Jacob Kiplimo
Ugandan long-distance runner (born 2000)
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Jacob Kiplimo (born 14 November 2000) is a Ugandan long-distance runner. Kiplimo is a four-time World Cross Country champion, having won the junior race in 2017 and senior titles in 2023, 2024, and 2026. He won bronze medals in the 10,000m at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 World Athletics Championships. Kiplimo’s personal bests of 12:40.96 in the 5000m and 26:33.84 in the 10,000m rank within the top ten all-time in those events. The gold medalist in the 5000m and 10,000m at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Kiplimo also won the 2020 World Half Marathon.
Kiplimo at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 14 November 2000[1] |
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[1] |
| Weight | 56 kg (123 lb) |
| Sport | |
| Country | Uganda |
| Sport | Athletics |
Event | Long-distance running |
| Team | Nike |
| Coached by | Iacopo Brasi |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal bests | |
Medal record | |
At age 15, he represented his country at the 2016 Rio Olympics, becoming the youngest ever Olympian for Uganda. Kiplimo is also the Ugandan record holder for the 3000 metres.
His time of 56:42 in the Barcelona Half Marathon on 16 February 2025 was the fastest ever, breaking the official world record by 48 seconds. However, the time was not ratified as a world record by World Athletics due to assistance by a lead pace car that was deemed illegal.[2]
Early life
Kiplimo was born on 14 November 2000.[3] A member of the Sebei ethnic group, he grew up in Kween on Mount Elgon, living at a high altitude.[4] His family grew maize. As a young child, Kiplimo would watch his older brothers train for athletic events. He would also travel to school by running a distance of 5 km. Kiplimo won a selection trial for the World Mountain Running Championships in 2015 but was not allowed to compete due to his age. Kiplimo then moved to Italy and began competing in events. After winning a 2017 cross country event in Uganda, he moved back.[5]
At the age of fifteen, Kiplimo won the 10,000 metres bronze medal at the 2016 IAAF World U20 Championships behind fellow East Africans Rodgers Kwemoi and Aron Kifle. He ran 5000 metres in Rome that May at 13:24:40 minutes, which was a qualifying time for the Olympics. Kiplimo was then selected for 2016 Summer Olympics.[4] Before the 2016 Rio Olympics, he improved his 5000 m best to 13:19.54 minutes. As the youngest entrant to the competition, he ran in the Olympic heats only, recording a time of 13:30.40 minutes for 11th in his race.[6] He was the youngest ever competitor for Uganda at the Olympic Games.[7][8]
At 16, Kiplimo won gold in the men's U20 race at the 2017 World Cross Country Championships in Kampala, the country's first-ever gold medal at a World Cross, covering a 8 km course in 22:40 minutes.[9] He won the San Silvestre Vallecana 10 km road race in Madrid in a time of 26:41 on 31 December 2018. The course had an elevation drop, making it ineligible for world record status.[10]
Career
2019
At the Ugandan Cross Country Championships on 16 February in Tororo, Kiplimo defeated Joshua Cheptegei by placing first and second, respectively. In the men's senior race over 10 km, Kiplimo won by an 11-second lead over the 10,000 m world championship runner-up.[11]
At the World Cross Country Championships in Aarhus, Denmark, Kiplimo finished second in the senior men's race four seconds after Joshua Cheptegei's winning time of 31:40. He won the gold medal in the teams ranking with Cheptegei from Uganda.[12]
Kiplimo did not run in the 10,000 metres at the World Athletics Championships in Doha because of an injury.[13][14]
On 31 December, Kiplimo ran the Saint Silvester Road Race (15 km) in São Paulo and was beaten by Kibiwott Kandie at the finish line. Kandie won in 42:59, a new course record, with Kiplimo finishing in 43:00.[15]
2020
On 8 September, Kiplimo won the 5000 m run in Ostrava, Czech Republic in a time of 12:48.63 and improved his personal best of 13:13.64 set as a 16-year-old at the 2017 Prefontaine Classic. Selemon Barega was the runner up with a time 12:49.08, while his personal best of 12:43.02 was the fifth-fastest ever at the time.[16] On 17 September, Kiplimo won a Diamond League 3000 m run in Rome with a time of 7:26.64.[17] Kiplimo won the Half Marathon World Championship in a time of 58:49 on 17 October in Gdynia, Poland. His time was a Ugandan record and championship record.[18]
On 6 December, he competed in the Valencia Half Marathon against Kibiwott Kandie, Rhonex Kipruto, and Alexander Mutiso. They all broke the previous world record of 58:01, set by Geoffrey Kamworor in 2019. Kandie set the new world record time at 57:32. Kiplimo placed second in the race with a time of 57:37.[19]
2021
On 21 March 2021, Kiplimo competed at the Campaccio cross country race in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy. Despite falling during the ninth kilometer of the race, he won a 10 km in 29:07. Ethiopia's Nibret Melak finished second, and Kiplimo's younger brother Oscar Chelimo finished third.[20] On 19 May, Kiplimo returned to the track racing 10,000 m at the 60th Ostrava Golden Spike. He pulled away from Bahrain's Birhanu Balew to win the race. Kiplimo finished in a personal best time of 26:33.93, which made him the seventh-fastest 10,000 m performer of all time and the second-fastest Ugandan in history over the distance behind world record holder Joshua Cheptegei's 26:11.00.[21]
On 21 November 2021, Kiplimo set a half marathon world record at 57:31 in Lisbon.[22] His record was broken by Yomif Kejelcha, who ran a time of 57:30 at the 2024 Valencia Half Marathon.[23]
2023
On 18 February, Kiplimo won the gold medal in the 10-kilometer race at the World Cross Country Championships held in Bathurst, Australia with a time of 29:17. Ethiopian Berihu Aregawi finished second in 29:26 followed by Joshua Cheptegei (29:37), world record holder for the 5000 m and 10,000 m, who had been defending his title from Aarhus 2019.[24]
2025
On 16 February, Kiplimo regained the world record in the half marathon, finishing the Barcelona Half Marathon in 56 minutes and 42 seconds.[25] On 5 February 2026, that record was stripped by World Athletics because it is suspected that the lead car of the race offered Kiplimo a "pacing advantage".[26] Barcelona Half Marathon race direction later stated that they will appeal this decision.[27]
On 27 April, Kiplimo made his marathon debut at the 2025 London Marathon, finishing in second behind Sebastian Sawe with a time of 2:03:37, a Ugandan national record.
