Nairobi, Kenya: Determination and huge dreams were evident as the two-day World Youth Championships’ national selections got underway at Nyayo National Stadium.
David Lekuta Rudisha
The Kenyan team will head to Donetsk, Ukraine, looking up for a third overall title, having won the inaugural championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, in 1999.
The team will also be seeking to reclaim the title they last won in 2009 in Bressanone, Italy, with 14 medals –six gold, seven silver and one bronze.
Kenya finished second to United States of America with 14 medals –with five, five silver and four bronze –as sprints powerhouse Jamaica trailed in third at the 2011 showpiece in Lille, France.
The Kenya versus Ethiopia track rivalry will get a new touch in the elementary IAAF competition, with each team coming up with fresh talents.
Joshua Masikonde, a Form Two Student at Simat Secondary School in Uasin Gishu County, was keen to extend his rural homes’ dominance in the two-lap race.
The Narok-born runner is determined to emulate fellow Maasai morans – David Rudisha (1:40.91) and Leonard Kosencha (1:44.08) – who hold world 800m record and World Youth record, respectively.
“I want to break the world youth record held by Leonard Kosencha whom we are both Maasai Morans if I make the team. And then, I attempt David Rudisha’s 1:40.91 mark at the Rio 2016 Olympics,” said Masikonde.
But Africa Youth 800m champion Robert Biwott, silver medallist Patrick Kiprotich and bronze medallist Patrick Rono wanted to leap from continental honours to global fame.
By Jonathan Komen, The Standard