Kenya’s long-distance star Peres Jepchirchir received a heartwarming mid-air celebration on her journey back home after clinching gold in the women’s marathon at the ongoing World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.
Flight attendants aboard her return flight surprised the Olympic champion with a mini-cake and juice, accompanied by cheers and warm words of gratitude on behalf of her country.
“We are very honoured to have you. You have done a fantastic job getting a gold medal for the marathon. Thank you so much,” one of the cabin crew was heard saying.
“God bless you, and may all your dreams come true. May you keep getting more and more medals for your country.”
The attendants went on to serve her with some juice, saying, “Once again, congratulations. We are extremely happy to have you on board. Cheers!”
Jepchirchir, who has established herself as one of the world’s finest marathoners, could be seen smiling as she received the surprise honour.
During the race, she engaged Ethiopian opponent Tigst Assefa in a sprint finish in the last 50 metres to take gold in a season best of 2:24:43.
Assefa clocked 2:24:45 ahead of Uruguay’s Julia Paternain, who completed the podium in 2:27:23.
United States’ Susanna Sullivan, who led the race for a better part of the race, finished fourth in 2:28:17, with Finnish Alisa Vaino completing the top five places in 2:28:32.
Other Kenyans in the race, Jackline Cherono (2:33:17), placed 18th.
In contrast, Magdalene Masai did not finish after briefly occupying the third place with 40 minutes to go.
In an interview, Chebet said she is happy to have won two medals in the same city.
“I won gold at the 2020Tokyo Olympic Games and here I am with another gold. I am thrilled. I am very excited,” she added.
She, however, admitted that the weather in Tokyo was crazy and she is just happy to have survived the storm.
“I don’t even know where the energy came from at the last 50metres, but I just saw myself crossing the finish and I am happy”
This was Jepchirchir’s first Marathon since the 2024 Paris Olympics, where the 32-year-old fell short of defending her Olympic title.
Jepchirchir had won the 2020 Olympic title after cutting the tape in 2:27:20 to lead compatriot Brigid Kosgei (2:27:36) and American Molly Siedel (2:27:46).
In Paris 2024, Jepchirchir fizzled out to a 14th-place finish in a race won by the Netherlands' Sifan Hassan (2:22:55).
Jepchirchir's resume, however, remains impressive, with victories in the 2021 New York Marathon (2:22:39), the 2022 Boston Marathon (2:21:01), and the 2023 London Marathon (2:16:16).
