Kenyan juniors intensify preps for U20 title defence
By Amos Abuga, December 17, 2019
Athletics Kenya (AK) is convinced it will assemble a strong team of juniors for next year’s World Under-20 Championships to be staged in Nairobi.
Part of the preparations from AK is inspection of the 14 training camps located in various parts of the country to ensure the juniors are in good shape to defend the title they won in Tampere, Finland, in 2018.
Led by chairman of Youth and Development Barnabas Korir, the week-long visit, which commenced on Sunday with the first stop being Central regions’ camp in Nyeri, is a fact-finding and preparedness assessment mission in the countdown to the July 7-12, 2020, championships.
Biggest crowds
The camp, based at Ngoori Secondary School, hosts 50 athletes (25 boys and 25 girls) drawn from the five counties of Central region: Muranga, Kiambu, Nyandarua, Kirinyaga and Nyeri.
Other camps to be visited are: Kwanthanze (Machakos), Riruta (Nairobi), Iuani (Makueni), Kiptere (Kericho), Emurwa Dikkir (Narok), Torongo (Uasin Gishu), Moi Kapcherop (Elgeyo Marakwet), Chewoyiet (West Pokot), Kaptama (Bungoma), Mogonga PAG (Kisii), Sang’oro Secondary (Kisumu) and Keringet Boarding Primary School in Nakuru.
“Based on the first impression from the first tour, I am very impressed with what is going on here from the coaches to the athletes.
This is a very good group with a lot of potential to send many athletes to the national team come next year. I have visited where they train, sleep, what they eat and I am satisfied with everything,” said Korir.
Korir said the 2020 championships will be a continuation from two years ago when Nairobi successfully hosted the 2017 World Under-18 Championships, where besides the on field success, the country drew the biggest crowds ever witnessed in the global age-group competition.