10 km (road), women

What to remember

Valencia, January 14, 2024: at the 10K Valencia Ibercaja, a mixed race, Kenya's Agnes Jebet Ngetich ran the 10 kilometres in 28 min 46 s. She cut 28 seconds from the record, at an average of 20.86 km/h.

The race produced a second record along the way: at the 5 km mark Ngetich was timed in 14:13, 6 seconds faster than the 5 km world record. The 10K road race, distinct from the 10,000 m on the track, is one of the most common road events; yet it is on the programme of neither the Olympics nor the World Championships.

Born in 2001, Ngetich first made her name in cross country, with individual bronze and team gold at the 2023 World Championships, then team gold again in 2024. On January 11, 2026 she became world cross country champion in Tallahassee, and on September 20, 2026, in Copenhagen, world half marathon champion in 1:05:15, a world record for a women-only race.