kimeli&rsquo;s 59:42 giving them a cumulative time of 2:58:10. Ethiopia took team silver with 2:58:25, and Uganda bronze with 2:58:39. All three teams finished inside the previous championship record.
"We said we have to produce a gold medal for the team because that is the aim," said Kandie after registering his first defeat of 2020. "No, I&rsquo;m not happy (with silver). I was preparing for a gold. I pushed it for so long for so many kilometres I used some energy and I didn&rsquo;t have so much for the finish"
Walelegn, meanwhile, was content with his bronze medal.
"I feel happy with my race, but I worked to be a gold medallist," he said. "The race was very challenging."
Further down the field, there were national records for South Africa's Stephen Mokoka, who marked his seventh appearance at these championships with a 59:36 clocking in seventh, his best ever finish, and France's European 10,000m champion Morhad Amdouni, who clocked 59:40 on his debut at the distance.
Cathal Dennehy for World Athletics

For the first time in the 28-year history of this event, a Ugandan athlete stood proud atop the podium, but it wasn’t the one most expected. In the men’s race at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 on Saturday (17), it was Jacob Kiplimo and not Joshua Cheptegei who reigned supreme, the 19-year-old coming of age with his first global title at senior level.

Kiplimo makes history for Uganda at World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020

When the gun sounds for the men&rsquo;s race at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 on Saturday (17), all eyes will be on an athlete who has never previously raced the 21.1km distance.
Despite his half marathon inexperience, Joshua Cheptegei will quite rightly command the spotlight given the year he has had. The Ugandan has set world records in all three of his races in 2020, starting with his 12:51 clocking for 5km on the roads in Monaco in February and followed six months later by his 12:35.36 5000m run, also in Monaco. More recently, he took a five-second chunk off the 10,000m world record in Valencia on 7 October with his stunning 26:11.00 performance.
His recent performances indicate world record potential at longer distances &ndash; indeed, he also holds the world best for 15km &ndash; but whether that will materialise in his first attempt at the half marathon is another matter entirely. More to the point, for the first time this year Cheptegei likely won&rsquo;t be focused on breaking records in Gdynia; instead, his main goal will simply be to reach the finish line first.
Unfortunately for his rivals, the formidable Cheptegei is just as adept at winning major titles as he is at breaking records.
Ever since he faded in the closing stages of the senior men&rsquo;s race at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships on home soil in Kampala, Cheptegei has managed to turn his fortunes around. He took world 10,000m silver in London later that year, followed it with double Commonwealth gold in 2018 and then bagged two global crowns in 2019, winning the world cross-country title on a challenging course in Aarhus and then following it with 10,000m gold at the World Championships in Doha.
If Cheptegei is victorious on Saturday, he will become just the second man in the modern era to win global titles on the track, road and cross-country, joining Khalid Skah. Incidentally, Skah &ndash; the winner in 1994 &ndash; is also the last man to win the World Half on his debut at the distance. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Square/d90180d0-9d96-434f-a973-4183d10d3450.jpg?cachebuster=fb6d621c-bb5e-4b74-93e2-a75cf82652a4" alt="Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo" width="600" height="600" />
 One of Cheptegei&rsquo;s strongest challengers could well be his youngest team-mate, Jacob Kiplimo.
The 19-year-old has also been in sensational form this year, clocking a world-leading Ugandan record of 7:26.64 for 3000m in Rome and setting a 5000m PB of 12:48.63 in Ostrava. His last clash with Cheptegei was at the 2019 World Cross Country Championships, where he shared the lead for much of the way before finishing second behind his compatriot.
Before that, however, he had comfortably beaten Cheptegei at the Ugandan Cross Country Championships and the Cross Internacional de Italica in Seville earlier that year. Kiplimo also has the slight advantage of having previously contested a half marathon; he ran 1:01:53 at altitude in Kampala at the end of last year, winning by more than a minute.
To date, Uganda has won just one medal at the World Half Marathon Championships &ndash; bronze in the men&rsquo;s team event in 2004 &ndash; while the country&rsquo;s best individual placing was Wilson Busienei&rsquo;s fourth-place finish in 2006.
