Florence Kiplagat fires warning shots ahead of Gold Coast Marathon assignment

ATHLETICS Florence Kiplagat fires warning shots ahead of Gold Coast Marathon assignment

Abigael Wafula 14:10 - 30.06.2023

Kiplagat has been out of competition for close to four years due to injury setbacks and the Covid-19 pandemic.

Former world half marathon record holder Florence Kiplagat has fired warning shots at her opponents ahead of the Gold Coast Marathon scheduled for Sunday, July 2.

Kiplagat has been out of competition for close to four years due to injury setbacks and the Covid-19 pandemic and she will be making her first appearance in the state of Queensland in Australia.

Ahead of her competition, the 2009 World Cross-country champion revealed that she wants to become better than she was before her long break.

“It has been long since I competed and my return into action after four years in the cold is a sign that God loves me. I want my return to be better than before,” she said.

The 2010 World Half Marathon had achieved so much by the time she was going for the break and her comeback to the competitive scene posed as a threat to most of her opponents. She won a silver medal over the 5000m at the 2006 World Junior Championships.

She also represented the country at the 2009 World Championships in the 10,000m and set a national record of 30:11.53 before it was broken by Vivian Cheruiyot during the 2016 Rio Olympics. She is also a two-time Chicago and Berlin Marathon champion.

At the Gold Coast Marathon, she will be up against compatriots Ruth Chebitok and Rodah Jepkorir. In the men’s race, all hopes rest on Wilfred Kimitei to raise the country’s flag high.

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