After a successful track career spanning over 15 years, double world champion Vivian Cheruiyot is now plotting to venture into marathon.
But she has one mission to accomplish before she makes the move - win an Olympic gold in her 10,000m speciality at the August’s Rio Olympics.
“Winning gold at the Olympic Games stage has been my lifetime dream and I want to move to marathon after accomplishing this mission,” she said.
In an interview during her first training session on the track since winning gold at the Beijing worlds in 10,000m last year, Cheruiyot said she has already made up her mind to shift to marathon after the Olympic Games in Rio.
“I feel I have achieved a lot on the track especially at the World Championships and all that remains is an Olympic gold. This is why I have had to postpone my marathon debut to fulfill this dream in Rio Olympic Games,” she said.
Vivian boasts of five medals from the IAAF World Championships and two from the Olympic Games front. Vivian won silver in 5,000m at the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Japan and improved this to gold in 5,000m in Berlin in 2009.
She went on to strike double gold in 5,000m and 10,000m in Daegu in 2011 and won gold in the 10,000m at the 2015 Beijing show.
But while Vivian believes she has achieved her target on the world stage, she’s not done with Olympics. She only has silver and bronze medals to show from the 2012 London Olympics.
“I will close my track chapter in Rio and I am praying to God to grant me the Olympics victory I have always yearned for,” said Vivian, who first represented the country at the Sydney 2000 and Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, returning home empty handed.
“You know years keep going and I have to plan my future. I want to hand over the track baton to the upcoming generation in style and that is why I am shifting to marathon after Rio Olympics,” she said.
She insisted she will not double this time in Rio. Vivian is not new to the roads, having won the World’s Best 10km race in Puerto Rico in 2009 and the Great Manchester 10km run in 2010.