Their medal haul looks set to increase this weekend, not only in the individual race but in the team contest too as their line-up includes 2009 world U20 cross-country bronze medallist Moses Kibet, 1:00:00 performer Stephen Kissa, and 20-year-old rising talent Victor Kiplangat.
Since 2006, all but one of the nine men&rsquo;s titles have been won by either Zersenay Tadese or Geoffrey Kamworor. Neither man will be in Gdynia, meaning for the first time since 2010 a new name will feature on the top step of the podium.
But despite the absence of Kamworor, who was involved in a car accident earlier this year, the Kenyan team is still strong and they will be keen to win their first senior men&rsquo;s global team title since 2016, having been beaten at the 2018 World Half and the most recent editions of the World Cross.
World leader Kibiwott Kandie heads to Gdynia off the back of four high-quality victories this year. He started his season by winning the Kenyan Defence Forces Cross Country Championships and the Kenyan Cross Country Championships. Just six days after winning his first national title, he went on to win the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in February in a world-leading PB of 58:58. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Square/5b66623b-6ff9-4ac1-8074-d5c5f1925280.jpg?cachebuster=9ef83f24-da68-4117-8c12-0d0a4627e71b" alt="Kibiwott Kandie" width="600" height="600" />
 Kandie didn&rsquo;t race again until September, but he showed no loss of form at the Prague 21.1K, winning with another world-leading PB of 58:38 &ndash; a mark that puts him fifth on the world all-time list and just 37 seconds shy of Kamworor&rsquo;s world record.
Benard Kimeli and Benard Ngeno, both of whom have identical PBs of 59:07, join Kandie in making their global championships debut. Ngeno, a half marathon specialist, has finished on the podium in his past nine races over the distance and has a season&rsquo;s best of 59:26.
Leonard Barsoton, the 2017 world cross-country silver medallist, adds further strength to the Kenyan team. A 59:09 performer at his best, Barsoton&rsquo;s fastest clocking this year is 1:00:02.
Morris Munene Gachaga, another experienced half marathon runner, completes the Kenyan team. He hasn&rsquo;t raced this year, but has a 59:22 PB from last year.
Ethiopia&rsquo;s Guye Adola has a reputation for producing unexpected performances. He was a relative unknown ahead of the 2014 World Half Marathon Championships, but he chopped more than two minutes from his PB in Copenhagen to take bronze in 59:21. Later that year, he beat Kamworor &ndash; the reigning world half marathon and cross country champion at that time &ndash; to win the Delhi Half Marathon in a PB of 59:06. 
<img src="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/media/Square/e616410d-56e2-4809-a1cf-6175c94d8adb.jpg?cachebuster=e0c1f5f2-1b7b-40c7-8cc9-f6f197bc7fd4" alt="Guye Adola" width="600" height="600" />
 After low-key seasons in 2015 and 2016, Adola re-emerged at the 2017 Berlin Marathon, where he pushed Eliud Kipchoge up until the final few kilometres, ultimately finishing just 14 seconds behind the Kenyan great in 2:03:46.
Adola hasn&rsquo;t raced internationally since last December&rsquo;s Valencia Marathon, where he ran 2:04:42, but he can never be discounted.
African 10,000m silver medallist and two-time Delhi Half Marathon winner Andamlak Belihu also features on the Ethiopian team. The 21-year-old has a PB of 59:10 and is a versatile runner, having finished fifth over 10,000m at last year&rsquo;s World Championships and eighth at the World Cross in Aarhus.
Like Belihu, Birhanu Legese is also a two-time winner of the Delhi Half Marathon. He has focused on the marathon in recent years, clocking a PB of 2:02:48 in Berlin last year and winning this year&rsquo;s Tokyo Marathon in a world-leading 2:04:15.
Leul Gebresilase, who has PBs of 59:18 and 2:04:02 for the half and full marathon distances, finished 10th at the last World Half Marathon Championships in Valencia and will be keen to improve on that this weekend.
Amedework Walelegn, the 2017 world U20 cross-country silver medallist, and Hailemaryam Kiros, winner of Ethiopia&rsquo;s hotly-contested 15km trial race for Gdynia, complete the Ethiopian line-up.
