Machakos X-Country first on AK calendar
The November 23 Machakos Cross-Country Meet to will be the season-opener for 2019/20 Athletics Kenya (AK) calendar.
AK says the meet, to be held at the Machakos Teachers Training College, is aimed at harmonising local events that include cross-country, track and field, World Under-20 Championships, mountain and road running in line with the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
The cross-country calendar is expected to run until February 2020 when the National Cross-Country championships-cum trials will be held at the Kisii Sports Club.
AK senior vice-president Paul Mutwii, who is also in charge of the competitions docket says, while the complete calendar is yet to be released, the federation could once again be forced to cut the cross-country series from eight to four to cope with the busy season ahead.
“We will have to be very careful since we have big events like Africa Cross-Country Championships, Africa senior championships and the Olympics Games. We will meet to decide whether to reduce some meets because they fall on the calendar of world events,” Mutwii told People Sport.
After Machakos, Ol Kalou, Nyandarua County, will stage the second leg in early December with Nandi and Eldoret scheduled to host the third and fourth legs of the Series in December and January respectively.
The final cross-country series will pave way for the national trials for the Africa Cross-Country Championships set for February at Kisii Sports Club.
Just like last season, Mutwii says the calendar will have the anti-doping awareness seminars in every series in an effort to reach as many athletes as possible.
Besides, that the Anti-Doping Agency of Kenya (ADAK) will also involve tests after the event.
“There will be random tests during the event with the aim of reducing the vice threatening to kill our sport,” he added.
The Kisii event will see a team picked for the Africa Cross Country Championships set for March in Arusha or Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.
