NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 6 – All roads lead to Kenya Prisons Training College in Ruiru on Saturday as hundreds of athletes from around the country compete for the chance to make the team to next year’s World Cross Country Championships in Bathurst, Australia.
The athletes will battle each other in different categories, including the 10km senior men and women, 8km under 20 boys, 6km under 20 girls and the mixed relay.
This weekend’s national trials are a continuation of the cross country season, following the conclusion of the Athletics Kenya Cross Country Weekend series that was held in Machakos, Kapsokwony, Ol Kalou, Iten and Sotik.
According to the start list released by Athletics Kenya (AK), a titanic battle awaits as both experienced and upcoming runners seek to close out the year on a high and gather momentum heading into the next half of the cross country season next year.
In the senior men’s category, some of the elite athletes penned in to feature in the trials include Commonwealth Games 10,000m silver medalist Daniel Simiu, world half marathon silver medalist Kibiwott Kandie, three-time world half marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor, 2018 World Under 20 5000m champion Edward Zakayo and world 10,000m silver medalist Stanley Waithaka Mburu.
Each of the runners currently boasts a hot streak and it will be interesting to see how they handle the tough course to secure their tickets to Australia.
Simiu, also the Africa 5000m silver medalist, will be buoyed by last month’s win in the Ol Kalou leg of the weekend meetings, where he timed 29:29.1 to clinch the senior men’s race.
Japan-based Mburu, the latest revelation out of Kenya’s pipeline of long distance running talent, will be hoping for better fortunes than his last cross country race in Sevilla, Spain where he came fourth.
In the women’s category, Commonwealth Games 5000m champion Beatrice Chebet will be fancying her chances at taking the top gong following her top-notch performances in the World Cross Country Tour.
The 22-year-old fast-rising runner won the women’s race at the Atapuerca International Cross Country meet in Spain last month.
The African 5000m champion also came second at the CrossCup de Hannut weekend meet in Hannut, Belgium.
Also hoping to translate her incredible performances on the international circuit to the local platform is Africa 1500m silver medalist Purity Chepkirui.
The 19-year-old had a November to remember, finishing first at the San Sebastian Cross Country meet in Spain as well as securing second and third-placed finishes in Atapuerca and Sevilla respectively.
Other seasoned athletes expected to compete among the women include 2017 World Cross Country champion Irene Cheptai, Commonwealth Games 3000m steeplechase champion Jackline Chepkoech, world 3000m steeplechase record holder Beatrice Chepkoech and Tokyo Olympian Edinah Jebitok.
The World Cross Country Championships were postponed to February next year – from the initial date of February 19 this year – due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the resultant stringent biosafety measures and travel restrictions in Australia.
Kenya is the most successful country in the history of cross country, having won over 12 individual crowns since it first participated at the global showpiece in 1973.
The country has also won every team title since 1988, with the exception of 1998 when it lost the crown to Ethiopia by a mere four points.
