Namibia: Mboma Winds Down in Nairobi

FRESH from sweeping the European circuit, Namibia’s Christine Mboma returns to her favourite hunting ground in Nairobi, Kenya tomorrow.

The Moi International Sports Centre holds a special place in the 18-year-old’s burgeoning career. It is the scene of her World Athletics Under-20 Championship 200m title triumph last month, when she also raced in a 4x100m final leg to secure silver for Namibia.

Mboma set a 200m championship record of 21,84 seconds when leading a Namibian one-two podium finish, with Beatrice Masilingi taking the silver.

The flying Mboma is expected to ward off a stellar field that includes flamboyant American Sha’Carri Richardson (21), Capital FM reported.

The much-hyped American was no match for Mboma when they first clashed in Brussels two weeks ago. Mboma stormed to victory in what was her Diamond League debut, winning in 21,84 seconds.

Richardson, who was banned from the Tokyo Olympics due to a drug suspension, was fourth with a 22,45 clocking.

She just about held off a fast finishing Olympic finalist Maslingi who came in at 22,50 seconds.

Mboma backed up her impressive debut performance with a new World Under-20 record 21,78 seconds at the Diamond League finals in Zurich last week.

About 180 athletes, including Kenya’s world 1,500m champions Faith Kipyegon and Timothy Cheruiyot will converge on Kasarani.

Tomorrow’s meeting will also assemble one of the best ever men’s 100m fields ever put together on African soil with 2017 world champion Justin Gatlin of the USA and his compatriot Trayvon Brommel, who at 9,77 seconds is the fastest man in the world this year, coming up against the latest Kenyan prospect Ferdinand Omanyala.

The one-day event is the last noteworthy international athletics competition following the conclusion of the 2021 Diamond League.

Other stars on the roster include World 100m silver medallist Fred Kerley from the United States who will take on Commonwealth Games 400m champion Isaac Makwala from Botswana; Olympic 3000m steeplechase champion Soufiane El Bakkali of Morocco and the Nairobi World Under-20 200m bronze medallist Sinesipho Dambile from South Africa in the men’s 200m.