WRANGLES ASIDE: Athletes expected to light up first leg of AK cross country series in Nairobi on Saturday

Silas Kimutai wins the 12km men's race during the Nairobi County Cross-Country Championship at Post Grounds last year. [PHOTO:DENNIS OKEYO/STANDARD]

Hundreds of athletes are expected to light up the first leg of the Athletics Kenya cross-country series at in Nairobi on Saturday.

The event, which will be held at Posta grounds along Ngong Road, sets the title defence stage for the 41st IAAF World Cross Country Championships set for Guiyang, China, on March 28 next year.

The showpiece, which opens the AK 2014/2015 calendar of events and the AK six cross-country meetings, comes against the backdrop of wrangles within the AK executive team even as the federation lacks a cross-country, track and field sponsors.

Moses Mukono, the 2013 KCB/AK cross-country jackpot winner, will miss the action as he is sitting for Kenya Certificate of Secondary Examinations.

Little-known Silas Kimutai and former national 5,000m champion Mary Wachera are expected to defend their titles.

Kenya has dominated World Championships since 1986 when John Ngugi won his first of the five titles.

 Kenya and Ethiopia are by far the most successful countries in the world championships’ history, having won 120 of the 159 available team titles in World Cross-Country Championships.

The two nations have met 121 times where both have fielded full teams, with Kenya beating Ethiopia 79-42.

The regional championships will begin immediately after the six-tier meetings that will culminate in the national trials and Africa round of the IAAF Permit meeting on February 14 next year at Uhuru Gardens, where 36 athletes will be picked to join the national squad for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships.

Barnaba Korir, the race organiser and AK Nairobi branch chairman, said they were ready to stage the event in which they are gearing up to defend the junior men’s title they won in March.

“We are taking the meeting seriously. We want to take a lion’s share in junior races at the World Cross Country Championships and the tedious journey starts from here,” said Korir.

John Mwithiga, the technical director, said the race would be challenging if the course and the weather conditions are anything to go by.

“The course is challenging and the humid conditions experienced at this season of the year might affect performance. This is why we have decided to start the event early enough,” said Mwithiga.

Korir said they expect city-based athletes to give a good showing in the  regional championships and the nationals next year.

The second leg of the series will be held in athletics-mad Iten town on November 15 then Nyahururu (December 5), Machakos (Dec 20) before action shifts to Sotik on January 3.