Kenya eyes more gold as Oregon games conclude
PHOTO | CHRISTIAN PETERSEN From right: Marta Bote of Spain, Rosa Flanagan of New Zealand, Hadjer Soukhal of Algeria, Daisy Jepkemei of Kenya and Carolina Lozano of Argentina compete in the women's 3000m steeplechase heats during day three of the IAAF World Junior Championships at Hayward Field on July 24, 2014 in Eugene, Oregon.
What you need to know:
- Local runners hope to better Barcelona record
- Kenya won 13 medals, four of them gold, as many silver and five bronze at the Barcelona edition.
- Riruta Central Secondary has paraded not less that eight athletes at these championships, including Bahrain’s Jebet.
- The Ethiopians said training together helped them achieve the 1-2 finish
IN EUGENE, OREGON
The curtain falls on the 15th IAAF World Junior Championships at Hayward Field Sunday night with Kenya looking to improve on the performance of 2012 in Barcelona.
Kenya won 13 medals, four of them gold, as many silver and five bronze at the Barcelona edition.
Kenya came into the weekend with two gold medals through Margaret Wambui (800 metres) and Jonathan Kiplimo Sawe (1,500m).
Kenya’s gold count is expected to rise early Sunday with the defending champion from Barcelona 2012 Daisy Jepkemei battling World Youth champion Rosefline Chepng’etich and Kenya-born senior Asian champion Ruth Jebet of Bahrain in the women’s steeplechase finals.
Kenya’s biggest success at these championships for athletes aged 19 years and under was in Moncton, Canada, in 2010 where the country topped the world with 15 medals, seven gold, four silver and four bronze.
The most gold medals Kenya can bag this year is six, with three finals lined up on the final day in the men’s 800m, men’s and women’s steeplechase and women’s 1,500m.
MAGICAL SEVEN GOLD
The plot for the magical seven gold went up in smoke on Friday night when Ethiopia clinched a 1-2 through Yomif Kejelcha (personal best 13:25.19) and Yasin Haji (13.26.21) with Kenya’s Moses Mukono (13.28.11) third.
A fierce battle between Kenya and Uganda played into the hands of the Ethiopians who burst to the front in the final three laps to dominate.
“I heard the Ugandans say they did not want us to win and that inspired me to fight back, but, perhaps I fought too hard alone,” Kenya Junior champion Mukono, a Form Four student at Riruta Central Secondary said. The school has paraded not less that eight athletes at these championships, including Bahrain’s Jebet.
“I think I was affected coming here a whole week before the race and training at low altitude,” Mukono, managed by Briton Malcolm Anderson, added.
The Ethiopians said training together helped them achieve the 1-2 finish just as their women did in the 5,000m race earlier in the week in winning gold and silver through Alemitu Haroye and Alemitu Hawi with Kenya’s Agnes Tirop, an 18-year-old Form One student at Kosirai Girls High School, taking the bronze medal.
“We trained to run the last lap in 52 seconds and we ran it in 54,” said Haji.
