By Spy Uganda
Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai advanced to the final of the Women’s 3000 steeplechase at the ongoing 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Chemutai astonishingly finished second in heat one on Sunday morning to qualify for the final with a season best time of 9:12.72.
Bahrain’s Winfred Yavi won the fastest heat in a time of 9:10.8 while Emma Coburn from USA finished third posting a time of 9:16.91 to secure a place in the final.
Chemutai a national record holder and ranked 10th in the World will be looking for a maiden podium finish come Wednesday in the Steeplechase final at 2:00Pm.
Two years ago, she finished 5th in the final at the Doha World Championships.
Chemutai (born July 10, 1999) is a Ugandan steeplechase runner. She competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the women’s 3000 metres steeplechase race; her time of 9:31.03 in the heats did not qualify her for the final.
Hailing from the Bukwo District, she took up running in 2013 after attending the District Athletics Championships in Bukwo as a casual fan. At the 2015 Commonwealth Youth Games in Apia, she won silver medals in the 1500 metres and 3000 metres. She also competed in the junior women’s race at the 2017 IAAF World Cross Country Championships in Kampala, finishing in 7th place.
In 2016, she finished in 7th place in the final of the women’s 3000 metres steeplechase event at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships held in Bydgoszcz, Poland.
At the 2018 World Junior Championships held in mid July, she claimed a notable Silver medal in the 3000m steeplechase. A week later, at the Monaco diamond league, she set a national record with a time of 9:07.94
In 2019, she competed in the senior women’s race at the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships held in Aarhus, Denmark. She finished in 5th place.
