The autumn road running season began in earnest on Sunday (Sept 10) when Agnes Ngetich set a women-only world 10km record of 29:24 at the Trunsylvania 10km in Romania.

The 22-year-old from Kenya comfortably beat the 30:01 set by the late Agnes Tirop in Herzogenaurach in 2021.

Ngetich also became the third fastest woman in history over the distance behind the 29:14 run by Ethiopia’s Yalemzerf Yehualaw in a mixed race in Castellon last year and the 29:19 Yehualaw clocked in Valencia this year.

In a race that was part of the Brasov Running Festival, Ngetich went through 5km in a blistering 14:25 – four seconds faster than the women-only world record for that distance. She had a 10-second lead at that point and went on to break the record with a solo performance.

Ngetich won bronze at the World Cross Country Championships in Australia in March behind fellow Kenyan Beatrice Chebet and Ethiopia’s Tsigie Gebreselama.

On the track this summer she ran PBs for 5000m of 14:36.70 and 3000m of 8:32.62 in Diamond League races in Paris and Oslo respectively before placing sixth in the world 10,000m final in 31:34.83.

She added: “The world record is a surprise to me. I didn’t expect to get the world record. I just wanted a PB, low 30 minutes to break the course record, but a world record is really a surprise.”

Catherine Reline of Kenya was runner-up in 30:14 with Uganda’s Joy Cheptoyek third in 30:34.

The men’s race was won by Weldon Langat of Kenya in 27:05.

According to athleticsweekly.com. Source of photo: internet