Jesire, Chepkemoi equal national high jump record
Zeddy Jesire takes part in women's high jump during Athletics Kenya (AK) National Championships at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi on June 22, 2023.
What you need to know:
- The men’s 4x100m and 4x400m world championships qualifying races were not staged after South Sudan and Botswana teams rescheduled their arrival to Friday.
Rising teenage star, Zeddy Jesire and her nemesis Faith Chepkemoi lit up the National Athletics Championships at Nyayo Stadium, Nairobi on Thursday when they equalled the Kenyan women’s high jump record.
Jesire, 19, and Chepkemoi both scaled 1.75 metres to match Caroline Cherotich’s national record set in 2014 but the teenager was declared the winner on countback to claim her maiden national title.
Cherotich also holds the national record in pole vault of 3.20m set in 2015.
Dramatic moments ensued as Jesire battled teammate Chepkemoi in the high jump.
Jesire, who was fresh from winning the KDF title, cleared 1.70m, a height Chepkemoi also scaled.
Jesire, from Baringo County, where she used to jump deep gullies and valleys while herding her father’s animals in Ackonwoin village, then cleared 1.75m on her first attempt while Chepkemoi needed two tries to clear the height.
Jesire was then declared the winner on count-back after both jumpers failed to negotiate 1.80m.
The record was coming. Jesire claimed her first KDF title in a personal best 1.65m on May 24, at the Ulinzi Sports Complex.
“My ultimate dream this year is to jump over 1.80m to have a good chance of making it to the big stage like the world championships.
Meanwhile, top guns Ferdinand Omanyala, Mary Moraa, Beatrice Chepkoech and Daniel Simiu held back but easily sailed through to the next round of their races in the National Athletics Championships yesterday at Nyayo Stadium, Nairobi.
Kenya Police’s Omanyala, the fastest man in Africa, literally jogged to 10.08 seconds against +0.2 wind speed to claim the seventh heat and sail through to the semi-finals set for Friday.
Omanyala, the Commonwealth Games and Africa 100m champion, beat Nairobi’s Moses Wasike (10.75) and Eliakim Odimo (10.96) from the Universities as they all made it to the semis.
“This is just part of my build up towards the World Championships and nothing spectacular,” said Omanyala. “I am here to run for my Police team and running 10.08 is incredible and hope to lower the time in the semis tomorrow (Friday),” said Omanyala, who is also focused on anchoring Kenya 1 team to victory in 4x100m at Nyayo.
The men’s 4x100m and 4x400m world championships qualifying races were not staged after South Sudan and Botswana teams rescheduled their arrival to Friday.
Prisons’ Hesbon Ochieng (10.47sec), Meshack Babu (10.40) from Kenya Defence Forces (KDF), Universities Mark Kangéthe (10.73), South Africa’s Henricho Bruintjies (10.55) Sharry Dodin (10.74) from Seychelles and Prisons’ Dan Kiviasi 910.86) also won their heats to advance to the semis.