South Africa&rsquo;s Stephen Mokoka will be making his seventh appearance at the World Half &ndash; a tally bettered by just two other men. He has finished in the top 10 on three previous occasions and will be buoyed by his fifth-place finish in the marathon at last year&rsquo;s World Championships in Doha.
Other contenders include European record-holder Julien Wanders and his Swiss team-mate Tadesse Abraham, winner of the 2016 European half marathon title. Morocco&rsquo;s African Games silver medallist Mohamed Reda El Aaraby could also feature among the leaders.
Eritrea &ndash; winners of team medals at the past 10 editions, including gold in 2014 &ndash; hasn&rsquo;t entered a team for Gdynia. Japan and USA, who have sent teams to all 23 previous editions, also won&rsquo;t be represented this weekend.
And while Sweden isn&rsquo;t expected to contend for team honours in Gdynia, their squad includes the oldest and youngest participants in the entire men&rsquo;s field. 43-year-old Adhanom Abraha will be contesting his third World Half but his first for Sweden (his two previous appearances came when he ran for Eritrea), while 19-year-old Emil Millan de la Oliva will be making his global championships debut, having impressed on the track this year with times of 13:29.59 for 5000m and 23:23.21 for 10,000m, putting him fourth and second respectively on the European U20 all-time lists.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics 
<hr />
<h3>Resources</h3>
&bull; <a href="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/561c0209-20c8-49cd-a86b-157c9c446703.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facts and figures</a> &bull; <a href="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/28859212-3665-4f05-9cd8-961b76b405e0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Entries by country</a> | <a href="https://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/005d6910-6317-473d-b40b-2fc0000c2ff0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">entries by event</a> &bull; <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-half-marathon-championships/world-athletics-half-marathon-championships-7138821/timetable/byday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Timetable</a> &bull; <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/download/downloadresultinfo?filename=98ec3198-59ee-4fac-bb33-262b42d5ce8b.pdf&amp;urlSlug=official-programme">Official programme</a> &bull; <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/Competitions/world-athletics-half-marathon-championships/multimedia/video" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Video highlights of past editions</a>

When the gun sounds for the men’s race at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 on Saturday (17), all eyes will be on an athlete who has never previously raced the 21.1km distance.

Cheptegei aims to end dream year on a high at World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020

Peres Jepchirchir smashed the women-only race world record in the half marathon in Prague on Saturday (5).
The 26-year-old Kenyan clocked 1:05:34* at the Prague 21.1KM, shattering the previous record of 1:06:11 set by Netsanet Gudeta of Ethiopia at the World Half Marathon Championships in 2018.
The small field of nine - two of them pacesetters - set out at 6:20, ensuring ideal early morning conditions over the 16.5-lap course in Prague's Letna Park. Pacers Brenda Jepleting and Lilian Jepkorir Chebii went out strong, covering the opening five kilometres in about 15:20, with Jepchirchir running close.
Impatient, Jepchirchir broke away from field just 20 minutes into the race, forging on alone at a ravaging pace, at one point knocking off successive 1280-metre laps in 3:51 before reaching 10 kilometres in 30:32.
Her pace slowed over the waning laps, most covered in just over four minutes, but she still finished well under the previous mark.
"I was thinking to run maybe 1:04:50, but I'm so happy," said Jepchirchir, who raced to the world half marathon title in 2016.
"The last five kilometres I was really tired," she said, but added that she did plan to run much of the race alone. "My plan was to run good, because I was well prepared."
This was Jepchirchir's second world record over the distance. She clocked 1:05:06 in a mixed gender race in Ras Al Khaimah in 2017, a record which stood for just under two months.
With her pacing duties over early, Jepleting went on to finish second in 1:07:07. Dorcas Kimeli was third in 1:07:14. Kimeli is expected to race next at the&nbsp;World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020.
<h3>Kandie sizzles 58:38</h3>
The men's race kicked off at 08:00, handing that field much hotter conditions to contend with. Similarly to the women&rsquo;s race, it was largely solo affair with Kibiwott Kandie breaking away to go it alone after 10 kilometres.
"It's difficult to run alone," he later said, but was rewarded for his efforts with a 58:38 run to become the fifth fastest man over the distance with the sixth fastest performance of all-time.
