Olympic steeplechase medallists to rematch at Doha Diamond League

Doha: Olympic champion Winfred Yavi (BRN) will be reunited with Paris silver and bronze medallists Peruth Chemutai (UGA) and Faith Cherotich (KEN) in...

Doha: Olympic champion Winfred Yavi (BRN) will be reunited with Paris silver and bronze medallists Peruth Chemutai (UGA) and Faith Cherotich (KEN) in a top-quality women’s 3000m steeplechase field at the Jetour Doha Meeting on  May 16.

Yavi – the Asian record holder with a best of 8:44.39 (Rome, 2024) – is the second-fastest women’s steeplechaser of all time and holds three of the ten quickest times ever recorded. She is currently the reigning Olympic, world and Asian Games champion.

“I am always looking for opportunities to run faster and win more,” said the 2023 Diamond League champion. 

“When I ran my personal best in Rome last year I was actually a little bit disappointed not to break the world record (8:44.32) because I thought it was possible. I’ve been working very hard over the winter and I believe it will happen at some point. It is important to stay focused and to stay hungry. To win gold in Tokyo and successfully defend my world title is my main goal for this year, but I want to run fast and set a high standard when I open my Diamond League season in Doha. Conditions are good in Qatar and when the crowd get behind us, anything is possible.”

Ugandan record-holder Chemutai, who won the Olympic title in Tokyo (2021), is ranked third-fastest all-time with a best 8:48.03 achieved at the 2024 Diamond League event in Rome where she finished second to Yavi.