We are the number one gold sport of the country but we are underfunded – Cheptegei
Uganda road running team captain Joshua Cheptegei has called upon the Government of Uganda to increase funding for athletics as the sport continues to keep the national flag high.
Cheptegei issued the statement upon the team’s return from Copenhagen, Denmark, where the team finished fourth overall and fourth in the men’s ranking, while in the women’s category they finished fifth.
While being received at the Uganda Athletics offices on Tuesday, September 22, Cheptegei noted, “With no doubt, we are the number one gold sport of the country but we are underfunded. It is a major issue which is hindering our performances sometimes.
Credit to Jackshots
“Though we remain proud of our performance this time, I feel we could have done better but we were halfway prepared. We tried to perform as a team but we were up against teams which have been in residential camps for two months or at least six weeks, while for us, everyone moved from his or her home to go and compete on the world stage.”
Uganda at the World Road Running Championships 2026 finished 4th, with Joshua Cheptegei winning a bronze medal on his introduction to the world stage in road running. He posted 58:28, his personal best in the half marathon.
In the race, he was accompanied by Feb Chelogoi who clocked 1:02:08 and Mamde Bushendich who timed his season best at 1:02:43, while Martin Kiprotich posted 1:03:00.
In the women’s half marathon, Team Uganda also had four athletes and in the end three ran their personal bests. Female captain Esther Chebet recorded 1:07:38, Rebecca Chelangat finished in 1:07:43 and Annet Chemengich Chelangat ran 1:10:41, while the other member Esther Yeko Chekwemoi timed 1:13:17.
In other events, Kenneth Kiprop managed to run his season’s best at 13:04, Alex Kiplangat was at his personal best running a time of 13:39, while in the women’s category Charity Cherop was at her season’s best with a time of 15:09 and Martha Chemutai recorded a personal best at 15:30.
In the one mile, all athletes on the men’s and women’s teams managed personal bests. In the men’s, Silas Chemtai clocked 4:03:51 and Hosea Kiprop finished at 4:07:22, while in the women’s, Patience Cherop ran 4:43:22 and Felister Chekwemoi ran 4:47:48.
Credit to Jackshots
The team was guided by Alex Malinga and Grace Chesang, while Apollo Musherure was the Chief of Mission. In his report, he applauded Ugandans in the UK and Denmark, including the Embassies and the management of Cheptegei’s Global Sports Communications.
“It was a great experience because Ugandans in the UK and in Denmark, together with the Embassies, supported us in every possible way. Also, I applaud Global Sports for supporting us beyond Cheptegei to the entire team. I congratulate the team for the performances.”
