Dearth of Kenyan distance running on the track worrying

Is it time that Geoffrey Kamworor settled on the roads? This is the millionaire dollar question with the superstar having cut across grass, track and the roads. 
Kamworor is fresh from winning his third successive title at the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships in a Valencia in a time of one hour and two seconds. 

The Kenyan, who won silver in the 10,000 metres at the 2015 IAAF World Championships in Beijing, is also a two-time world cross country champion.

However, we need to come to reality with the fact that he’s probably done with track, and that roads are his next big destination.

I am not sure about cross country because he will most likely want to complete a hat-trick of titles next year. But going by his burst of speed in the last five kilometres last weekend, I think Kamworor is meant for the roads and I guess we ain’t seen nothing yet.

Yes, we are looking at another Eliud Kipchoge and I can’t wait to see the two run together as they pursue Dennis Kimetto’s 2:02.57 world record. 

This will be one hell of a race and who knows, a sub-2:02 could be posted. Looking at Kamworor’s consistence, I think the man is like old wine that has been brewed with a lot of perfection. 

Yes, this is another one from the Kenya’s athletics production line and the world must brace itself for another totally new challenger. Surprisingly, he trains alongside Kipchoge under coach Patrick Sang in Kaptagat. 

I don’t want to imagine how Valencia would have been without Kamworor.

In the top 10, he was the only Kenyan, maybe alongside his former country man, Abraham Cheroben, who has since switched nationality to Bahrain. But kudos to Joyciline Jepkosgei and Pauline Kaveke — who finished second and third respectively in the women’s race — behind Ethiopa’s Netsanet Gudeta.

The Ethiopian actually broke Kenya’s dominance in the IAAF World Half Marathon Championships by smashing the women’s only world record. Gudeta won in a time of one hour, six minutes and 11 seconds. The 27-year-old finished a comfortable 43 seconds ahead of Jepkosgei who holds the overall world record of 1:04:51. 

Jepkosgei’s compatriot, Kaveke, came third. The previous record for a single-sex race was set by Lornah Kiplagat in Udine, Italy, in 2007.

By all standards, this was good performance by our girls and they need to be encouraged. But while we continue to look comfortable on the road, we are shrinking on track and this is where we need to focus.

The agenda should be how can we replace the likes of Kamworor and Bedan Karoki on track.

Korir, Athletics Kenya’s Nairobi branch chairman, is also head of Kenya’s team to the 2018 Commonwealth Games: [email protected]