High stakes for relay teams in Budapest

Kenya men’s 4x400 metres relay team, and the 4x400m mixed relay squad will be aiming to kill two birds using a single stone at the 2023 World Athletics Championships that start on Saturday in Budapest, Hungary.

Other than vying for medals in the global track and field championships, the two relay teams will also be seeking to finish in a respectable position so as to  qualify to compete in  2024 Paris Olympic Games.

Teams that reach the final of the two races will automatically qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games.

Since Kenya’s 4x400m relay quartet of John Anzrah, David Kitur, James Atuti, and James Maina competed in the inaugural 1983 World Athletics Championships in Helsinki, where they lost in the semi-finals, the country has fielded men’s 4x400m relay teams in eight editions of the global track and field championship.

The last time Kenya fielded men’s 4x400m relay team in the championship was in the 2013 edition held in Moscow.

Kenya has finished fifth in men’s 4x400m relay two times - in 1987 (Rome), and in 1991 (Tokyo), but the country’s best performance came in 1993 (Stuttgart) when the quartet of Kennedy Ochieng, Simon Kemboi, Abednego Matilu and the late Samson Kitur claimed silver.

Kenya clocked two minutes, 59.82 seconds but lost to the United States of America, who won in a world record time of 2:54.29. That USA team had the legendary Michael Johnson.

In the 2013 edition in Moscow, the Kenyan quartet of Mike Mokamba, Alphas Kishoyian, Anthony Chemut and Moses Kertich exited the competition in the preliminaries.

This year, Kenya will field men’s 4x400m relay team of national 400m champion Zablon Ekwam, national 400m hurdles champion Wiseman Were, and Commonwealth Games 800m champion Wycliffe Kinyamal.

Also in the men’s 4x400m relay team are Alex Ng’eno, Kennedy Musyoki and Kelvin Sawe Tauta.

Kinyamal, Ekwam, and Musyoki will double up in Kenya’s 4x400m mixed relay team that will also have the national 400m champion Mercy Oketch, Millicent Ndoro and Maureen Thomas.

The 4x400m mixed relays were introduced at the World Athletics Championships in 2019 edition held in Doha, where the Kenyan team failed to reach the final.

The country’s team failed to qualify for the 2022 edition of the world event held in Oregon.

Apart from Kinyamal, who has competed at the world championships in 800m, the rest of the team members will be on their debut.

Zablon said that training has been intense and everyone is eager to perform well in Budapest adding that the teams boast athletes with quick times from the national championships, and the national trials for Budapest.

“We are at the peak, and everyone is enjoying good speed. We have been refining  baton handling technique. We are also making ourselves conversant with the technical aspects of the race, and movement at the changeover zone,” Ekwam, 26, said.

“Discipline in baton handling is key. If we get it right, we can progress and finish strongly,” Ndoro.

“This is my first season in the 400m and I want to see how I progress before fully settling down in the race away from my usual 200m and 100m races,” the 36-year-old Ndoro said.

Oketch is happy with the unity in the team and is overwhelmed by the good treatment she has received from the senior athletes.

“They are always ready to listen to me and they encourage me in everything I do,” said the 21-year-old Oketch. “They tell me this is my time to lay a strong foundation for the future with a good performance in Budapest.”

Though disappointed at not having made the 800m team, Kinyamal said that he will sacrifice everything to make sure that the teams succeed.

“God knows why he has reserved a place for me in the relay team instead of my usual event (800m). I am in my best shape and I hope for the best,” said the 26-year-old Kinyamal, who ran a world lead time of 1:43.22 with victory in Monaco on July 21.

Anzrah, who coached Kenya’s 4x400m team to victory at the 1990 Auckland Commonwealth Games said the team’s coaches will do well to be conversant with new rules of the game.