SportsKenya: Athletics: World Championships Kenyan Team

Thursday 13 August 2009

Athletics: World Championships Kenyan Team

With the World Athletics Championships about to start from 15th August, Kenya has sent what I would put on paper as one of the strongest team to the German capital.

With a fair share of the country's Olympic medallists qualifying, we can expect some real gold medal prospects for the country, but let's not humour ourselves too much.

We will give a brief preview of medal prospects here;

800m:
(Men):

Alfred Kirwa, last year's bronze medallist at the Olympics games & reigning champ is captain of the team ( will it be motivating like it was for Wilfred Bungei last year?. He is partnered by David Rudisha & Jackson Kivuva. OUR TAKE: GOLD & BRONZE
( Women): Last year's sensation in the athletics world,Pamela Jelimo and Janeth Jepkosgei

will again be hot favourites for gold & silver if from the national qualifiers anything is to go by.OUR TAKE: GOLD & SILVER

1500m:
Men: Asbel Kiprop, with his signature one (not middle finger ...) salute on the finishing line will try graduate to the gold status. But American Kenyan-born Bernard Lagat and Olympic gold medallist Bahrain's Ramzi will be at hand to give the necessary competition. Kiprop has lieutenants in Augustine Choge & Haron Keitany to pace him up or they might upstage him and go for the prize. OUR TAKE: SILVER
Women: This was a pleasant surprise last year during the Olympics and this time we might not get so lucky. Nancy Jebet seeks to crown her career with another gold and her compatriot Irene Jelagat will also make a run-in. OUR TAKE: NO MEDALS (Sorry, but the form book says otherwise)

3000m steeplechase
Men

For what most Kenyans believe is their event, we expect nothing less and the boys have what it takes to do just that. Brimin Kipruto will seek to regain his world title while Richard Mateelong will hope to break the 'bronze medal' jinx.The Frenchman who is making a run in will be at it again but 4 Kenyans, you can't beat that! OUR TAKE: GOLD & BRONZE.
Women
Ruth Bosibori has been a rather patient athlete. She needs this to break free from the Olympics games disappointment. She has Gladys and Milkah to back her up and maybe just maybe, get to become like their brothers and start a ladies version of steeplechase supremacy. The Russians too will not be sleeping. OUR TAKE: SILVER

5000m
Men
Ever since one Kenenisa Bekele happened on the scene, our Kenyan brothers have had nightmares and never really manage to fight these demons. They will be at it again and Eliud Kipchoge the only one closest to beating this Ethiopian legend may take a bow and honourably as such. Bernard Lagat may spoil the party but you never know. OUR TAKE: SILVER (Again !)
Women
This has been a tough preposition for our sisters and the Ethiopians led by Tirunesh Dibaba will be out to spoil the party as usual. OUR TAKE: BRONZE ( At the most!)

10000m
Men:
Another of the specialties of the Ethiopian athletes, we need to find it within ourselves and make this happen. Another spoiler could be the Eritrean brother who won the 2007 who might get into the mix of things. OUR TAKE: SILVER (Oops, again!)
Women
The Ethiopians again run this town. I'd wish to say we can make the party but alas, not this time. OUR TAKE: No Medals

Marathon
Men:
We have formidable team led by Robert 'Mwafrika' Cheruiyot-4 time Boston Marathon winner, who makes marathon running look like child's play.

He will have Daniel Rono- Toronto Marathon winner & Abel Kirui , reigning Vienna Marathon winner who finished second in the Berlin Marathon where Haile Gebreselassie set a world record.Emmanuel Mutai and Benjamin Mutai complete the marathoners.
OUR TAKE: GOLD & BRONZE ( we have the pedigree,baby!)
Women:
Hellen Kiprop, Martha Komu, Julie Murage and Irene Lemika & Risper Kimaiyo form our ladies charge for the marathon. Too bad Catherine 'The Great' Ndereba will not be at hand to defend her title,she would have offered great leadership and a medal too. OUR TAKE: No Medals ( Not enough pedigree...)

(PREDICTED) TOTAL MEDAL HAUL : 4 Gold, 5 Silver and 4 Bronze.

DID YOU KNOW ;
- In the 2007 World Championships in Osaka, Kenya finished second behind USA with 5 gold, 3 silver and 5 bronze medals.