On 12 October, Kiplimo won the 2025 Chicago Marathon, finishing in 2:02:23 and marking his first marathon win. [28]
2026
On 8 March, Kiplimo returned to Lisbon and retook the world record at 57:20.[29]
Achievements
All information from World Athletics profile.[3]
Personal bests
- 1500 metres – 3:50.24 (Arezzo 2016)
- 3000 metres – 7:26.64 (Rome 2020) NR
- 5000 metres – 12:41.73 (Oslo 2023)
- 10,000 metres – 26:33.93 (Ostrava 2021)
- 10,000 meters – 29:17 (Sydney 2023)
- Road
- 10 kilometres – 27:31 (Manchester 2019)
- 15 kilometers – 40:07+ (Barcelona 2025) – World Best
- Half marathon – 56:42 (Barcelona 2025) – (not ratified as a World Record due to "assistance from a lead pace car")[2]
- Marathon – 2:02:23 (Chicago 2025)
International competitions
| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Event | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | World U20 Championships | Bydgoszcz, Poland | 3rd | 10,000 m | 27:26.68 PB |
| Olympic Games | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | 26th (h) | 5000 m | 13:30.40 | |
| 2017 | World Cross Country Championships | Kampala, Uganda | 1st | Junior race | 22:40 |
| 4th | Junior team | 59 pts | |||
| World Championships | London, United Kingdom | 22nd (h) | 5000 m | 13:30.92 | |
| 2018 | Commonwealth Games | Gold Coast, Australia | 4th | 10,000 m | 27:30.25 |
| World U20 Championships | Tampere, Finland | 6th | 5,000 m | 13:23.35 | |
| 2nd | 10,000 m | 27:40.36 | |||
| 2019 | World Cross Country Championships | Aarhus, Denmark | 2nd | Senior race | 31:44 |
| 1st | Team | 20 pts | |||
| 2020 | World Half Marathon Championships | Gdynia, Poland | 1st | Half marathon | 58:49 CR |
| 2021 | Olympic Games | Tokyo, Japan | 5th | 5,000 m | 13:02.40 |
| 3rd | 10,000 m | 27:43.88 | |||
| 2022 | World Championships | Eugene, OR, United States | 3rd | 10,000 m | 27:27.97 |
| Commonwealth Games | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 1st | 5000 m | 13:08.08 SB | |
| 1st | 10,000 m | 27:09.19 SB GR | |||
| 2023 | World Cross Country Championships | Bathurst, Australia | 1st | Senior race | 29:17 |
| 3rd | Team | 37 pts | |||
| 2024 | Olympic Games | Paris, France | 8th | 10,000 m | 26:46.39 |
| Road races | |||||
| 2015 | We Run Rome | Rome, Italy | 3rd | 10 km | 28:49 |
| 2016 | Cuneo ASICS Run | Cuneo, Italy | 1st | 10 km | 28:26 |
| 2018 | Giro al Sas | Trento, Italy | 1st | 10 km | 28:17 |
| San Silvestre Vallecana | Madrid, Spain | 1st | 10 km | 26:41 | |
| 2019 | Great Manchester Run | Manchester, United Kingdom | 1st | 10 km | 27:31 |
| MTN Kampala Half Marathon | Kampala, Uganda | 1st | Half marathon | 1:01:53 | |
| Saint Silvester Road Race | São Paulo, Brazil | 2nd | 15 km | 43:00 | |
| 2020 | Valencia Half Marathon | Valencia, Spain | 2nd | Half marathon | 57:37 |
| 2021 | Lisbon Half Marathon | Lisbon, Portugal | 1st | Half marathon | 57:31 |
| 2022 | Ras Al Khaimah Half Marathon | Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates | 1st | Half marathon | 57:56 |
| Great North Run | Newcastle, United Kingdom | 1st | Half marathon | 59:33 | |
| 2023 | New York City Half Marathon | New York, NY, United States | 1st | Half marathon | 1:01:31 |
| 2025 | Barcelona Half Marathon | Barcelona, Spain | 1st | Half marathon | 56:42 |
| 2025 | London Marathon | London, England | 2nd | Marathon | 2:03:37 |
| 2025 | 21K Buenos Aires | Buenos Aires, Argentina | 1st | Half marathon | 58:29 |
| 2025 | Chicago Marathon | Chicago, United States | 1st | Marathon | 2:02:23 |
| 2026 | Lisbon Half Marathon | Lisbon, Portugal | 1st | Half marathon | 57:20 |
Circuit wins
- Diamond League
- 2020: Rome Golden Gala (3000m)
