Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo have withdrawn from the 5,000-meter semi-finals scheduled to take place on August 7, 2024, in Paris, France.

This development was confirmed by the Uganda Athletics Federation (UAF) on their official X handle on Tuesday, August 6, 2024.

According to the federation, the duo withdrew from the race because their bodies required more time to recover from previous races.

“We regret to inform the public that Joshua Cheptegei and Jacob Kiplimo have withdrawn from tomorrow’s 5,000-meter semi-finals due to recovery from the demanding 10,000-meter race. Their bodies need more time to recover. Consequently, Oscar Chelimo will represent us alone,” UAF posted.

On Friday, August 2, 2024, Cheptegei earned Uganda’s first medal in the 10,000-meter race at the ongoing Olympic Games in Paris, France.

In 2020, Cheptegei won the gold in 12:58:15 for the 5,000m, while Kiplimo finished fifth in the same race at the Tokyo Olympic Games with a time of 13:02:40.

Cheptegei is also the world 5,000m and 10,000m record holder and three-time world 10,000m champion.