World beater Chelimo a village farmer on the side
World 5,000m silver medallist Margaret Chelimo at her sugarcane farm in Kapkeringon village, Nandi county as she keeps herself busy during the stay at home period due to Covid-19 pandemic on April 24, 2020. PHOTO | JARED NYATAYA | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- Now getting used to training individually she has found herself with more me-time at her farm in Kapng’etich in Nandi County and spends it farming
- This planting season she dedicated two acres of land to the sugar producing cash crop, a new venture for her she duly informed
- Chelimo bagged silver in last year’s Doha World Athletics Championships women’s 5,000m after clocking 14:27.49 behind race winner, compatriot Hellen Obiri who timed 14:26.72
Restriction introduced by the government to fight the spread of Covid-19 such as social distancing and banning of social gatherings has forced several athletes to take a much closer interest in their side activities.
One such athlete is world 5,000m silver medallist Margaret Chelimo.
Now getting used to training individually she has found herself with more me-time at her farm in Kapng’etich in Nandi County and spends it farming.
She said that after her morning run, she goes to her farm where she has planted maize, beans, sugar cane and other crops.
When Nation Sport visited her on Sunday she was busy on her sugarcane plantation.
This planting season she dedicated two acres of land to the sugar producing cash crop, a new venture for her she duly informed.
She is among many other farmers in the region who are now abandoning the traditional maize farming which they feel doesn’t bring any value to them due to poor market prices.
“I have decided to venture into sugar cane farming because I have been planting maize for a long time and I’m not getting any profits,” said Chelimo.
Of course the farming activity comes after her individual run to keep her body in shape for the season, when it will resume.
Remember athletics is her main bread and butter business at this stage in her life.
Chelimo bagged silver in last year’s Doha World Athletics Championships women’s 5,000m after clocking 14:27.49 behind race winner, compatriot Hellen Obiri who timed 14:26.72.
Second placed Kenya's Margaret Chelimo Kipkemboi (left) celebrates with winner Kenya's Hellen Obiri after the Women's 5000m final at the 2019 IAAF Athletics World Championships at the Khalifa International stadium in Doha on October 5, 2019. PHOTO | GIUSSEPPE CACACE | AFP
In 2018, she won silver for Kenya in the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 5,000m, finishing second to Obiri after crossing the line in 15:15.28.
Chelimo started the season explosively, winning the BOclassic Silvesterlauf 5,000m race in 15:30.
In January, Chelimo stunned World Cross Country champion Obiri to win the Cross Internacional de Italica in Seville, Spain after cutting the tape in 28:37 ahead of compatriot Beatrice Chebet (28:49).
High in confidence she was all primed to run in the Doha Diamond League series 3,000m race on April 17 before the athletics calendar was suspended following the outbreak of coronavirus.
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics was her big target this season before the Games were pushed to next year.
