Damn this virus, but athletes will adjust accordingly

What you need to know:

  • The fact that we have months of uncertainty ahead of us, of course, drives us crazy but we are not about to give up. As they say, everything happens for a reason and we will no doubt come back even stronger.

Even though uncertainty still surrounds the future of the sport due to the current coronavirus pandemic, there is a glimmer of hope with the new Tokyo Olympic Games dates now out.

The Tokyo 2020 organising committee said on Monday that this year’s Olympic Games would be held July 23 to August 8, 2021.

For us in athletics, this is the hope we were waiting to cling on to. Now we can plan our other events and athletes can draw their training schedules. In sports, everything revolves around the Olympic Games and knowing revised dates was key.

Remember most athletes had already started their preparations while some marathoners, who were hoping to run at the London marathon, were at their peak. I really sympathise with them because everything has been pushed to the last quarter of the year or next year.

The irony is that they will have to start all over again or restrategise. However, all is not lost as long as they keep themselves safe from future derailments, including the coronavirus. The good news is that some of the qualifying times could still apply for the Games next year.

World marathon record holder Eliud Kipchoge thinks the postponement of the games is not only a wise move but also, an advantage for him as he plots to retain the Olympic title.

BUSY YEAR

This was no doubt a busy year for, not only the athletics fraternity, but also Kenya as a country. We were scheduled to stage two key events — Continental Tour (May 2) and World Under-20 Championships (July) before the virus threw us in a spin. But while the Continental Tour could run in September, we are still waiting for the new World Under-20 dates.

The fact that we have months of uncertainty ahead of us, of course, drives us crazy but we are not about to give up. As they say, everything happens for a reason and we will no doubt come back even stronger.

However, I would like to call for patience from our athletes because this is a natural cause hence we should take everything in our stride. I also think our athletes have learnt something from this calamity and will be able to invest wisely going forward.

Whoever coined the phrase “You never know about tomorrow” may not have been far from the truth if what we are experiencing is anything to go by. Coronavirus has crippled the world and we can only pray that things go back to normal.

Besides taking precautions, we need to put this country, and the world at large, in our prayers.

Korir is Athletics Kenya’s Nairobi branch chairman. [email protected]