Bett and ‘Team Kenya’ made us proud in Asaba

First things first. Wednesday, we woke up to the sad news that the 2015 world 400 metres hurdles champion Nicholas Bett is no more.

I can’t even come to terms with the fact that the same young man was part of the team that returned from Asaba, Nigeria, on Monday after topping the continent at the African Championships.

I feel for his young family and pray to the good lord to give them strength during this trying moment.

To his father, a former athlete, and brother Aaron Koech, who is one of the four athletes who delivered the gold medal in the 4x400m relay, I can only say pole!

This is equally a big blow to Athletic Kenya (AK) considering that Bett was the first athlete from Kenya to win gold at the World Championships in 400m hurdles.

Besides, he remains the best athlete in the sphere.

Meanwhile, I want to congratulate the Kenyan athletes for putting up a ‘top of Africa’ display in Asaba. This was the best news for Kenya especially after the chaotic first two days in Nigeria, where our athletes were treated to torturous moments at the Murtala Mohammed Airport in Lagos.

How Kenyans put behind them all these problems to start posting good results surprised all of us.

Coaches too, I believe, played a crucial role is psyching the athletes to focus on their goals in Asaba. As coach Julius Kirwa put it, communication and coordination systems was indeed of high quality.

I also agree with him that with what we went through in the first few days, it was going to be difficult for them to perform the way they did.

Now with the 2019 World Championships in Qatar and 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo coming up, it’s important for the country to start preparations early with a bias in sprints and field events.

Our sprinters performed very well while the field event athletes displayed remarkable improvements.

As athletics stakeholders, we need to come together and find a way of how to take the team forward.

We must look into the options of taking the sprints team, especially, to the next level. I guess this can be done through training abroad under the best facilities.

I was especially impressed by the likes of Edward Zakayo, who, despite their young ages, have continued to punch above their weight.

Team Kenya won a total of 19 medals including 11 gold, six silver and two bronze to lead South Africa (nine gold, 13 silver and eight bronze) and Nigeria (nine gold, six silver and five bronze).

This was Kenya’s best performance in the Africa show after the 2010 edition here in Nairobi.

With the mood in the athletics circles, we can only hope for a similar show in Qatar next year.