Chris Musumba
1 March 2008
Nairobi — More than 470 athletes from all over the country descend on the Ngong Racecourse on Saturday morning to fight for a place in the national team during the National Cross Country Championships.
The athletes all hope to represent the country in the World Cross Country Championships in Edinburgh, Scotland on March 31.
It will be a battle pitting the young against the old as prodigy Sammy Kitwara comes up against veteran Moses Mosop, the World Cross Country Championship 12km silver medallist. Mosop has recovered from a knee injury that kept him out of competition for the better part of last season.
World 5,000 metres silver medallist Vivian Cheruiyot will fight for a berth in the senior women's race, but she will have to beat off a strong challenge from Prisca Jepleting, Peninah Arusei, Irene Kwambai and Irene Lemika.
Serious contender
Pauline Korikwing and Police recruit Linet Masai are also in with a chance.
Kitwara, a 20-year-old from Marakwet, stunned the athletics world last November when she came to Nairobi for the first time and clinched the first leg of the KCB cross country series.
He has since stamped his authority as a serious contender winning in Machakos and Meru.
His success, however, came in races that elite runners from north and south Rift Valley skipped. The national championship today will provide the first opportunity for him to really measure how strong he is.
Young Kenya Prisons athlete Thomas Longosiwa faltered in his first local race this season when he pulled out of the Kenya Prisons championship.
However, he has showed his ability in winning top meetings in Italy and Spain. He is the only one from Kenya to have beaten world champion Zerseney Tedesse of Eritrea.
However, former 5,000m champion Eliud Kipchoge is interested in silencing his rivals, who place him a chance in last year's global competition in Mombasa. Kipchoge, who was awarded a wild card, could not keep pace with the rest in last year's trials and bowed out with painful stomach cramps.
Runners from North Rift Valley - Kenya's cradle for distance running - are expected to rule the roost.
Opting out
They include Commonwealth 5,000 metres champion Augustine Choge, former 4km silver medallist Isaac Songok, Hosea Macharinyang, Joseph Kitur, Thomas Naibei, Peter Kamai, Moses Kigen, 2006 world junior champion Mangata Ndiwa, last year's bronze medallist Bernard Kipyego, Yusuf Biwott, Mike Kipyego and Isaac Arusei.
World junior 8km champion Asbel Kiprop has opted to remain in Eldoret and will not take part in the trials.
He wants to concentrate on the track with focus on the Beijing Olympics.
In the women's 8km race, Korikwiang's victory in Italy a fortnight ago puts her firmly in contention, same as her successor in Mombasa to the gold medal in the junior women's 6km race, Linet Masai of Police.
With memories of her error in Mombasa (she sprinted to the finish line a lap too early) still in her mind, this will be an opportunity for her to stake a claim in Kenyan team again.
Challenge will be expected from Jepleting, Cheruiyot, Limika, Catherine Kirui, Linet Chepkirui, and Doris Changweyo.
This is the only event that Kenya missed to claim supremacy in Mombasa, where Dutch woman Lornah Kiplagat claimed the honours followed by two Ethiopians, Tirunesh Dibaba and Meselech Melkamu.
In the junior women's 6km race, world youth champion in 3,000m Mercy Cherono faces Nancy Chebet in their first encounter this season.
Each has two wins to their credit in the KCB series meetings and will need to dig deeper and consolidate their strength to win on Saturday.
Others in the race are Alice Aprot, Susan Wairimu, Dorothy Karimi, Grace Wambui, Nelly Chebet, Chrisenta Cheruto, Rosemary Mbula, Elizabeth Mueni, Delvin Merngor, Chebet Cheptai and Dorcas Chepchirchir.
In the junior men 8km race, Lukas Rotich, Charles Chebet, Bernard Koech will be in the fore front from North Rift but must be cautious of another prodigy Musyoka Musyoki who has four wins to his name this season.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
