Uganda’s Peruth Chemutai will line up in Tokyo aiming to reclaim her place at the very top of the women’s 3000m steeplechase.
The Tokyo Olympic champion and Paris Olympic silver medallist enters the World Athletics Championships ranked third on the season list with 8:51.77, setting up another fierce battle with Winfred Yavi and Faith Cherotich.
Chemutai has already written her name into Ugandan athletics history, becoming the country’s first female Olympic gold medallist in 2021.
Now, she has the chance to emulate Dorcus Inzikuru, who won the inaugural world title in 2005. No Ugandan woman has stood on that podium since.
Her 2025 campaign has been steady. She opened with seventh place in Doha before striking back with victory at the FBK Games. She then finished second in Paris and third in Eugene, proving she remains a contender against the event’s rising stars.
The challenge is immense. Yavi, the world and Olympic champion, holds the second-fastest time in history at 8:44.39 and leads this season with 8:45.25. Cherotich, the Kenyan prodigy and Diamond League champion, has beaten both Yavi and Chemutai this year and clocked 8:48.71.
Still, Chemutai thrives in championship racing, where tactics matter as much as speed. Her ability to rise to big occasions makes her a serious threat in Tokyo, where the heats begin on September 15 before the final three days later.
