No matter what the competition is, Gladys Tejeda always puts Peru's name up high. And now, in the 2018 Half Marathon World Championships, the Junin-born athlete led the national delegation that competed in Valencia, Spain.

With a time of 1h11m52s, Gladys Tejeda finished in 29th place in the Half Marathon World Championships. Thus, the Peruvian became the best Latin American athlete in the competition. Meanwhile, Inés Melchor placed 32nd (1h11m55s).

Our two long-distance runners were not the only ones who competed, as Luz Mery Rojas was also present at the Half Marathon World Championships. The athlete from Huancavelica finished in 34th place with a time of 1h12m05s.

The women's podium was dominated by Ethiopian athlete Netsanet Gudeta Kebede, who set a new world record with a time of 1h06m11s. The second and third places went to Kenyan athletes Joyciline Jepkosgei (1h06m54s) and Pauline Kaveke Kamulu (1h06m56s).

In the men's category, the Peruvian athlete Willy Canchanya was the best Latin American athlete in the competition, finishing in 27th place (1h02m11s). The other Peruvian athletes were José Luis Ostos (47), Cristhian Pacheco (50), and Jean-Pierre Castro (88).

Meanwhile, Kenyan athlete Geoffrey Kipsang Kamworor came in first place (1h00m02s), followed by Bahraini athlete Abraham Naibei Cheroben (1h00m22s) and Eritrean athlete Aron Kifle (1h00m31s).

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Our main athletes for the 2019 Pan American Games, Inés Melchor and Gladys Tejeda, will face a tough challenge in Spain. Both Peruvian athletes will participate in the Half Marathon World Championships in Valencia (11:00 am).

Both Inés Melchor and Gladys Tejeda participated in the 2017 Bolivarian Games, where they won gold medals. Currently, the former is training in Spain and recently won bronze and silver medals in half marathons in Guadalajara and Miami, respectively.

"Improving in the World Championships is my goal. After that, I will return to the track to prepare for the South American Games in Cochabamba, Bolivia, where I will aim to win the 5000m and 10000m races, and in the second part of the year, my goal will be to prepare for the Berlin Marathon in Germany," said Melchor to the EFE agency.

On the men's side, there will also be representation in the Half Marathon World Championships in Spain, as athletes such as Willy Canchanya and Luis Ostos will compete.

It is worth noting that the Peruvian delegation for the Half Marathon World Championships will be composed as follows: Gladys Tejeda, Inés Melchor, Jovana De la Cruz, Christian Pacheco, Luis Ostos, Luz Mery Rojas, Jian Pierre Castro, and Willy Canchanya.