Echesa reads riot act as Kenya awaits elusive gold

IN GOLD COAST

Kenya’s women qualified for the 800 metres final on Thursday morning after emerging from their qualifying races unscathed as Sports Cabinet Secretary Rashid Echesa read the riot act, demanding for nothing short of gold medals.

Eglay Nalyanya, Margaret Nyairera and Emily Cherotich will now square it out with South Africa’s Caster Semenya, who is aiming for a 1,500m and 800m double, in Friday’s final.

Semenya won the 1,500m gold on Tuesday.

Nyairera and Cherotich won their heats in two minutes, 0.60 seconds and 2:00.58, respectively, with Nalyanya trailing Semenya (1:59.26) and England’s Alexander Bell (2:00.11), the Kenyan rewarded with a personal best of 2:00.60.

Semenya was the only athlete to run a sub-two minute time in Thursday’s qualifying rounds.

Elsewhere, Kenya’s Christopher Saina remained at 24th place in the Queen’s Prize individual contest at the Belmont Shooting Centre with two more shoots programmed for Friday over 900 and 1,000 metres.

He shot 49-2v and 47-2v over 500 and 600 metres, respectively in the field of 33 contestants.

Back on the track at the Carrara Stadium, Elijah Kimitei fought gallantly in the triple jump to finish sixth in his qualifying group with 15.75 metres.

TABUNDA FALLS SHORT

But with the qualifying performance being 16.60m, or at least 12 best performers, he fell just short at 13th overall.

Quite painful indeed!

Kenya also fell short in the women’s 100m hurdles where Priscilla Tabunda brought the rear at seventh place in her heat, clocking 14.18, with only the top three assured of advancing.

Kenya harbours some hope in the evening programme here with the men’s 400m hurdles and 800m finals on the programme at 12.45pm Kenyan time (7.45pm in Australia) and 3.13pm Kenyan time (10.13pm in Australia).

In the hurdles, Kenya will field twins Aron Koech and former world champion Nicholas Bett, while in the 800m, Jonathan Kitilit and Wycliffe Kinyamal are on the start list.

'PUSH FOR BETTER PERFORMANCES'

Sports CS Echesa visited the Kenyan athletes at their Griffiths University base, imploring them to find the elusive gold medal here.

Kenya is yet to bag gold at these championships.

“We need to encourage the athletes and also push for better performances,” Echesa, accompanied by Principal Secretary Kirimi Kaberia, said.

“When we return home, we shall have to dissect these performances and chart the way for the future of sport in Kenya. It won’t be business as usual,” he said, particularly disappointed by the performance of the boxing team of 11 which managed to get just one fighter on the podium.

Thursday morning Kenya results:

Shooting:

Queen’s Prize individual finals, Day 2: Christopher Saina (24th with two more shoots);

Athletics:

Men’s triple jump, qualifying Group ‘A’: Elijah Kimitei (13th overall, 15,75 metres, eliminated); Women’s 100m hurdles, Round 1, Heat 1: Priscilla Tabunda (seventh, 14.18, eliminated);

Women’s 800m, Round 1: (Eglay Nalyanya, third, heat 1, 2:00.28), Emily Cherotich, winner, heat 3, 2:00.58), Margaret Nyairera (winner, heat 2, 2:00.60), all three qualify for final.