Kandie ran well early in the year, winning the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in late February with a world-leading 58:58, just six days after his triump at the fiercely competitive Kenyan cross-country championships. But then the Coronavirus pandemic forced a halt to that momentum.
"My wish is to run again when this pandemic is over," he said. "It will be a pleasure to continue competing."&nbsp;
In early March Kandie was also named to the Kenyan team for the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships.
Philemon Kiplimo Kimaiyo was second in 59:56 with Benson Kipruto third in 1:00:06.
* pending the usual ratification procedures
World Athletics

Peres Jepchirchir smashed the women-only race world record in the half marathon in Prague this morning.

Jepchirchir smashes women-only half marathon world record in Prague

When it became clear that it wouldn&rsquo;t be possible to hold the Birell Grand Prix in Prague, organisers of the World Athletics Gold Label road race set about creating an alternative event. After much planning, RunCzech has been given the green light to stage the Prague 21.1km, an invitation-only elite half marathon on a looped circuit in Letna Park in the Czech capital on 5 September.
Thirty-five of the world&rsquo;s best road runners will be in action on Saturday morning, running 16-and-a-half laps of the 1280m course. The women&rsquo;s race will start at 6:20am local time, and then the men&rsquo;s race will begin at 8:00am. The event will be broadcast live on Czech Television and on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/runczech" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RunCzech YouTube channel</a>.
It is hoped that the flat course and intense competition will lead to fast times. The Czech all-comers&rsquo; records stand at 58:47 for men and 1:04:52 for women. As the women&rsquo;s race is being held separate from the men&rsquo;s, they may also have their eye on breaking the women-only world record of 1:06:11.
Peres Jepchirchir, the 2016 world half marathon champion, leads the women's field. The 26-year-old Kenyan set a world record of 1:05:06 &ndash; which has since been broken &ndash; back in 2017, then became pregnant and gave birth to her daughter later that year. She returned to form in 2019, winning the Lisbon Half Marathon in 1:06:54.
Sheila Chepkirui may have the slowest official PB of the field, but that&rsquo;s largely due to the fact she has contested just one half marathon to date and it was at altitude in Nairobi. Given her record at other distances &ndash; including her two sub-30-minute clockings for 10km, one of which was in Prague &ndash; the 29-year-old Kenyan will be one of the big favourites this weekend.
Ethiopia&rsquo;s 2015 world 5000m silver medallist Senbere Teferi and Kenya&rsquo;s Edith Chelimo are the two other sub-66-minute runners in the women&rsquo;s field.
Joan Melly Chelimo and Netsanet Gudeta had originally been set to compete, but both are late withdrawals due to injury.
With nine sub-60-minute performers, the men&rsquo;s field is also of an extremely high standard.
Stephen Kiprop finished third in Prague last year, just two months after clocking a lifetime best of 58:42 to win the Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon. He stands equal sixth on the world all-time list, but he&rsquo;ll be up against Kibiwott Kandie, another sub-59-minute runner, and two-time Prague winner Benard Kimeli.
Kandie won this year&rsquo;s Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon in a world-leading 58:58, just six days after winning the highly competitive Kenyan cross-country title. Kimeli, who won in Prague in 2018 and 2019, turned to track racing in July and was rewarded with a 5000m PB of 13:16.61.
Others in the field with the potential for a top-three finish include Ethiopia&rsquo;s two-time Delhi Half Marathon winner Andamlak Belihu, 59:28 performer Philemon Kiplimo and fellow Kenyan Abel Kipchumba.
