Fingers crossed for Kipchoge, Kosgei at athletics awards

In Monte Carlo, Monaco

It’s a tough one to call!

When the winners of this year’s World Athletics Awards are unveiled here Saturday night, there wouldn’t be much protests, especially in the women’s category.

This given the top achievements of the nominees.

Kenyans will be hoping for a double with marathon world record holders Eliud Kipchoge and Brigid Kosgei making the final shortlist of 10 – five men and five women – that will see the overall winners also bank $100,000 (Sh10 million) as has been the tradition of the annual awards.

The black tie (and cocktail dress) awards ceremony will be held at opulent Monaco’s Grimaldi Forum from 8.15pm local time (10.15pm Kenyan time).

Kipchoge, who won last year’s top men’s award, isn’t here this time round, with the awards programme having coincided with commitments back home in Nandi County where plans for a Sh100 million library in his honour were unveiled at the Kapsisiywa Secondary School in his Nandi County, courtesy of President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday.

Kosgei will be up against Jamaican 100 metres world champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Dutch double world champion Sifan Hassan (1,500m and 5,000m), American world record-breaking hurdler Dalilah Muhammad and Venezuelan triple jump world champion Yulimar Rojas.

For the men’s award, Kipchoge is competing with Uganda’s 10,000m world champion Joshua Cheptegei, American world champions Sam Kendricks (pole vault) and Noah Lyles (200m) and Norwegian 400m hurdler Karsten Warholm.

Sports Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohammed and Principal Secretary Kirimi Kaberia are here to offer support for Kosgei and Kipchoge.

“The fact that the top government officials are here is very humbling for me,” Kosgei said in a pre-awards interview here.

“I’d also like to thank the Kenyans who voted for me and I’m happy to keep fighting for my country,” added Kosgei, accompanied here by her husband Matthew Mitei.

Kosgei had a brilliant season this year, setting a world marathon record with a time of two hours, 14 minutes and four seconds at the Chicago Marathon last month after having won the London Marathon in April.

“I was well prepared for Chicago after the London Marathon having trained hard,” the mother of six-year-old twins Faith Chepchumba and Brian Kibet said.

Besides CS Mohammed and PS Kaberia, members of the local organising committee of next year’s World Under-20 Championships, which will be held in Nairobi, are also in Monaco to drum up support for the July event.

They are led by the event’s chief executive officer Myke Rabar who yesterday updated journalists on the progress of preparations for the junior event.