She may have been scared on that start line in Paris, nervous is likely more accurate, as the seconds ticked down to her Olympic Marathon debut. Uganda on the line, the black, yellow, and red bold repeating colors, her flag stitched just above her heart that she poured onto pavement along the swanky Seine and Tuileries Garden.
Crossed the finish in a stacked field, her debut ranked 44th. Cheptegei, forever in the books, despite her body burned on purpose, torched by the hand of another, despite her unimaginable early passing.
To live well, race well, one step at a time and so she did to the Palace of Versailles and back.
Soaking it all in with a face all business and discipline, what got her here to this point in time, to run for her homeland, future, wellbeing, children and Self.
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