Habari za Wiki - 29 June, 2021
The Running News
Kipchoge Documentary
Mark your calendar: 23 August. That’s the release date for Kipchoge: The Last Milestone. It’s an inside and intimate look of Eliud Kipchoge’s preparation for and execution of the now legendary 1:59:40 he ran in Vienna in 2019. The trailer alone is enough to give you tingles.
Edinah Jebitok Gets Olympic standard
19-year old Jebitok came 3rd in the 1500m at the Kenyan trials. But that wasn’t enough to book her ticket to Tokyo as the world U-20 silver medalist still didn’t have the 4:04.20 Olympic standard time she needed to qualify.
She sorted that out by running a 4:03.06 to win the True Athletes Classics in Germany. Onward to the world stage!
Nandi 10km Road Race
Nandi County is known as the Source of Champions, so it should come as no surprise that the Nandi Re-Discovery 10k attracted 300 elite athletes for a fierce contest this past weekend.
Nancy Jelagat came from behind to pass the lead pack late in the race. Daisy Cherotich went with her, and it was a two woman contest right until the end when Jelagat surged past Cherotich to win in 31:30, 8 seconds ahead of Cherotich.
On the men’s side, it was a one man show. Emmanuel Bor showed no fatigue from his recent 3rd place finish at the Eldoret City Marathon, and lead from gun to tape to win in 28:21:19.
Kenyans At US Trials
There are a fair number of Kenyans who have immigrated to America and built thriving running careers there. At the US Olympic trials, we got to see a few of them show off their talent. First up it was Hillary Bor and Benard Keter who went 1-2 in men’s steeplechase. It was a blistering race that had them practically sprinting the whole of the final lap. In the end, Bor beat Keter by less than half a second and wasn’t even full second ahead of the 3rd place finisher.
The men’s 5000m was equally dramatic as Paul Chelimo set the tone of the race and had words with athletes who he felt were clipping his heels. He ran a fierce 52.83 second final lap for the win and pushed all the way over to lane 4 of the track in an effort to make sure that on one would pass him as he took the win.
Stockholm Diamond League This Weekend
There are plenty of big names lined up for the Stockholm Diamond league on 4 July, but make sure to check out the contest between Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Timothy Cheruiyot in the 1500m.
Cheruiyot tragically didn’t make the Kenyan Olympic team, so this is his chance to show he’s still on top of the world up against the rising Norwegian star.
Non-Kenyan News
Sydney McLaughlin Smashes 400m Hurdles Record
At the US Olympic trials, 21-year old phenom Sydney McLaughlin became the first woman to run the 400m, setting a new world record of 51.90. She was up against the current world record holder and reigning world champion Dalilah Muhammad.
Muhammad was in lane 8 and McLaughlin in 7, so McLaughlin could see Muhammed just ahead of her the whole race. In the final 80 meters, McLaughlin found another gear and pulled away from Muhammed. They’re both heading to Tokyo though, so we’ll have a chance to see a rematch soon.
Mo Farah Fails to Qualify
Mo Farah has failed to run the Olympic standard to qualify for the Tokyo games. For the past two Olympics Mo Farah pulled off one of the greatest feats in distance running: winning the gold medal in both 5000m and 10,000m at the same games.
A lot has changed since then. He made a shift to the marathon, winning the Chicago Marathon and setting the European record. Around a month after his former coach was banned for doping, Sir Mo announced he was giving up on the marathon and would have one last crack at the 10,000m in Tokyo. Now failing to even qualify for the games will leave many wondering what comes next for a man who was once one of the brightest stars in the sport.
From The Enda Community
@belindasmetana on Instagram has been having some great adventures in her green Itens, including this one enjoying in the Maasai Mara, simply captioned: “In Maasai Mara ❤️”
