Joshua Cheptegei pulls out of Great North Run

For starters, The Great North Run, a brain child of former Olympic and 10,000m bronze medallist Brendan Foster, is the largest half-marathon in the world, taking place annually in North East England each September. The half-marathon brings thousands of participants and elite athletics across the world running between Newcastle upon Tyne and South Shields.

Cheptegei will not be taking part due to the injury he sustained at the recent World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, USA. He confirmed the news on Twitter.

"It is with great sadness that I have to withdraw from Sunday's Great North Run. I was really looking forward competing in this historic race, but an injury won't allow me to compete. I look forward to compete there in the future", he tweeted.

Half marathon world record holder and 5,000m and 10,000m Commonwealth Games champion Jacob Kiplimo will look forward to cement his authority in distance in the absence of his running partner and compatriot.

The race has attracted Olympic champion Selemon Barega and compatriot Kenenisa Bekele among other elite runners expected to grace the half marathon.

This will be yet another top event that Cheptegei has skipped due to injury.

He further a tendon injury in Oregon which went on to cost him a fair chance to defend his 5,000m world crown. He also skipped the Commonwealth Games, missing yet another opportunity to defend his 5,000m and 10,000m titles that were effectively won by partner Kiplimo.

“He got a tendon problem in the 5000m heats when they were doing the qualification, when he was racing in the final, he told me by the 8th lap he saw it coming, and disturbing him, so instead of him doing a do or die, it would worsen his injury so he had to slow it down,” Coach Benjamin Njia revealed at the World Athletics Championships.

Cheptegei has since dedicated to full recovery from the injury.