Saturday’s Olympic Trials at Nyayo Stadium once
again confirmed the quality inherent in Kenya athletics. The selection for London
brought out Kenya’s best to battle for the few spots available and was a
measuring stick on the state of athletics in Kenya. Events
in Nyayo highlighted what we have at opposite ends of the sport - genuine
world-class stars and strength in depth.
Outside of the Summer
Games themselves, the Kenyan Olympic Track & Field Trials is one of the
most anticipated athletics events. A top-three finish and an Olympic-qualifying
time earn a spot in the London Games, which start July 27.
As usual, any athletics trials in Kenya can be
difficult to predict as there are always surprises and upsets in some of the
events. What stood out at Nyayo
yesterday was the generational change in some events. New blood is now making
its way into the top cream of the sport which is exciting.
Youngsters in the men’s 800m, 1500m and 5000m
represent the new hope for Kenya in these events at the London Olympics this
year.
The selection system for the Olympics has however
has garnered a lot of attention with Athletics Kenya trying a new and
controversial method to select its men’s10, 000 meter team in the US early this
month.
But Saturday’s Trials at Nyayo were
much more straight-forward. The one-two-three selection process is cold-blooded but utterly fair,
replacing the more complex discretionary arrangements and backroom politics
that characterize the wildcard system.
While the trials were a good mix of experienced
performers and new challengers, each event was unique in the way it played out.
The tactics and the mind games used were fascinating, but mostly the cream rose
to the top.
Experienced athletes David Rudisha, Brimin
Kipruto, Pamela Jelimo and Vivian Cheruiyot exuded exceptional class and
confidence doing enough to win their respective events and look like good
bets for medals in Beijing.
The steeplechase was highly competitive as
expected and any of the top five athletes could get a place on the podium. And
so Paul Kipsiele Koech’s 7th place was extremely unlucky considering
that he has been the fastest in that event this year.
The steeple is of course the event that one could
almost be guaranteed a medal once making the team. But tellingly, it is the event that has had
remarkable consistency in the past four years as the places have revolved
around the same top four.
Now that the team has been unveiled, tough
questions and high expectations will be asked of the squad to London. Are they
capable of dealing with the resurgent Bekele and the home favorite Mo Farah in
the 10,000m? Will we finally win gold in the women’s marathon? Can they match
the medal haul of 14 medals in Beijing
– six gold, four silver and four bronze?
Coming up fast on the heels of the Trials are the
African Championship in Benin this week. It will be a great championship with
Kenya sending a strong B side to Porto Novo. The previous continental
championships in Addis Ababa was the launching pad for current stars, David Rudisha,
Pamela Jelimo and Asbel Kiprop so look out for Kenya’s next stars competing in
Benin next week.
While I hesitate to make any predictions on our
medal possibilities, I think this team to Beijing is a solid one with a good
mix of youth and experience and will rise to the occasion. We should support
them as they embark on their final preparations before the Olympics.