- Overall, Kenya is the third most winning country with a total of 27 gold , 22 silver and 23 bronze. Fourth-placed Germany is just a gold medal away from overhauling us

- Kenya did not win any Gold in the inaugural Games in 1983 but came back with a bang in 1987 to take 3 golds with a surprise win in the marathon by then little known Douglas Wakiihuri.

For more updates, follow the event here.

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Profile of a Kenyan Sports Personality

This is a look at a Kenyan personality who may have influenced and continues to affect sports in Kenya and inspires all and sundry in sports. It is our hope that you shall reflect on this, take a moment to appreciate the sacrifices and efforts these heroes made. We do take a bow and wave our hats as we cheer true Kenyan patriots in sport!

This one takes a different twist. Having seen individuals grace this column, we have sought to recognize a team of individuals who did some exemplary work and set what has been an unbeatable national and indeed continental effort.

Kenya has never been a major power in shorter races 400m downwards. Back in the late 1960s and early 1970s, this was a different script especially with the more exciting relay races. It is in 1968 when Kenya’s dominance came into play and with it a retinue of athletes who would become legends of their era.

The 4x400m races are usually the climax in the athletics calendar of events and in Mexico ’68, Kenya’s team including Charles Asati, Naftali Bon, Munyoro Nyamau and Daniel Rudisha ( the latter being the father to David Rudisha - current World and African champion in 800m) had other ideas coming 2^nd to USA.

In 1972, the 4 x 400m team was tweaked a bit and the final race was run by Charles Asati, Munyoro Nyamau, Robert Ouko and Julius Sang blazing the track to come up with the only other Gold medal from the Munich Games. But for this unprecedented move and none that has been done before by any other African nation, we salute our compatriots making them the Kenyan sprint legends!

Know your Sport

Swimming

Recently at some social setting we were engaged in a club quiz and one of the questions was about swimming. This sought to know which stroke was not among the competitive ones till 1956. One of our team-mates (we were 6 said that it was back-stroke while I argued it was butterfly, and the majority thought the former ….guess we should have stuck with my answer though!)

All the same, this sport has become one of the most competitive sports in any major sporting extravaganza in the form of the All-Africa Games, Commonwealth or indeed the Olympic Games. Kenya has lately featured in this very involving and energy-sapping sport. Thanks to the exploits of the Dunford brothers who have shone the spotlight on the country away from traditional sports in athletics, football, boxing and rugby. But what do you understand from the sport? Here’s a brief of it from different sources;

According to Wikipedia, swimming is based on the human act of swimming, that is, locomotion in water by self propulsion, with the goal of completing a given distance in the shortest amount of time. Swimming is distinguished from other aquatic sports (such as diving, synchronized swimming, and water polo) that involve swimming but the goal is neither speed nor endurance.

Competitive swimming consists of four strokes: butterfly, breaststroke, freestyle (or front crawl), and backstroke. When all four strokes are done during a race, it is called medley swimming (otherwise known as the individual medley, or I.M.). It is governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation Amateur (FINA).

The goal of competitive swimming is usually to have the fastest time to complete a given distance. Competitive swimming became popular in the nineteenth century. Swimming is an event at the Summer Olympic Games, where male and female athletes compete in 13 of the recognized events each. Olympic events are held in a 50 meter pool (long course).

There are 36 officially recognized individual swimming events – 18 male events and 18 female events; however the International Olympic Committee only recognizes 34 of them – 17 male and 17 female. Most swimming sport events are held in special competition swimming pools, which are either long course pools such as those used in the Olympic Games (50 m) or short course pools such as those used in the FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) (25 yards or 25 m). Competition pools have starting blocks from which the competitor can dive in, and possibly also touch-sensitive pads to electronically record the swimming time of each competitor.

In most competitions, the competitors are required to wear swimwear/swimsuits to adequately cover their bodies for the dip. However some suits have created controversies which have seen FINA coming up with standards to adhere to ensure competitors do not have undue advantage over each other.

The sport can also be pursued for personal fitness and is considered by fitness enthusiasts as one of the few that does an all-round job body of keeping the body in shape. It also requires healthy diets and rehydration (yes even if your body’s dipped in water)! Famous names in the sport include Mark Spitz – 7-gold medals winner 1972 Olympics and Michael Phelps – 8 gold medals - Beijing 2008.
For more info, check www.fina.org

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Thursday 13 August 2009

Athletics: World Championships Kenyan Team

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