Keringet camp dreaming of World Under-20 success

Keringet Athletics Training Camp located in Nakuru County is seeking to send at least 10 athletes to the national team for next year’s World Under-20 championships to be held in Nairobi.

The camp based at Keringet Boarding Primary School is one of the 14 country-wide camps set aside for youth as Athletics Kenya (AK) steps up preparations towards the global event slated for July 7-12 at the Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani.

AK delegation led by Youth and Development committee chairman Barnaba Korir and Elizabeth Keitany toured the camp yesterday as the country wide tour entered its second day.

The athletes aged between 15-19 comprises of 27 boys and 23 girls with majority of whom specialize in track events apart from four shot put throwers and a high jumper.

The camp that is situated a few kilometres form Keringet Centre was established in 1996 and has produced renowned athletes led by Olympic 1500m champion Faith Kipyegon, former world marathon champion Geoffrey Kirui and Commonwealth Games 800m champion Wyclifffe Kinyamal among others.

At the 2018 World Junior Championships held in Tampere, Finland, the camp sent five athletes to the national team and head coach Charles Ngeno is optimistic he will double the number when the national trials are held next year.

Edna Jebitok (1500m), Zena Chemutai and Viola Chepkirui (3000m) and Maureen Cherotich and Deborah Chemutai (5000m) were part of the Kenyan team in Tampere with Jebitok clinching silver.

“We have been training very well here at
Keringet and the athletes are responding well despite the harsh weather conditions where we have experienced lot of rains. My team is good and I can assure you that we will have majority of them in the national team,” said Ngeno.

Apart from being selected to host the youth programme- that is sponsored by government, the camp also hosts other senior athletes.

While speaking when he toured the camp on Tuesday AK chairman on Youth and Development Barnaba Korir challenged the athletes most of whom are in primary and secondary schools to grow both in academics and excel in athletics.

“I am very impressed with what you are doing here. This is one of the best camps we have in the country at the moment and therefore I expect many athletes in team Kenya to come from this camp. Because you are very young, I would also urge you to take your education seriously so that you excel in both fields,” said Korir.

AK delegation led by Korir is in a country-wide tour of the camps having started on Sunday at Ngooru Secondary School in Nyeri County.

The delegation will today visit camps in Bungoma, West Pokot and Nandi counties.