The country's big shots were conspicuously missing as Athletics Kenya (AK) yesterday named a marathon squad tasked with representing the nation at the 2023 Budapest World Championships in August.
The federation was however quick to defend the absence of the country's top guns from the team.
The team of six marathoners (three from each category) promised Kenya that they were up to the task and that they would lead the battle for medals in the global show set for August 19 to 27 - 65 days from today.
At the same time, AK, through its first Vice President and Competitions Director Paul Mutwii said a number of top long-distance runners who had been asked to lead the Budapest duty declined to take up the patriotic role and instead chose to pursue other assignments.
The marathon team was named in a ceremony in Eldoret yesterday.
Rosemary Wanjiru, the reigning Tokyo Marathon champion and Timothy Ronoh - the runner-up at the NN Rotterdam Marathon in April this year are the fastest in the women's and men's teams respectively.
Apart from Ronoh, the men's team comprises Milano Marathon 2022 winner, Titus Kipruto and Joshua Belet, a Hamburg Marathon runner-up. Michael Githae and Bethwell Kibet are on the reserve team.
Kipruto said he had high hopes that the men's team will win medals at the 2023 World Championships.
"Expect good results from the marathon team. We are preparing well for the assignment and we ask Kenyans to continue supporting us," the men's captain said.
Sally Chepyego thanked AK for the selection.
"I want to assure the country that this is the best team and we are going to do our best. We will not disappoint Kenya," she said.
The women's marathon team includes Wanjiru, Chepyego and Shyline Jepkorir while Margaret Wangari and Betty Chepkwony were named as the reserves.
Chepyego's breakthrough in athletics came at the 2001 World Youth Championships where racing barefoot, she held off Ethiopia's Mestewat Tufa to win the gold medal in the 3000m.
She won the 2022 edition of the Frankfurt Marathon while Jepkorir won in Enschede.
AK had released a list on June 2 that had the world's second fastest marathoner Kelvin Kiptum and double New York City Marathon champion Geoffrey Kamworor - names which were missing yesterday.
Sheila Chepkirui and the women's marathon world record holder Brigid Kosgei were also in that list.
"If our top athletes chose other races instead of representing the country, it is not a good thing. Our athletes should sacrifice for the sake of the country," Mutwii said.
