Sprinters brace for World Relays Trials showdown

Sprinters are set to converge at the Lorna Kiplagat Stadium in Elgeyo Marakwet County on Saturday for the trials to select team Kenya for World Relay championships slated for Yokohama, Japan in May 10-11.

The trials follow three build up meetings organised by Athletics Kenya (AK) with the third and final meeting having being held last Saturday at the Nyayo National Stadium.

Athletes showed up in large numbers in both the first meet held at the Prisons grounds in Nairobi West as well as the second meet held at the Nyayo National Stadium promting AK to invite athletes for the third series held last week.

Similarly, heading to the trials AK is set to follow similar approach with AK Senior Vice President in charge of competitions Paul Mutwii revealing that close to 200 athletes will earn invitation for the trials.

“The trials will be by invitation according to the performance of the athletes in the previous meet,” said Mutwii.

Mutwii also disclosed that 47 athletes will make the cut for the biennial championships with Kenya set to field athletes in every event subject to meeting the qualifying standards.

“We are targeting about 47 athletes to form our team because as at now we would like to field athletes in each and every event but that will also depend if they meet the set standards,’’ added Mutwii.

Earlier on, Mutwii had revealed that the Kenyan contingent might be bogger this time round owing to the introduction of two new events by IAAF ahead of the global championships.

The two events to be competed for the first time in Yokohama are the mixed shuttle hurdles and the mixed 2x2x400m relays which Mutwii says athletes are adapting well to the latest events.

“They (athletes) are picking very well because it is a matter of how the events are being done because the mother events of those events are common for example, we have been having hurdles before and thus it is just a question of getting the format right,” said Mutwii.

Events to be competed include; 100m, 100m hurdles, 200m, 400m, and 800m in both men and women categories.