Athletes skip festivities to prepare for tight calendar
Several athletes failed to break for the festive season in order to continue with preparations for this week’s tight Athletics Kenya cross country competitions.
In Nyahururu, the runners were busy during Christmas and New Year celebrations both on track and road as they trained for either regional, police or Kenya Defence Forces championships that are scheduled for January 7-8.
The National Police Service will hold its cross country championships at the Jockey Club of Kenya grounds in Nairobi, while Kenya Prisons Service will hold their competition at the Prison Training College in Ruiru.
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KDF will stage their championships at the Moi Air Base while the universities championships will take place at the Kabarak University ground, Nakuru County.
Regionals, the Prisons and the universities races will be held on January 8 with all the others taking place January 7.
These championships will be used to select AK affiliate teams for the national cross country championships set for January 22 at Kapseret, Eldoret, in Uasin Gishu County.
The competition at the Kapseret ground will also act as a dry run for the World Cross Country Tour scheduled for the same venue on February 12.
Athletes, who spoke during a speed work session at the high altitude Nyahururu stadium said they did not have the luxury of indulging in the Christmas festivities to avoid interfering with their current form.
Coach Francis Kamau said some of the athletes did not even break for Christmas because they needed to continue preparing for the upcoming cross country competitions.
“Most athletes have not competed since the coronavirus pandemic broke out and are itching to compete and that is why they want to be at their best in the upcoming competitions to prove they are still there,” Kamau said.
