Kiplimo: World Cross Country champion survives road accident
World Cross Country Champion Jacob Kiplimo has survived a road crash around Kamunerket-Mengya Road in Kween district, Uganda, on Wednesday, April 3, 2024.
Kiplimo made history in Belgrade, Serbia, where he defended his title over the weekend.
The world champion was left with minor injuries following the road accident that occurred while driving his double-cabin vehicle, registration number UBK 231S.
"I'm not sure how much internal body damage this could have caused me, but I am grateful to God for shielding me. It could have been worse," Kiplimo said, as quoted by New Vision.
One of the residents quoted by the publication blamed the poor state of the roads for the accident.
"These athletes live dangerously in these areas given the dire state of roads, mostly during rainy seasons," Roger Barishaki said.
The accident occurred as Kiplimo and his teammates are hoping to have better, high-performance preparations for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, France.
The 23-year-old was rushed to Kapchorwa town for medical treatment. 
How Kiplimo conquered Belgrade
In the World Cross Country race, Chimdessa Debele was the first to make a significant move as the Ethiopian opened up a 20-metre lead during the first two laps, with France’s Mehdi Frere a surprise challenger in second place.
At this point, most of the other big contenders, including defending champion Kiplimo and 2019 winner Joshua Cheptegei, ran in the large chase pack.
The rest of the field closed in on the 2022 African 10,000m silver medallist at about 11 minutes.
Kiplimo, the history maker, started making his way away from the group with 24 minutes on the clock. The Ugandan had his closest rival in Aregawi, who followed Kiplimo home in Bathurst last year, and started to make his presence felt.
With Kiplimo and Aregawi in a tight fight ahead, Kenya’s 2021 world U20 5000m champion, Kiplang'at, moved into third.
On the final lap, Kiplimo continued to stretch ahead and, with each stride, carried the confidence that he would retain his title. He dully proved it when he kicked ahead to win in 28:09.
Aregawi took silver again in 28:12 as Kiplang'at, who was just fourth at the Kenyan Cross Country Championships, held on for bronze in 28:14. The bronze medallist gained gold in the team standings as he was the first of five Kenyan finishers in the top eight.
Kiplimo retained the gold medal to join an illustrious list of stars to have successfully defended a world cross-country title. He is now in the famous group that includes Kenenisa Bekele, Geoffrey Kamworor, and Paul Tergat, as back-to-back winners of the senior men’s title.