&ldquo;The pandemic has deprived these great athletes of the chance to participate in races all across the world,&rdquo; said Carlo Capalbo, president of the organising committee. &ldquo;We wanted to find a way of doing something spectacular for everyone. While this race is coming at what would normally be the end of the season, we hope in a way that it will be the start, a spark that gets race organisers all over the world thinking creatively about how to keep the sport alive.&rdquo;
<h3>Elite field</h3>
Men Stephen Kiprop (KEN) 58:42 Kibiwott Kandie (KEN) 58:58 Benard Kimeli (KEN) 59:07 Andamlak Belihu (ETH) 59:10 Philemon Kiplimo (KEN) 59:28 Abel Kipchumba (KEN) 59:29 Amos Kurgat (KEN) 59:37 Lucas Kimeli Rotich (KEN) 59:44 Alfred Chelal Barkach (KEN) 59:46 Henry Rono (KEN) 1:00:04 Meshack Kiprop Koech (KEN) 1:00:07 Felix Kipkoech (KEN) 1:00:12 Kennedy Kimutai (KEN) 1:00:21 Evans Kipkorir (KEN) 1:00:26 Bethwell Biwott (KEN) 1:00:57
Women Peres Jepchirchir (KEN) 1:05:06 Senbere Teferi (ETH) 1:05:32 Edith Chelimo (KEN) 1:05:52 Dorcas Kimeli (KEN) 1:07:10 Vibian Chepkirui (KEN) 1:09:28 Sheila Chepkirui (KEN) 1:11:51

When it became clear that it wouldn’t be possible to hold the Birell Grand Prix in Prague, organisers of the World Athletics Gold Label road race set about creating an alternative event. After much planning, RunCzech has been given the green light to stage an invitation-only elite half marathon on a looped circuit in Letna Park in the Czech capital on 5 September.

Chepkirui and Jepchirchir set to clash in Prague

Belgium&rsquo;s Bashir Abdi and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Helen Bekele Tola signed a successful farewell to 2019, taking convincing victories at the 55th San Silvestre Vallecana, a World Athletics Gold Label road race, in Madrid on Tuesday (31).
While Bashir got the better of Uganda&rsquo;s Mande Bushendich in 27:47, Tola beat Kenya&rsquo;s world marathon champion Ruth Chepngetich by seven seconds, winning in 30:50. The downhill nature of the course means times achieved here are not valid for PB or record purposes.
On a pleasant windless night with the thermometer reaching 9C, the race kicked off at a moderate pace as a 10-man pack covered the opening kilometre in 2:48. Spain&rsquo;s Toni Abad&iacute;a moved to the front and opened a 30-metre gap by the second kilometre; shortly afterwards Jes&uacute;s Ramos joined Abad&iacute;a in the lead and the local pair went through three kilometres in 8:04.
The main favourites were about 40 metres behind, led by Turkey&rsquo;s Aras Kaya, the Ugandan trio of Moses Kurong, Boniface Sikowo and last year&rsquo;s third-place finisher Bushendich plus Bashir Abdi.
The Spaniards&rsquo; lead was to be short lived and before reaching the halfway point (13:30) they were caught by the chasing group with Kurong making most of the pacing duties. The key movement came with the clock reading 19:00 when Abdi broke away from the heading pack to build a two-second advantage on Bushendich and five over Abad&iacute;a with 2.5km to go.
Abdi, the European 10,000m silver medallist, who had remained in the middle of the leading group for the first half of the race, proved to be in fine form over the tough final stages. At the tape, the Belgian was timed at 27:47, his first ever sub-28-minute clocking on the roads, while Bushendich finished in 27:51. Abad&iacute;a managed the fastest ever time by a Spaniard here with 27:56, some consolation for recording his fourth third-place finish in Madrid.
&ldquo;After competing at the Chicago Marathon (where he set a Belgian record of 2:06:14), I rested for several weeks but then I resumed training and I felt good today,&rdquo; said Abdi, who was born in Somalia but fled the country at the age of 12. &ldquo;The closing two kilometres were very tough but I reserved my energy in the first half and the tactic paid off.
&ldquo;This year I have broken the Belgian record twice (2:07:03 in London and 2:06:14 in Chicago) and I would like to get close to the European record (2:04:16) in some of my next outings over the distance,&rdquo; said Abdi, who will run a half marathon in the Netherlands on 12 January before contesting the Tokyo Marathon in March. &ldquo;I would like to compete at the Tokyo Olympics, but also understand the decision to move the road events venue to Sapporo due to the weather conditions.&rdquo;
The anticipated clash between Kenya&rsquo;s world marathon champion Ruth Chepngetich and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Helen Bekele Tola didn&rsquo;t disappoint.
