Mucheru out to clear all hurdles to an Olympic medal

With his first gold medal already in the bag; Boniface Mucheru Tumuti, the newly crowned African champion in 400m Hurdles is eying the podium at Rio 2016 Olympics in Brazil.

Mucheru took the continental title in 49:20 ahead of Amadou Ndiaye (49:41) of Senegal who beat countryman Aron Koech, the twin brother of world champion Nicholas Bett, to the second medal on photo finish after both clocked the same time at the 20th CAA African Championships in Durban, South Africa.

“Winning the gold medal in Durban was really special to me. It really motivated me and I knew everything is possible. I was using the championships to gauge how my performance will be in Rio,” the fifth finisher at last year’s IAAF Worlds in Beijing said.

While in camp for the Summer Games at the Dr. Kipchoge Keino High Altitude Performance Center in Eldoret, Mucheru a Senior Private with the Kenya Defense Forces (KDF) is polishing up on his hurdling technique and steps as he bids to secure himself a place in the Olympics 400m Hurdles medal race.

He has unfinished business after qualifying for the Beijing 2015 final as the favourite Kenyan only to see Bett steal his and indeed everyone’s thunder when he powered from lane nine to gold.

“I don’t know what happens when I get to the seventh hurdle. I’m also focusing on it because that’s where I begin to stutter and lose track. That’s what happened at the World Championships.

“By the time I was trying to catching up with the rest Bett had already taken the gold medal. That is not something I took lightly and I would not want to repeat the same mistake twice,” the soldier who is building a good head of steam ahead of Rio asserted.

Despite crossing the line hand in hand with Koech at the Kenyan Trials as they eased to the finish at the high altitude in Eldoret, Mucheru still managed to breeze to 48.89, the 12th fastest time in the world this season with so much gas still left in the tank.

Former Olympian and coach Vincent Mumo could not hide his joy when Mucheru powered to the title with stable-mate, Koech running to bronze.

The retired sprinter has placed Mucheru a target of beating his 48.29 life time best ran when he won his semi final at the Beijing Worlds last year in Rio, tipping him to dip under the 48 seconds barrier if he is to land among the medals.

“The reason he is performing well this year is because we have been working on his build-up in Ngong, Nairobi. He has improved in his steps and hurdling technique.

“We are also working on his speed. In fact he is the fastest amongst the athletes I coach although we need to work on his time. If he could make it to 47.00 sec I shall be very happy and satisfied,” the coach stressed.

“Right now at the camp we are still working on technique, speed, concentration and how to deal with the high altitude in Eldoret which is not very favourable to sprinters,” Mumo underscored.

Before leaving for the Shanghai Diamond league in China in May, Mucheru suffered a hamstring injuries on both legs that affected his performance where he clocked 50.16 to finish last.

USA’s Michaela Tinsley ran 48.90 for victory with Bett who has struggled for form this season, finishing sixth (49.31).

“When Mucheru got injured, we traveled to Barcelona, Spain for two weeks. He underwent physiotherapy and his doctor advised we start with light training, which we did.

“He has fully recovered and responding well to training and I wish him all the best in Rio,” his coach explained.

Mucheru will be representing Kenya for the second time at the Olympics alongside World Champion Bett and twin brother Koech.

“If all goes well and I manage to win a medal at the Olympics I shall dedicate to my mother since she inspired and encouraged me to venture into athletics. She says even as young boy I was very active and knew one day I would excel in one of the sports.

“She encouraged me to be who I am today. Were it not for her I would be probably be playing football with Ulinzi Stars,” the continental champion disclosed.

Four years ago in London, Mucheru was never a factor, running 50.33 to finish sixth in his heat to end his interest at the first hurdle. This time, he is out to hurdle all the way to the podium.