By Mutwiri Mutuota and Agencies
For the second World Indoor Championships running, Kenya failed to muster a gold medal in a performance that yielded a tally of two silver and an equal number of bronze medals in Doha.
Boaz Kiplagat Lalang displayed brave running to secure silver in the men’s 800m final while Sammy Alex Mutahi powered from the back of the field on the final bend to nick bronze in the men’s 3,000m final.
On Saturday, Vivian Cheruiyot won women 3000m silver with Harun Keitany bagging the third medal in men’s 1,500m to leave Kenya 11th in medal standings.
Sudan’s Abubakar Kaki (right) beats Kenya’s Boaz Lalang in the 800m race at the World Indoor Championships in Doha, on Sunday. Photo: Reuters |
Speaking exclusively to FeverPitch from Doha on Sunday, a disappointed Athletics Kenya (AK) chairman, Isaiah Kiplagat admitted it was time to change the selection method for the biennial closed circuit running global event.
"These are not the results Kenyans expected and we need to address the performance by selecting athletes using the same method we do for other world events.
"We have been selecting our teams based on the performances of athletes on the European circuit, no trials, no monitoring, no preparation and no training ahead of World Indoors. This has been our mistake," Kiplagat, who watched on as bitter rivals Ethiopia confirmed their middle distance dominance by winning three gold and a bronze medal in Doha, said.
"We had the best athletes in Doha and we believed they could perform well but based on our selection methods, those were the results we expected. We have not been taking World Indoors seriously," Kiplagat admitted.
Stoic display
Final day action saw Lalang, who was included in the squad as an extra runner after his manager, James Templeton agreed to foot his expenses announced his return to form in a stoic display in the men’s 800m final.
Shadowing defending champion and Sudanese two-lap prodigy, Abubaker Kaki Khamis, who hit the front from the gun, Lalang attempted to burst ahead on the final bend, but the titleholder held him off to win in 1:46.23 against the bridesmaid’s 1:46:39.
Lalang was the sole Kenyan representative in the race where Olympics champion, Wilfred Bungei won gold in the 2006 edition in Moscow.
In the men 3,000m final, Commonwealth 5,000m champion, Augustine Choge hit the front in the opening laps, but faded badly as the runners went for the finish allowing Kenyan born American, Bernard Lagat to take the glory in 7:39.55.
