Kenya was honoured with the hosting rights of the World Athletics Continental Tour, one of the greatest athletics sporting events in the world courtesy of government intervention through negotiations by Sports Cabinet Secretary Dr Amina Mohamed.
Last year,Nairobi was the seventh and final stop of the series which began in Turku, Finland on 11 August, after three planned events had been cancelled due to the corona virus pandemic.
World Athletics confirmed in 2020 that Kenya will hold its Continental Gold Tour event in Nairobi on September 26, over South Africa’s Cape Town having earlier suspended the competition due to the pandemic which had gripped the world.
According to Athletics Kenya (AK) Director of competitions Barnaba Korir,the Kenyan capital retained its place on the tour due to the determination and persistence of CS Amina who continuously lobbied World Athletics and displayed high level negotiating skills.
“CS Amina having been an ambassador and Foreign Secretary is an exceptionally skilful negotiator when it comes to lobbying for events in our country. I can confirm without any fear of contradiction that were it not for her, the Continental tour would have either gone to South Africa which had mounted an equally excellent campaign or the US. We thank our government for pushing for the success of this amazing individual sport which has raised our reputation on the international scene” affirmed Korir.
Kenya named the tour the Kip Keino Classic after the retired Kenyan track and field athlete Kipchoge Keino who was a two-time Olympic gold medallist and two-time Olympic silver medallist in 1968 and 1972.
In 2001, the 82 year old won the Laureus Sport for Good Award for his charitable work and was elected to the Laureus World Sports Academy.
The event which enters its third edition is scheduled for May 7, 2022, at Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani with participants set to compete at Gold level earning both prize money and world ranking points.
While the Kip Keino Classic was created to help showcase Kenya’s best athletes to an international audience, the World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Nairobi has become much more than that.
It has helped develop and build human capacities in all the fields associated with a high-level athletics events in the country.
The high probability of running fast times in the altitude of Nairobi at the city’s Kasarani Stadium continues to attract some of the world’s best sprinters to the only World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting in Africa.
World 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce and Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs from Italy are among the leading sprinters that have already arrived as confirmed by the meeting director Barnaba Korir
Jacobs will battle it out with Africa’s fastest man Ferdinand Omanyala and Olympic 200m silver medalist, American Fred Kerley in what is expected to be hotly contested nine-lane race.
“This will be a big one and a cracker. I welcome the Olympic champion to Kenya. I didn’t have goosebumps before but the entry of Jacobs has elicited some,” said Omanyala, who dared Jacobs to the battle. “I wholeheartedly welcome Jacobs to come and watch our beautiful Big Five at Nairobi National Park but not beat me at home. I won’t allow that!”
Besides Omanyala, Jacobs and Kerley, the men’s race has attracted Americans Mike Rogers, who won the gold medal in the 100m relay in Doha 2019 World Athletics Championships and Isaiah Young.
The women’s 100m has two-time Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce from Jamaican, Tokyo Olympic 200m silver medallist Christine Mboma of Namibia and American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson among others
Tokyo Olympic 5,000m bronze medallist, Kenyan-born Paul Chelimo of the United States will face defending champion Vincent Keter and Kenyan champion Abel Kipsang in men’s 1,500m at the Kip Keino Classic on Saturday.
Unlike the last edition when spectators were unable to attend due to Covid restrictions, this year’s meeting is expected to spark an electric atmosphere on 7 May.
So far, 160 athletes have confirmed their date with destiny at Kasarani, including Kenyan athletes who will be competing across the three categories of discretionary, core and national events.
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