Coaches are crucial to making Kenyan athletics great again
Commonwealth Games 800m Gold medallist Mary Moraa trains at MISC, Kasarani on June 6, 2023 ahead of the National Police Service Athletics Championships that will be held at the same venue today and tommorow.
What you need to know:
- With the World Championships less than two months away in Budapest, Hungary, the onus is on us as a federation to actualize the coaches’ recommendations and give Team Kenya the maximum and meticulous preparations they deserve.
- This was not a one-off deliberation rather they will be continuous as we seek to move together as an athletics family in the same direction – which is upward towards the sky.
On Monday this week, Athletics Kenya (AK) federation held a one-of-a-kind meeting with a cross-section of coaches from across the country for radical surgery and examination of Kenyan athletics over the years.
As people tasked with moulding the future of upcoming talents, the interactive session was an idea whose time was overdue.
Indeed, it is something we should have done long ago for it revealed in-depth issues affecting the sport, which subsequently require urgent attention.Truth be told, Kenyan athletics is not where it is supposed to be.
Our country is synonymous with the exploits of our middle and long-distance runners who have over the years brought glory to Kenya at international competitions, such as the Olympic Games and the World Championships.
However, the doping menace continues to linger large over our athletics heritage and it was quite an eye-opener – or ear-opener – to hear what the coaches had to say on the deep-rooted reasons for the vice.
It was also quite encouraging to see their resolve to fight against this menace and spare no culprit – including those who may be hiding under the coaching umbrella to perpetrate this crime.
Unity within the coaching fraternity was also one of the clarion calls during this special meeting. When two bulls fight, it is the grass that suffers…the participants were unanimous that their athletes are the most affected by their coaches’ bickering.
Listening to them speak, I am convinced that Kenya is blessed with experienced coaches who are passionate about making athletics great again.
This new-found resolve by the coaches is the exact drive required to maintain our stranglehold as an athletics powerhouse.
The key to doing this is developing a uniform training programme for Team Kenya when they get into camp for international competitions. Furthermore, the coaches underlined the importance of early preps where athletes travel early enough and acclimatize to the environment in which they will be competing.
With the World Championships less than two months away in Budapest, Hungary, the onus is on us as a federation to actualize the coaches’ recommendations and give Team Kenya the maximum and meticulous preparations they deserve.
This was not a one-off deliberation rather they will be continuous as we seek to move together as an athletics family in the same direction – which is upward towards the sky.
Korir is the chairman of Athletics Kenya’s Nairobi branch.
