Elijah Motonei Manangoi of Kenya reacts as he crosses the finish line to win gold in the Men’s 1500 metres final during day ten of the 16th IAAF World Athletics Championships London 2017 at The London Stadium on August 13, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images for IAAF)
NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 10- World 1500m champion Elijah Manangoi has already lined up his targets for next year after a splendid performance in 2017 that saw him finish the season with his first ever senior title at the London IAAF World Championships.
The 24-year old believes he can carry on the form from 2017 and having started his pre-season training earlier than he did last season, he is confident he can attain his targets.
“I definitely want to carry on the form from last season. It was a great year for me, culminating with the London World Championships. I need to maintain my shape and probably pick up because my target is for the Commonwealth Games,” Manangoi stated.
He started his 2017 season on a high, running to victory in the opening Diamond League race in Doha and set a World Lead time of 3:28.80 to win in Monaco and claim victory in his final pre-World Championships outing.
“I really want that Commonwealth title. It has been on my mind straight after London and I am also looking at the African Championships later in the year. Those are my two big targets for the new season,” he added.
Elijah Motonei Manangoi of Kenya races clear to win gold in the Men’s 1500 metres final ahead of Timothy Cheruiyot of Kenya and Filip Ingebrigtsen of Norway during day ten of the 16th IAAF World Athletics Championships London 2017 at The London Stadium on August 13, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images for IAAF)
He is already one month into his pre-season training and he tasted his endurance last weekend with the first leg of the Athletics Kenya National Cross Country series where he finished 50th.
“I really feel happy and proud of myself because it is the first time ever that I managed to finish a cross country race. I want to race in more to build up my endurance and shape because I have felt it has really been beneficial,” the World Champion further stated.
He is also wary of the competition behind him with his training partner Timothy Cheruiyot, Ronald Kwemoi and three-time World Champion Asbel Kiprop the biggest competitors to his throne.
“I think our race is one of the most competitive and I cannot afford to go and sleep. I need to continue working hard because apart from the ones we compete with, there are several youngsters who are coming up very well,” he admitted.
Manangoi started up as a 400m sprinter in 2013 before completely making the switch to a longer distance in the following year. His debut in the 1500m race was in his first Commonwealth Games appearance in Glasgow where he finished bottom of the pile due to a tendon injury.
Apart from the Commonwealth and African titles, Manangoi also targets to lower his Personal Best to 3:26.00 with the World record also a distant target for him.
