Rebecca Chelangat unlocked a new level of confidence in her elite long-distance running career after pocketing the 10000 metres gold medal on Day One of athletics at the Islamic Solidarity Games in Saudi Arabia.
Chelangat on Monday night opened athletics’ medal count for Uganda with a well-calculated run over the 25-lap race to emerge victorious in a time of 32 minutes and 11.42 seconds at the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Sports City Stadium in Riyadh.
‘I am very happy to be number one,’ said Chelangat after picking up her gold medal. The national anthem had played under the Riyadh lights for a third time at these Games.
For athletics, this marked the country’s second gold from the discipline since inception at the Mecca 2005 edition in Saudi Arabia. Uganda moved its tally to seven medals from four disciplines in Riyadh.
‘And I want to congratulate my partners with whom I have been training together. I think without them, I would not be number one so I am happy for this gold medal,’ said Chelangat, who was delighted yet still calm and collected.
Bar the 10000 metres final at the Tokyo World Athletics Championships which she did not finish in Japan back in September, Chelangat had made a top-four placing in every other race this year.
She walked onto the light blue track in Riyadh confident and when the bell rang, Chelangat was tucked behind Bahraini Violah Motosio with Djibouti’s Samiya Hassan Nour behind her.
Chelangat then moments after kicked to deliver the victory, Motosio taking silver in 32:13.59 while Nour got 32:17.72 ahead of Ugandan Annet Chemengich Chelangat who clocked 32:51.33.
‘Yeah, I had hope since I was seeing I had some strength,’ added Chelangat, who in January rewrote the 21km national record thanks to victory at the Sevilla Half-Marathon in Spain with a time of 1:07:18.
Prior, it had been a fateful evening for Leonard Chemutai who miscalculated his race to finish fourth in the men’s 3000 metres steeplechase final in a time of 8:55.94.
Chemutai took the lead in the closing moments but he was overtaken by Moroccan Salah Yazide and Algerian Seraiche Omar and while the Ugandan seemed to be in frame for the bronze medal, he was beaten over the final water-jump by Djiboutian Mohamed Ismail Ibrahim.
Yazide raced to gold in 8:51.64, Ibrahim got the silver in 8:51.89 while Omar came third in 8:51.96. Chemutai remained crestfallen on the floor for moments after the race, pondering over a missed medal opportunity.
Further back in the terraces, Josephine Lalam was shedding tears after her painful right knee gave way during her second attempt in the women’s javelin competition.
The 25-year-old who pocketed bronze at last year’s African Games with a national record throw of 57.01 metres. However in Riyadh, Lalam could not continue further and her first throw of 43.66 metres only got her sixth position of all six participants on the night.
Nargizakhon Kuchkarova of Uzbekistan took the gold medal with her best throw 59.39m off her fifth attempt of six on the night.
2025 ISLAMIC SOLIDARITY GAMES
DAY ONE – ATHLETICS RESULTS
MEN’S 1500 METRES HEAT 1
1 Anass Essayi (MAR) 3:59.53
2 Salih Teksoz (TUR) 3:59.85
3 Nursultan Keneshbekov (KGZ) 4:00.57
4 Tom Dradriga (UGA) 4:02.37
MEN’S 3000 METRES ST. FINAL
1 Salah Yazide (MAR) 8:51.64
2 Mohamed Ismail Ibrahim (DJI) 8:51.89
3 Seraiche Omar (ALG) 8:51.96
4 Leonard Chemutai (UGA) 8:55.94
WOMEN’S JAVELIN THROW FINAL
1 Nargizakhon Kuchkarova (UZB) 59.39 metres
2 Esra Turkmen (TUR) 56.19m
3 Eda Tugsuz (TUR) 55.58m
4 Zahra Najafi Ashraf Abadi (IRN) 51.3m
5 Shereen Hussein (EGY) 47.72m
6 Josephine Joyce Lalam (UGA) 43.66m
WOMEN’S 10000 METRES FINAL
1 Rebecca Chelangat (UGA) 32:11.42
2 Violah Motosio (BHR) 32:13.59
3 Samiya Hassan Nour (DJI) 32:17.72
4 Annet Chemengich (UGA) 32:51.33
UGANDA’S MEDALS AT THE ISG
2005 Mecca: Boniface Kiprop (Athletics – 10000 Metres Bronze)
2017 Baku: Halimah Nakaayi (Athletics – 800 Metres Silver)
2021 Konya: Abel Chebet (Athletics – 5000 Metres Silver and 10000 Metres Gold), Kirabo Namutebi (Swimming – 50 Metres Freestyle Silver), Husnah Kukundakwe (Swimming – 100 Metres Breaststroke SB4-SB9 Gold, 200 Metres Individual Medley SM5-SM10 Gold, 50 Metres Freestyle S4-S10, 400 Metres Freestyle S6-S10 Silver, 100 Metres Backstroke S6-S10 Silver, 100 Metres Freestyle S4-S10 Bronze)
2025 Riyadh: Alfred Ojok (Boxing – 80kg Bronze), Gloria Muzito (Swimming – 50 Metres Freestyle Gold, 100 Metres Freestyle Gold, 200 Metres Freestyle Silver), Jesse Ssengonzi (Swimming – 100 Metres Butterfly Bronze), Jemimah Nakawala and Judith Parvin Nangonzi (Table Tennis – Women’s Doubles Bronze), Rebecca Chelangat (Athletics – 10000 Metres Gold)