Fancy Chepkorir says double world and Olympic champion Beatrice Chebet’s inspiration was the catalyst behind her podium finish at the Great Chepsaita Cross Country Championships on Saturday.
Chepkorir tackled the highly competitive women’s Under-20 race, where she stormed to a well-earned third-place finish.
Joan Chepkurui stamped her authority in the 6km race, cutting the tape in 21:34.
She powered past Mercy Kirwa, who settled for second in 21:48, while Chepkorir rounded off the podium in 22:07.
Chepkorir revealed her win was due to the motivation from her training mate and double world champion Beatrice Chebet.
"I train in Iten under coach Peter Bii, and Beatrice Chebet is my training mate. I thank her because I am here because of her. She has pushed me and motivated me to get to where I am."
"I am pushed hard to get the podium, and I thank God I was able to."
Chepkorir noted that she had featured in the AK Cross Country circuit.
"I had prepared well for this race. I ran in Olkalau and Machakos Cross Country."
As the 2026 season looms, Chepkorir is bullish about good results, noting that her body is in fine form.
"I run 5,000m. I hope to have a good season because I see my body is okay."
Meanwhile, the winner, Chepkurui, who trains in Kuresoi, said she had not expected to emerge victorious.
"This is my first time running here in Chepsaita." "The race was not easy, I did not expect to win, but I am happy with the results," Chepkurui said.
She noted that the course was a challenge for her, but she decided to push herself.
"The course was very hard, but I was determined to finish, so I pushed on."
"I had done proper training before coming here because I knew Chepsaita was not an easy race."
Kirwa also reveals that the course was a challenge for her. "The race was okay; the only challenge was the heavy winds. This is my first time running here in Chepsaita," she said.
Prior to coming to the Chepsaita race, Kirwa revealed that she had tested her legs in the Athletics Kenya Cross Country series.
"I had run at the Kapsokwony Cross Country and finished fourth, so I went back to training, focusing on speed work."
Looking ahead, she hopes to one day don the national team colours in global events.
"I run 1,500m and 5,000m on the track. I hope to one day represent Kenya in a global championship."
In the men's U-20 race, Kelvin Kariankei clocked 25:20 to claim the men's 8km title ahead of Emmanuel Kipchirchir (25:27) and Alex Pelor (25:33).
Kariankei, a fourth-year student at the Chepsaita Secondary School, stated that lessons he picked up from his appearance at the national Cross Country Championships paid off.
"At the nationals, I finished 12th, but today I was victorious. From the nationals, I saw that I was going out hard with a fast pace
"But today I ran with the leading group and then pushed in the final lap, and that paid off.
Kipchirchir stated that the only challenge he faced was the hilly course.
"The race was good, the course was a challenge because it was hilly," he said.
After his appearances at the Baringo and National cross-country championships, Kipchirchir said he switched focus to a dedicated training programme, which saw him make the podium.
"I had run in the Baringo Cross Country and the National,s where I finished fourth."
"After the nationals, I went back to training and I was running 10km in the morning and 4km in the evening," he added.
