EDITORIAL: Prepare teams adequately – Daily Nation

Good preparation is as important as the execution of a team’s game plan on the day of competition. Other than laying down strategies in training, teams normally send advance parties on reconnaissance trips to competition venues to ensure they are not disadvantaged.

As the dust settles on the World Cross Country Championships held in Denmark on March 30, Kenyan athletics coaches, Athletics Kenya management and government officials must take lessons on team preparation from the competition.

The championship exposed the challenges Kenyan national teams go through when preparing for competitions.

Hellen Obiri and Beatrice Chebet won senior women’s 10km and junior women’s 6km titles against the odds.

Kenya only sent an advance party to Denmark before the day of competition. The result was that, for the first time in many years, Kenya failed to win a single team title in the biennial championship, and junior men also failed to secure a medal in the competition for the first time since 1984.

Kenya Under-20 athletes heading to Abidjan to compete in Confederation of Africa Athletics (CAA) Championships that starts on Monday has not been spared either.

The whole team was scheduled to leave for Cote d’Ivoire on Friday but could not because of poor travel arrangements.

The team has travelled in three batches, and some athletes may reach Abidjan on the day of the competition.

Kenyan teams are scheduled to compete in the World Relay Championships, World Championships in athletics, African Games and Africa Cup of Nations football tournament as well as 2020 Olympic qualifiers. Things must change this time.