World 10,000m silver medallist Daniel Ebenyo was headed for victory but was overtook by Sawe meters to the finish line as Bernard Kibet completed the podium

What had Ebenyo actually said to his teammate while being passed? “I told him, ‘don’t worry, go!’”

Sawe felt that despite the deficit he had to overcome, gold was always within reach. “I always have confidence in the last kilometre,” he said. “After approaching him, I saw he wasn’t pushing much and I had enough strength and after that, I never stopped.”

Ebenyo was content with his silver, saying: “We pushed each other to a good result.”

He had worried, when the wheels started to fall off in the closing kilometres, if he’d win a medal of any colour. “At around 18km I just said, ‘let me get to the finish,’” he explained. “I’m happy with the silver. My career is coming along slowly.”