Sandwiched between a large pack of men, the two women were evenly matched for the first three kilometres which they covered in 8:56, clearly ahead of Portugal&rsquo;s Carla Salom&eacute; Rocha (9:20) and Uganda&rsquo;s late addition to the field Juliet Chekwel (9:24),
Chepngetich, who had declared at the pre-race press conference that she was not yet in the same kind of form which led her to the gold medal in Doha, could not follow in the Ethiopian&rsquo;s footsteps before reaching halfway (14:50 vs 14:54); by then Rocha kept her four-second margin on the Ugandan (15:29/15:33).
In the second half, 25-year-old Tola managed to extend her lead to eight seconds with about two kilometres to go while Rocha also widened her advantage on Chekwel to another eight seconds.
Tola confirmed her supremacy during the uphill closing section and romped home in 30:50, the fourth fastest time ever recorded at this race. Meanwhile, Rocha completed the podium more than a minute behind the winner (31:52) but 21 seconds clear of Chekwel.
&ldquo;I have beaten the recent world champion and that&rsquo;s great for me,&rdquo; said Tola, who is based in Geneva where she is coached by Tesfaye Eticha. &ldquo;I feel in great shape and look forward to running under 2:20 in Tokyo in March.&rdquo;
Emeterio Valiente for World Athletics
LEADING RESULTS
Men 1 Bashir Abdi (BEL) 27:47 2 Mande Bushendich (UGA) 27:51 3 Toni Abad&iacute;a (ESP) 27:56 4 Boniface Sikowo (UGA) 28:04 5 Hamid Ben Daoud (ESP) 28:06
Women 1 Helen Bekele Tola (ETH) 30:50 2 Ruth Chepngetich (KEN) 30:57 3 Carla Salom&eacute; Rocha (POR) 31:52 4 Juliet Chekwel (UGA) 32:13 5 Sara Catarina Ribeiro (POR) 32:29
<h3> Kandie comes from behind to win in Sao Paulo</h3>
Little-known Kenyan Kibiwott Kandie timed his finish to perfection at the Corrida Internacional de S&atilde;o Silvestre, overtaking pre-race favourite Jacob Kiplimo in the final stages of the 15km World Athletics Bronze Label road race with a 42:59 course record on Tuesday (31).
Marathon world record-holder Brigid Kosgei won the women&rsquo;s race by more than a minute, clocking 48:54 to finish just 20 seconds shy of the course record.
Kandie and Kiplimo broke away from the other three men in the lead pack just after the half-way stage. Just before the climb up Brigadeiro Luis Ant&ocirc;nio Avenue, Kiplimo took advantage and entered Paulista Avenue &ndash; less than 700 metres from the finish line &ndash; with a comfortable lead, seemingly destined to become the first Ugandan winner of the race. 
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Kibiwott Kandie wins the Corrida Internacional de S&atilde;o Silvestre in Sao Paulo</div>
&nbsp;
But Kandie started kicking hard in the final 40 metres of the race and overtook Kiplimo just before the line, stopping the clock at 42:59 to win by one second. Both men finished well inside the previous course record of 43:15 that had been set by Paul Tergat back in 1995.
Kosgei, contesting her first race since clocking a marathon world record of 2:14:04 (pending ratification) in Chicago in October, lived up to her status as the pre-race favourite in the women&rsquo;s contest.
Compatriot Pauline Kamulu tried sticking with Kosgei in the early stages, but it didn&rsquo;t last long as the 25-year-old already had a clear lead at the five-kilometre mark.
By the time she reached the uphill section of the race, her opponents were no longer in sight. Realising that she wasn&rsquo;t far off course record schedule, Kosgei increased her pace in the closing stages but ultimately finished just shy of the mark in 48:54. She became just the third woman in the event&rsquo;s history to complete the course within 49 minutes.
LEADING RESULTS 
Men 1 Kibiwott Kandie (KEN) 42:59 2 Jacob Kiplimo (UGA) 43:00 3 Titus Ekiru (KEN) 43:54 4 Geoffrey Kipchumba (KEN) 45:10 5 Joseph Panga (TAN) 45:33
Women 1 Brigid Kosgei (KEN) 48:54 2 Sheila Chelangat (KEN) 50:10 3 Alem Nigussie (ETH) 50:12 4 Pauline Kamulu (KEN) 50:28 5 Delvine Meringor (KEN) 50:51
<h3> Faniel ends Italian drought in Bolzano while Kipkemboi equals course record</h3>
World 5000m silver medallist Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi equalled the course record at the BOclassic Silvesterlauf while marathon specialist Eyob Gebrhiwet Faniel became the first Italian winner of the World Athletics Bronze Label road race since 1988 in Bolzano on Tuesday (31).
