Kericho Marathon organisers must style up this year

I’m told Kericho Marathon will be held next month and has already attracted a bumper entry. I have no problem with the event but I have a bone to pick with the organisers.

In fact when the event was mooted, I was one of those who really supported it. But the happenings last year left no doubt that Kenyans are not ripe for events of such magnitude.

This is the same marathon which subjected athletes to an illegal route measuring 52km last year— raising questions over the organisers’ seriousness to stage an event of such stature.

The 2013 was marked with drama as some athletes ran 52km while others did the normal 42km and at end, we had two winners claiming the same prize. I remember it took the intervention of Athletics Kenya to resolve the issue that was threatening to be sorted in court.

BETTER ORGANISATION

Before they embark on next month’s event, Kericho Marathon organisers need to go back to the drawing board in a bid to understand better what a marathon is and what it takes to host one.

It is open secret that a lot is needed to put together a 42km race. Kericho Marathon, which is held at the backdrop of the massive Kericho tea plantations, has a lot of potential as long as it is well handled.

I believe events like Kericho can blossom overnight as long as things are done in the right way. All the Kericho Marathon needs is to hire experts in different fields to handle the event because everything else is in place.

We are talking about a region where not much is needed to control traffic hence the athletes are readily available and willing to compete. Besides, the prize money of Sh1.5 million puts Kericho Marathon on the same footing with some top marathons around the globe— especially considering that the prize money is tax free.

If Kericho Marathon organisers are dreaming of attracting athletes from neighbouring countries like Ethiopia and Uganda, they have to do things right.

CONFUSION

Confusion has never been an ingredient for attracting visitors and they have to do things differently this time round. It’s quite ironical that despite being athletics powerhouse, we still can’t put together a world class event.

I believe our athletes do not need to compete elsewhere if we can come up with a strong marathon series featuring events like — Kericho, StanChart and Kass Marathon among others.

Besides, events like Kericho Marathon can easily attract even tourists as long as they get their mathematics right. I hope the organisers of the event will learn from their past mistakes and console the athletes with a masterpiece this year.

The amount of money being made from events like Boston and London can still be made here as long things are taken seriously.

Barnaba Korir is AK Nrb chairman ([email protected])