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Lonah Chemtai Salpeter shatters European women’s 10K record

 Lonah Chemtai Salpeter broke the European record in the women’s 10K on Sunday.

By Joseph Wolkin, World Israel News

The records keep on coming for Israeli runner Lonah Chemtai Salpeter. This time around, Chemtai, as she’s known throughout the track and field realm, shattered a European record.

Chemtai, competing in a 10K race in the Netherlands this past Sunday, sped to the finish line in 30:04, shattering the former mark held by British runner Paula Radcliffe by 17 seconds. Radcliffe set her 30:21 mark in 2003, and no one had beat her record until Sunday.

“I’m happy that I broke the European record, and I’m heading in the right direction,” Chemtai, who’s preparing for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, told reporters after the run.

The Kenyan-born runner holds multiple Israeli records, including in the 1,500-meter relay, 3,000-meter, 5,000-meter, 10,000-meter, as well as the half-marathon.

This year alone, Chemtai won the Prague Marathon (2:19:45, a course record), the Roma-Ostia Half Marathon (1:06:40) and took home a silver medal in the European 10,000-meter Cup (31:15.78, an Israeli record).

Chemtai raised eyebrows last year in the Florence Marathon by roaring to the finish line with a time of 2:24:17, setting yet another record.

Chemtai will be participating in the World Athletics Championships, held in Qatar, which takes place from Sept. 27 to Oct. 6.

She competed in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, running in the marathon. However, she didn’t complete the race after having shoulder issues due to nursing her son.

Chemtai is married to Israeli running coach Dan Salpeter, who met her while she was working as a nanny for a Kenyan diplomat at the Israeli Embassy. She’s been living in Israel since 2011.