by Justin Lagat
Kiplimo, Kiprop, Kiplagat battle in Kenyan Olympic Trials, photo by 2012 PhotoRun.net
Here are Justin Lagat’s reasons why the the Kenyan Trials next week will be exciting to see and visit! We will rely on Justin’s observances of the Kenyan Olympic Trials!
Why you should never miss the Kenyan Olympic trials in Eldoret on 30thJune – 1st July:
It is now less than ten days to Kenya’s Olympic trials that will happen at the Kipchoge Stadium in Eldoret. For anyone contemplating on attending the event, here are some of the reasons why they should.
1. You never know when, or if, it is going to happen again in Eldoret.
One thing is for sure. It is going to be one big exciting event given the nature of the athletic events that have happened in and around Eldoret. Not only are the locals here comprised of talented runners, but they are also great fans of athletics.
It will be the first ever national trials to be done outside Nairobi. So, it will be historic and being there will be a rare chance to become part of an historical event. You miss it and you will forever regret, especially when people will be talking about it in the future and you have nothing to say yet you had the chance to be there!
2. Watch firsthand the athletes making it to the Kenyan Olympic team
What better way to know the athletes who will represent Kenya at the Rio Olympics that to sit down on the terraces, buy a packet of ground nuts and watch, lap by lap, as athletes duel to make the team.
The Kenyan trials are always very competitive and it will not be an easy task for all the favorite athletes to finish in the top three positions.
Will Geoffrey Kamworor and Vivian Cheruiyot double in the men and women 5000m and 10,000m events? Will Asbel Kiprop double in 800m and 1500m? Some of the names on the list include athletes invited for two events.
3. Huge crowds will certainly turn up
During the annual Kass international marathon that takes place in November, I witnessed fans that walked for over 37km just to watch the finish of the marathon. Now that they will have the opportunity to watch the start and finish of many track and field events in a single day, I doubt if they will miss. I cannot figure out how the Kipchoge stadium will be packed with the local fans.
Be prepared for some wild cheering squads.
4. The program will go fast and smoothly, being an invitational event.
I can imagine Asbel Kiprop will be cooling down after the men’s 1500m while Vivian Cheruiyot is running the women 5000m on the track and Ezekiel Kemboi is already warming up for the men’s 3000m steeplechase!
Exciting events will happen one after the other. Unlike the other track meetings around Eldoret where we would have up to ten or more heats in the 800m events and more than five in the 5000m events.
5. Upcoming athletes from around Eldoret will witness firsthand what is possible for them.
Athletes can learn how to win a race through the experience of running in many races. They can also learn by watching others run and watching how the champions do it. The young athletes who are being sponsored in camps around Eldoret will watch their mentors and sponsors live in one of the most competitive races across the world.
6. Expect the guest of honor handing the Kenyan flag to the selected team to announce some good projects to support talents in the country and in the region.
No one has announced it yet, but it has often been the president himself attending the climax of Kenya’s trials for the world championships. Having attended last year’s world championship trials in Kasarani, there is a high probability of him gracing the event in Eldoret.
Talents have created a lot of impact and transformed lives in communities and it will be expected that the president himself will have something to offer the athletes in the area to enable them pursue their talents.
