Athletics Kenya sets bar high in national cross country trials for runners
By Charles.Thuku, December 7, 2022Athletics Kenya (AK) has set the bar high for runners who shall partake in the national trials to select the national team for the World Athletics Cross Country Championships to be held in Bathurst, Australia, on February 17-19 2023.
The trials are penciled for Saturday at Kenya Prisons Training College in Ruiru and shall bring together who is who among the athletes who have excelled in various local weekend meetings this year.
According to a circular by AK, those who will participate in six kilometers, under-20 women, 8 km under-20 men and ten kilometers senior men and women must have emerged among the top two in at least one meeting.
The rule effectively means that Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) duo of Cynthia Chepng’eno and Esther Borura will both be battling for the ticket in the 10 kilometers senior women by virtue of having wound up first and second respectively in a weekend meeting in Machakos.
In the men category of the race, an anticipated protracted battle for a slot in the national team looms between Isaac Kibet Ndiema of Mount Elgon and Wesley Ledama of Narok for shining in the same meeting.
But there are strings attached for being shortlisted in the trials for both genders in that they are required to have competed in international cross countries and emerged among the top ten and must have competed in the last local meeting in November 2022 and obtained credible results.
Further, the athletes who have been invited to compete in 2 kilometers senior men and women must have competed in the relays in either Machakos Kapsokwony or Sotik and emerged in the top two positions or have competed in the 2 kilometers in either of the categories in Ol Kalou or Iten and wound up among the top eight finishers.
In essence, this gives Wesley Langat (Ngong’ ISS) and Hillary Kiprotich of KDF qualification for the trials after finishing first and runner-up in the Machakos meeting.
AK further announced that for six kilometers under-020 women, eight kilometers under-20 men and 10 km of both genders, the first six to cross the finish line will be automatically selected as reserves. All the under-20 athletes that will be incorporated in the trials should have been born between 2004 to 2007.