Nairobi Star (Nairobi)
William Njuguna
1 April 2011
WORLD 800m record holder David Rudisha is expected to grace the second Athletics Kenya/National Bank of Kenya meeting in Narok today.
AK public relations officer Peter Angwenyi has confirmed his participation for the event in attempt to boost the sport in the area. “We are happy to have confirmed Rudisha’s presence in the race and we look forward to him being an inspiration to the many athletes not only in the area but in the region,” added Angwenyi.
Rudisha has already won his two opening races this year in Australia with relative ease albeit at slower times as compared to the same period last year.
He took top honours in the Melbourne Track Classic on March 4 in a world leading time of 1:43.88 and two weeks later, the record holder stopped the timer at 1:44.80 for victory in Sydney.
Angwenyi said he expects a competitive field for the event that will also feature the Commonwealth Games and African 3,000m steeplechase titleholder Richard Matelong and the men’s 5000m African champion and Olympics bronze medallist Edwin Soi.
Matelong said he will use the event as a build-up for the World athletic Championships and All African Games later in the year. He said after an unsuccessful stint in cross country, he has set his sights on winning the world event in Daegu, South Korea.”I did not have very good stint during the cross country season. I thought was ready to make the team to the World Championships but encountered serious competition. I am now back on the track, where I believe I am stronger athlete,” added Matelong.
Matelong said he and other Kenyan steeplechasers can’t afford to relax as the competition in the event gets stiffer every year.
” We can’t relax. We have to get better every year if we are to maintain our high standards in the event,” he said.
Matelong said Narok will be good start to test his preparedness for the start of the season. “It will be good to see how well prepared I am for the season and what I need to do to improve.”
Meanwhile, Ethiopian distance ace Meselech Melkamu return to Ostrava for the 50th jubilee edition of the Golden Spike.
Melkamu, the reigning world silver medallist in the 10,000m and African record holder in the event will compete at Ostrava’s municipal stadium for the seventh time since 2004 having only missed the 2005 edition. She’s taken home two victories (5000m and 10,000m), one runner-up finish and a pair of third place showings after her debut here in 2004 as a junior where she finished 13th in the 1,500m. Last year, she won the 10,000m in 31:04.52, a performance which held up as the fastest of the 2010 season.”I’m currently training well. I like the track, the organisation and the spectators in Ostrava very much and I hope to run a fast race,” said Melkamu, who broke the African 10,000m record in Utrecht in 2009 with a 29:53.80 run, making her the second fastest ever. “Last year I ran the fastest time of the year 2010 in Ostrava, but I’m focusing to run much faster this year.”
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Kenya: Ace Rudisha Set for Narok Meet