Faniel took an upset win in 28:21, beating world 5000m leader Telahun Haile Bekele by seven seconds. The last time an Italian runner won in Bolzano was in 1988 when Salvatore Antibo and Maria Curatolo took top honours.
Kenya&rsquo;s Amos Kipruto, the world marathon bronze medallist, finished third in 28:37 ahead of Ugandan steeplechase specialist Albert Chemutai (28:50) and European 10,000m bronze medallist Yemaneberhan Crippa (28:54).
A leading group formed by Bekele, Kipruto, Chemutai, Crippa, Faniel and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Mohammed Abdilmana took the lead in the early stages of the race. They ran at a conservative pace, clocking 3:31 for both the first and second laps. Faniel took the initiative and moved to the front at the end of the third lap with 10:44 on the clock.
The leading pack was whittled down to five runners during the fifth lap. Bekele, Faniel and Kipruto broke away from Crippa and Chemutai with two laps to go and went through the sixth lap mark in 21:23. Faniel went to the lead and only Bekele managed to keep up with the Italian, while Kipruto was dropped by three seconds.
Bekele, who clocked a world-leading 12:52.98 for 5000m in Rome earlier in 2019, launched his attack during the last lap, but Faniel caught up with the Ethiopian and broke away by unleashing his final kick with 200 metres to go near the Fountain of Frogs. He crossed the finish line in Walther Square in 28:21, improving his previous career best over this distance by three seconds.
Faniel finished fifth in the marathon at the European Championships in 2018 and 15th at the World Championships in Doha. Earlier this year the 27-year-old improved his half marathon PB to 1:00:53 in Padua. Born in Eritrea but living in Italy since 2004, Faniel is coached by Italian former marathon runner Ruggero Pertile.
&ldquo;I knew that I could run a good race, but I was not sure that I would be able to win against such great athletes,&rdquo; said Faniel. &ldquo;I am now training hard in preparation for the Seville Marathon in February.&rdquo; 
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Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi wins the BOclassic in Bolzano</div>
&nbsp;
Two-time Boclassic winner and world half marathon champion Netsanet Gudeta, Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi, Mercy Cherono, Tariku Alemitu and Gloria Kite ran at a swift pace from the early stages of the women&rsquo;s 5km race.
They went through the first lap in 3:43 and the second lap in 7:42. Gudeta, Kipkemboi and Kite pulled away from Cherono during the third lap and clocked 11:39 at the bell.
Gudeta and Kipkemboi stepped up the pace and were neck and neck race during the final lap. Kipkemboi launched her final kick with 200 metres to go and held on to take the win in 15:30, equalling the course record set by her compatriot Agnes Tirop in 2017. In a close finish, Gudeta was just one second behind with Kite a further second in arrears.
Kenya&rsquo;s 2013 world 5000m silver medallist Mercy Cherono finished fourth in 15:38, while Italy&rsquo;s double European U20 cross-country champion Nadia Battocletti was sixth in 16:11.
&ldquo;It was my second time in Bolzano and I was well prepared as I am familiar with the course,&rdquo; said Kipkemboi, who intends on contesting some cross-country races over the next few months. &ldquo;It was a fast race and I am happy that I managed to beat Gudeta.&rdquo;
Diego Sampaolo for World Athletics
LEADING RESULTS
Men 1 Eyob Faniel (ITA) 28:21 2 Telahun Bekele (ETH) 28:28 3 Amos Kipruto (KEN) 28:37 4 Albert Chemutai (UGA) 28:50 5 Yemaneberhan Crippa (ITA) 28:54
Women 1 Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi (KEN) 15:30 2 Netsanet Gudeta (ETH) 15:31 3 Gloria Kite (KEN) 15:32 4 Mercy Cherono (KEN) 15:38 5 Alemitu Tariku (ETH) 16:00