Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Daily Nation
Published on 2024-02-03 03:45:00
The urge and hunger to sample the terrains where Olympic marathon Eliud Kipchoge and marathon world record holder Kelvin Kiptum train, is what has brought some visiting athletes to Sirikwa Classic Cross Country, despite unfavourable weather conditions.
One such athlete is Ukrainian couple Mykola Mevsha and Maryna Nemchenko, who have been training in Poland for the last two years, and Hanne Maridal from Norway. The three of them will pitch their training camp in Iten for the next two months.
Mevsha and his wife, Nemchenko, escaped the war between their country Ukraine and Russia that broke in February 2022 after invasion. They are excited to be in the country that has produced great runners in history and hope that the altitude training in Iten and the competition at Lobo, will give them the much-needed mileage in road running.
Nemchenko’s main focus is to improve her performance this year as she plans to run one half marathon among other road races. She has personal bests of 1:13:15 in the half marathon and 2:35:31 in the marathon. Despite not seeing her parents for the last two years, she is working hard to make them proud.
They shifted their training base to Poland when the war started and are now hopeful that the tough conditions in Lobo will prepare them well for major races.
Additionally, Hanne Maridal from Norway, who is eager to meet Eliud Kipchoge, was all smiles after she landed in the country to compete at Sirikwa as she prepares for the Vienna Marathon due for April 21, this year, in Austria. She hopes that the training in Iten will help her post the required times to qualify for the Paris Olympic Games.
Vienna will be Maridal’s maiden marathon though she has a personal best of 1:12:47 in the half marathon and is the Norwegian national 10,000m champion.
Iten has been voted as one of the best towns that has favourable conditions for training and this has seen many international athletes preparing for the season troop to the region. It is really exciting to be in Kenya and they have heard a lot about the nice weather conditions in Iten, confirming the attractiveness of the town for international athletes seeking altitude training.
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