Time for medal haul: Kenya ready to shine in U-20 Championship
Fresh from winning a gold medal at the African Championships in Douala, Cameroon, Sarah Moraa ran superbly to make the cut in the Kenya U-20 athletics team that will represent Kenya at the World Championships slated for Lima, Peru in from August 27 to 31.
The younger sister to reigning World Athletics women’s 800m champion Mary Moraa left Nyayo Stadium disappointed after failing to achieve to hit a target of running under to make it to the Paris Olympics next month.
Moraa,18, kicked and pushed herself harder in the final of the women’s 800m trials but the clock did not favour her upon touching the finishing line as she timed 2.00.01.
The Olympic qualifying standard for the women’s 800m is 1.59.30.
The younger Moraa missed the time during the Athletics Kenya (AK) Olympic trials at the same venue by micro-seconds as she clocked 1.59.39, finishing third behind Lilian Odira and Mary Moraa.
As she looks for another race that will enable her live her Olympic dream, Sarah Moraa is among the 19 athletes named by AK for the Lima assignment come next month.
Dennis Kimutai reigned supreme in the men’s 3000m to bag a tick to the South American nation for the championships.
The Keringet-based middle distance runner says he endeavours to bring home a gold medal having won a bronze in the African Junior Championships in Lusaka, Zambia.
Luck was not on his side during the 2024 African Cross Country Champions in Tunisia following his sixth place finish in the men’s 8km U-20 race.
“I want to work extra hard so as to come back home with a gold medal. In Zambia I got a bronze but during the African Cross Country I was ranked 6th. I want to be in the best shape possible so that I can better my performance in Peru. I will be looking forward to working on my finishing speed before heading to the World Championships,” Kimutai told People Sport.
The listed athletes are scheduled to hit residential camp next month according to AK’s Director of Youth Development Barnab Korir.
In the last edition of the junior championships held in Cali, Colombia, Kenya finished fourth in the medal standings behind USA, Jamaica and Ethiopia, after amassing 10 medals (3 gold,3 silver and 4 bronze).
