Hope for young, old after Chepsaita success
Women compete during the women’s 2km over 60 years category at the 1st Chepsaita Cross County held at Chepkemeli in Uasin Gishu County on December 02, 2023.
What you need to know:
- Deputy President Gachagua, donning his new “Riggy G” label, and Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba joined the athletes for a feel of the course.
- “The spirited run showcased the prowess of seasoned athletes and served as a fertile ground for discovering emerging talent,” said Farouk Kibet, the founder and patron of the race.
- Kibet expressed gratitude to sponsors and other supporters for the event’s success, emphasising the unity it fostered within the community.
The adage that says “old is gold” certainly found its proper meaning at last weekend’s inaugural Chepsaita Cross Country Championship which attracted over 100 senior citizens.
The race ignited the love of athletics by elderly people from the hills of Chepsaita in Turbo Sub County within Uasin Gishu County, the self-proclaimed home of champions.
Also, the effects of the massive turnout of young athletes helped Athletics Kenya kick-start six holiday training camps in the Central Rift region Monday.
A boy runs during the 5-7 years category 500m race at the Chepsaita Cross Country at Chepkemeli in Uasin Gishu County on December 02, 2023.
Athletics Kenya’s youth development committee chairman Barnabas Korir was a busy man yesterday, launching the holiday camps at Chepkemel (Uasin Gishu), Kapkoimur (Nandi County), Kapsisiywa (Nandi County), Lelmolok (Uasin Gishu), Plateu High School (Uasin Gishu) and Simat (Uasin Gishu).
The holiday camps that will run this month and in the April school holidays next year, will be a build-up to the World Athletics Under-20 Championships which will be held in Lima, Peru, from August 26 to 31 next year.
Build-up to Lima
“We merged several holiday camps to maximize on financing since most of these training centres are close to one another, and the joint financing will benefit more athletes so that they are also not too crowded in a single camp,” Korir told Nation Sport yesterday.
“This is also our solid build-up to the World Athletics Under-20 Championships in Lima,” he added.
The opening of the camps comes hot on the heels of the successful inaugural Chepsaita Cross Country Championships held last Saturday.
Despite the hot weather and hilly topography that characterised Saturday’s race, the elderly braved on with gallant faces during the 500 metres race for elderly. The 78-year-old Flora Chebet became an instant heroine of the day after completing the race.
Webuye West MP Dan Wanyama competes IN the men’s 2km 46-59 years category race at the Chepsaita Cross Country held at Chepkemeli in Uasin Gishu County on December 02, 2023.
Chebet’s zeal to finish the race rekindled the memory of 1968 when a Tanzanian marathoner who finished last in the marathon at the Mexico Olympics quipped: “My country did not send me 5,000 miles away to start a race I could not finish!”
Chebet is now trending locally, placing the hilly village of Chepsaita firmly on the global map. Her gallant effort earned the attention of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, the day’s chief guest, and she was rewarded with a blanket with organisers pledging to further reward her with a cow.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua (left) Chepsaita and Cross County Patron Farouk Kibet during the awarding of the winners of the boys 5-7 years category 500m race of the Chepsaita Cross County at Chepkemeli in Uasin Gishu County, on December 02, 2023.
Deputy President Gachagua, donning his new “Riggy G” label, and Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba joined the athletes for a feel of the course.
“The spirited run showcased the prowess of seasoned athletes and served as a fertile ground for discovering emerging talent,” said Farouk Kibet, the founder and patron of the race.
Eliud Kipchoge with Farouk Kibet during the Chepsaita Cross Country at Chepkemeli in Uasin Gishu County on December 02, 2023.
Kibet expressed gratitude to sponsors and other supporters for the event’s success, emphasising the unity it fostered within the community.
He promised that the event will now become an annual ritual.
