Kenyan siblings hoping to shine in Poland

Dorcas Kimeli in her garden in Iten, Elgeyo Marakwet County, last week. She will represent Kenya at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia, Poland, on October 18, 2020.

Photo credit: Jared Nyataya | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • Dorcas says that she is privileged to be competing with two former world record holders, Netsanet Gudeta and Joyciline Jepkosgei, current world record holders Peres Jepchirchir (women only) and Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh (mixed gender).
  • “I know the race will be tough given that we shall be competing with some of the fastest athletes, but I know it will be a beautiful race. I have done adequate training and what remains is to implement on Saturday,” said Dorcas, the family’s ninth born.

The city of Gdynia on the Baltic coast, a small fishing village until the 20th century, has since transformed into Poland’s biggest and busiest sea port.

Decorated by the 13th-century St Michael the Archangel Church, two museum ships in the harbour, a destroyer and a frigate, Gdynia has a thriving cultural life positively reviewed by travel pundits.

And when Kenyan athletes raid the streets on this historic city in Saturday’s World Athletics Half Marathon Championships, the name Gdynia will reverberate across the equally fast-growing town on Iten, Elgeyo-Marakwet County.

Because Iten is home to “Team Kenya” siblings Dorcas and Bernard Kimeli, who were both selected to represent the country at the global event in Gdynia.

The siblings have been training in Iten under coach Dan Ng’etich.

“It’s an honour to be selected with my sister to represent our country in the much awaited World Half Marathon Championships. Our main target is to do well. It came as a surprise. We didn’t expect this to happen,” Bernard, the eighth born in a family of 11, told Nation Sport last week.

Dorcas and her brother Bernard Kimeli at the Eldoret International Airport.

Photo credit: Jared Nyataya | Nation Media Group

He attributes their running genes to their 92-year-old grandfather, Kipsalat Chepkiyeng, who used to run during his days.

Bernard lives about two kilometres from Dorcas, but they usually meet up early in the morning for training in a sport they say has changed their lives.

Bernard, a former Kenya Wildlife Service ranger, says their selection for Poland was a blessing after both featured in the Prague Half Marathon in the Czech Republic last month.

Bernard used to train at the Tsavo East National Park in 2015 under guard by his ranger colleagues due to threats from animals, prompting his supervisor to transfer him to Iten in 2017 so he could train better.

Training under Ikaika Management, he then secured an opportunity to join Fujita Company in Japan in 2018 where he is currently based. He jetted into Kenya just in time before borders were closed due to Covid-19 and had been training with his sister looking forward to the skies to opened to fly back to Japan.

Dorcas, meanwhile, used to see her brother running and that was enough motivation that led her to training upon graduating from Kapkoi Secondary School in Elgeyo Marakwet County.

She is happy that Athletics Kenya selected her to represent Kenya on Saturday.  Last month she was among the athletes who featured at the Prague Half Marathon where Adidas were launching a new shoe (Adizero Adios Pro). She managed third, clocking 1:07:14 in a race won by Peres Jepchirchir who broke the world record in 1:05:34.

Dorcas says that she is privileged to be competing with two former world record holders, Netsanet Gudeta and Joyciline Jepkosgei, current world record holders Peres Jepchirchir (women only) and Ethiopia’s Ababel Yeshaneh (mixed gender).

“I know the race will be tough given that we shall be competing with some of the fastest athletes, but I know it will be a beautiful race. I have done adequate training and what remains is to implement on Saturday,” said Dorcas, the family’s ninth born.