Simiyu finding it hard to train alone but optimistic for future
Emmanuel Masinde
Standard Chartered Nairobi marathon 10km champion Daniel Simiyu is having it rough training alone since the coronavirus pandemic led to the closure of all camps last month.
The Iten-based runner, who hails from Samburu County, was ready to compete before the crisis as he was eyeing a slot in Team Kenya to the 2020 Olympic which event has since been postponed to next year due to the disease.
“I was in good shape and I had prepared well for the season as I targeted a slot in Team Kenya to the Olympics Games in Tokyo,” said Simiyu who was competing in different local and international races to build up his fitness for the season before the break.
Training alone
Simiyu, who is also the Kisii 10km winner, says training alone is very difficult since doing so in a group gauge one’s level of preparedness and offers competition.
“It is impossible now to know if you are training well because there are no competitions to test your endurance and see if what we have been doing needs correction,” he added.
Simiyu endured harsh treatment last year when he was ejected from the Kenyan squad to the 2019 World Championships in Doha, Qatar despite winning the 5,000m in the trials in Nairobi.
Athletics Kenya (AK) cited failure to meet anti-doping test regulations that require a minimum of three out-of-competition tests before one’s name is submitted into the entry list.
Simiyu blamed AK for the debacle, claiming the federation did not inform him of the regulations before he signed up for the trials.
The athlete, however, put that behind and went on to win last year’s Family Bank Half Marathon in Eldoret and is keen to make up for the lost opportunity in future competitions.
“I am hoping to perform well in my running career which I believe I will do. I will put more effort in my training as I was born with a purpose. God can turn my past and present pain into future gains,” he summed up.
