Beatrice Chebet made history on Saturday night at the 2024 Paris Olympics by winning the women’s 10,000m final with a time of 30:43.25. This remarkable achievement, which took place at the Stade de France, made the 24-year-old the first Kenyan to win two gold medals in a single edition of the Olympic Games. Earlier in the week, Chebet had also secured gold in the women’s 5,000m.

Chebet’s victory puts her in an elite group of Kenyan athletes who have won multiple gold medals at the Olympics, including Julius Sang, Kipchoge Keino, and Naftali Temu. She is the first to do so since Vivian Cheruiyot’s double win at Rio 2016.

The 10,000m final was fiercely contested, with 13 runners vying for the podium in the last lap. Kenya came close to sweeping all the medals, but Margaret Kipkemboi and Lilian Rengeruk finished 4th and 5th, respectively, just missing out.

Italian runner Nadia Battocletti and Dutch athlete Sifan Hassan secured the silver and bronze medals. Battocletti pushed hard in the final stretch, but Chebet’s powerful finish was unbeatable. Hassan, known for her strong finishes, settled for bronze with a season-best time of 30:44.12. She had also won bronze in the 5,000m earlier in the Games and is aiming for another medal in the marathon.

Ethiopian athletes, including reigning world champion Gudaf Tsegay, struggled in the race. Tsegay finished 6th, while her teammates Fotyen Tesfay and Tsigie Gebreselama ended in 7th and 10th place, respectively. Other African athletes in the race included Uganda’s Sarah Chelangat, who finished 12th, and Burundi’s Francine Niyomukunzi, who placed 14th with a personal best.

The race saw several personal bests and national records, but it was Beatrice Chebet’s night as she etched her name into Kenyan Olympic history with a stunning double gold.