Uganda’s Olympic champion Peruth Chemutai has finished fifth in the women’s 3,000 meters steeplechase at the Diamond League Final in Brussels, Belgium on Friday 4th.
Chemutai clocked 8:59.77 to finish among five athletes who broke the nine-minute barrier in a highly competitive race. American Lexy Halladay followed her in sixth in 9:05.36. The result improves on her fifth-place finish at the Eugene Diamond League earlier this season, where she ran 9:05.39.
Kenya’s Faith Cherotich dominated the closing stages to win in 8:51.61, setting a new meeting record. Her compatriot Doris Lemngole finished second in 8:52.86, a personal best, while Bahrain’s Winfred Yavi was third in 8:53.54. Tunisia’s Marwa Bouzayani was fourth in 8:57.02.
Chemutai was among the leading athletes through the race and passed the 2,000-metre mark in 5:58.08, but she could not match the pace of the leaders over the final kilometre as Cherotich pulled away to secure the victory.
For Chemutai, the fifth-place finish comes during a season in which she has continued to compete consistently at the highest level. She won the Shanghai Diamond League earlier this year and has also collected a bronze medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, where Cherotich won gold.
Chemutai said the race has given her another opportunity to test herself against the best athletes in the world and identify areas to improve as she continues her season.
“It was a tough race, but I am happy that I competed strongly against some of the best athletes in the world. I will take the lessons from this race and continue working hard for the competitions ahead,” Chemutai said.
Uganda Athletics General Secretary Beatrice Ayikoru said Chemutai’s continued presence in Diamond League finals is important to Uganda’s athletics programme, particularly as the country seeks to maintain its position among the world’s leading distance-running nations.
Ayikoru said the quality of the Brussels field, which produced five athletes under nine minutes, demonstrates the increasingly competitive nature of women’s steeplechase and puts Chemutai’s performance in perspective.
“Peruth remains one of Uganda’s leading athletes, and competing consistently at this level is important for her growth and for the country. We are proud of her performance and believe she still has a lot to offer in the major competitions ahead,” Ayikoru said.
Chemutai is the first Ugandan woman to win an Olympic gold medal, having triumphed in the 3,000m steeplechase at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. She later won silver in the same event at the Paris 2024 Olympics and holds the Ugandan national record of 8:48.03, set in Rome in 2024.
Chemutai will now turn her attention to the remaining competitions on her 2026 calendar as she seeks to regain the podium against an increasingly competitive field led by Cherotich, Lemngole and Yavi-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
