Bonnie Mugabe
19 March 2011
Rwanda’s faint hopes of snatching a medal in Sunday’s 39th World Cross Country Championship in Punta Umbria, Spain rest on the shoulders of Eric Sebahire, Angeline Nyiransabimana, Claudette Mukasakindi and Gervais Hakizimana.
Sebahire, who clocked a personal best 28.47.33 in last year’s Commonwealth Games in Delhi, is expected to lead the country’s surge for honours.
The likes of Sylvain Rukundo, Jean Baptiste Simuceka, Jacqueline Murekatete, Epiphanie Nyirabarame and Felix Ntirenganya are out of the equation after failing to secure visas to Germany (one of the team’s transit points en route to Spain).
Over the years, athletes from Kenya and Ethiopia have dominated the championship; winning 115 of 154 medals between them. Kenya has won 75 medals, 34 more than Ethiopia.
A sum of US$280,000 in prize money will be dished out at the end of the competition.
In the individual category, the winner of the men and women senior races will pocket $30,000 with money filtering down to 6th position (US$3000).
In the team category, the winners will pocket US$20,000 in each race.
Prize Money in US$ – senior men’s and women’s races only:
Individual
1st – 30,000
2nd – 15,000
3rd – 10,000
4th – 7000
5th – 5000
6th – 3000
Team
1st – 20,000
2nd – 16,000
3rd – 12,000
4th – 10,000
5th – 8000
6th – 4000
AllAfrica – All the Time
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Rwanda: Medal Hopes in Punta Umbria Rest On Quartet