Coach Kirwa against reserve athletes

• National Athletics head coach opposes proposal to include six athletes as reserves .
• Athletics team manager says decision was taken without the coach’s knowledge.
• Reserves have no automatic chances of competing in Beijing.

National Athletics head coach Julius Kirwa said the proposal by the management to bring on board six athletes as reserves is likely  to cause friction in camp as the team prepares for the Beijing Olympics.

The seven athletes - Africa men 800m champion David Rudisha, Josphat Ndambiri, Isaac Songok, Phylis Ongori, Leonard Komon and Paul Kipsiele Koech are expected to report to camp Monday.

However, Kirwa said that he was not aware of the move and rebuked it saying it will not go down well with the other selected athletes who showed their determination and skills in qualifying during the trials earlier in the month. Athletics team manager Joseph Kinywa said  the decision was taken without the coach’s knowledge and he was to be informed.

“They have been called to the reserve bench and they will stay with the rest in camp and travel to Beijing in the event of any eventuality like injury or discipline problem,” said Kinywa.

But the six have no automatic chances of competing in Beijing and their participation will entirely depend on any of the 37 athletes dropping out. Kinywa said that Kenya has potential to wrest several medals in Beijing and they were not about to risk it by injury or poor form.

But when contacted yesterday, Rudisha, a form four candidate at the St Francis Kimuron in Iten said he is better off at the school where he is concentrating on his mock exams to tire his mind on travelling to Nairobi for the camp only to sit on the terrace in Beijing during the Olympics.

Hands full

“I have my hands full at the moment. I have class work to concentrate on, the mock exams are just around the corner, then there is the injury concern which is just starting to heal, why should I waste my time in Nairobi and Beijing and I have some pressing academic concern to attend to here?” He posed.

AK tried this idea of naming reserves last year in Kigari, Embu where the national cross country team has camping for the Mombasa World Cross Country Championship.

Martin Irungu Mathathi was added to the team as a reserve  and this brought a lot of hue and cry from the athletes who had been selected. In the end the Mathathi had to leave the camp for the sake of the team unity.
 Former world 5,000m champion Eliud Kipchoge who had a stomach cramps during the trials and failed to make the team was also maintained in the reserve team, but he could not be allowed to get on the course despite being in Mombasa.

Rudisha will be watching over youngster Boaz Lalang, world champion Alfred Kirwa Yego and former Indoor Championship wizard Wilfred Bungei. Of the three, Bungei had a last minute injury prior to his title defence in Valencia in march, but he has recovered while the two are in their best form.

Ongori will be eying the 10,000m race where there is Lucy Wangui Kabuu, Grace Momanyi and Linet Masai while Ndambiri and Komon who can compete in both the 5,000 and 10,000m will be hoping anything happens to Moses Masai, Martin Irungu Mathathi, Micah Kogo (10,000m) or Edwin Soi, Eliud Kipchoge, Thomas Longosiwa (5,000m).