Anger in Rift Valley as AK suspends two top managers

MOSES TANUI
Former two times marathon winner Moses Tanui outside his office in Eldoret. He urged county government within the North Rift region to consider sponsoring an annual race as a way of motivating upcoming athletes,” said Tanui 25.09.2014. Picture By Peter Ochieng.

Two-time Boston Marathon winner Moses Tanui (above) has faulted Athletics Kenya’s move to ban two agents, saying it would subject elite athletes to unnecessary suffering.

Sources said Federicco Rosa would fly in and they would address a press conference in Eldoret with five-time world cross country champion Paul Tergat, who was in the stable.

Tanui, the first man to run the half-marathon in under one hour, wondered how athletes preparing for the Boston and London marathons as well as the IAAF Diamond League series would be managed.

“AK cares less about athletes. The Boston and London marathons are selection platforms for the world championships. What if they don’t compete? AK has no plan for them and we must protect them. AK should have prepared modalities for their competition,” said Tanui, the 1991 world 10,000m champion.

On Monday, AK issued a six-month ban to Italian agent Federicco Rosa and Dutchman Gerard Van de Veen of Volare Sports over dope claims and related vices.

“Our federation made the worst mistake by suspending the managers without giving them audience. There should be proper mechanisms for this,” he said.

He said the move would dampen athletes’ spirits and most athletes in the two camps would not get an opportunity to race abroad “as AK will not enter them in races”.

“It will definitely affect the selection of the national trials. It will be difficult for AK to enter them in the various high-paying races,” Tanui said in Eldoret yesterday.

Kiplagat appointed Jack Tuwei, the AK vice president, to act as the AK president while Paul Mutwii, another vice president, took over as senior deputy. Tanui said the appointment of Jack Tuwei, who finished third in the AK elections, entrenched favouritism and tribalism in sports.

At the polls in 2013, David Okeyo captured the first vice president’s seat with 56 votes, while Paul Mutwii came second with 49 votes and Jackson Tuwei third with 40 votes. Jonathan Koskei, the senior deputy commissioner of police, finished fourth with 25 votes while Dan Muchoki got four votes.

Fatuma Awale won the women’s vice president seat with 34 votes.

Tanui said, “We all believe David Okeyo should have been appointed the acting president. It’s unfair.”

He said Tuwei stood in fourth place in AK's pecking order and was not supposed to take over.