Courtney Frerichs of Nixa, Missouri, placed second in the 3,000 meter stepplechase on August 11th at the IAAF World Championships in London. Fellow American Emma Coburn placed first. This is a race traditionally dominated by the Kenyans but this time it seems the Kenyans, at lease one of the Kenyans, wasn’t completely focused and made a mental error.

According to the internet: “Beatrice Chepkoech’s hope of victory in the 3,000m steeplechase evaporated midway through Friday’s final when she forgot to take the water jump. The Kenyan lost valuable time as she was forced to turn back and then jump over it. She eventually finished in fourth with the USA’s Emma Coburn taking gold.” No one knows what was going on inside Beatrice Chepkoech’s brain but it’s possible she was preoccupied by some personal issues in her life resulting in her forgetting to take the water jump and having to turn back and jump over it. She also fell down during another jump.

Beatrice was one of the favorites to receive a medal and if she did have some personal unresolved issues in her life, this is a good example of the need to clear them out before competing.