It’s war on france

photo:courtesy

France faces Napoleonic battle from Kenya’s decorated steeplechaser Ezekiel Kemboi, who has since reversed his decision to retire, if only to teach the French a lesson on the track.

Kemboi was stripped of a bronze medal after the French lodged an appeal, saying he had stepped out of the track.

The Rio Olympics judges agreed and the bronze medal was duly awarded to Frenchman and close pal of Kemboi, Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad.

But the fiercely competitive multiple steeplechase World and twice Olympic champion has chosen to live by the words of legendary French military leader and politician, Napoleon Bonaparte, who once said: “The battlefield is a scene of constant chaos. The winner will be the one who controls that chaos, both his own and the enemy’s.”

Kemboi won’t let France and Frenchman Mekhissi-Benabbad profit from the chaos that appertained at the Olympic Stadium track on Wednesday.

“I had opted to retire right after the Olympics only if I had come home with this medal... now I feel that I have to bring back this medal not by protesting again but right on track. Kemboi is not retired I will be heading to London 2017 to stage a revenge on France for my medal. No limits,” Kemboi said on his Facebook wall.

France lodged the complaint that Kemboi had stepped out of the track in what the video replays confirmed, but he appeared to have been forced to step out as he was pushed from behind.

Kemboi’s disqualification automatically slid Frenchman Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad into bronze medal.

That would have been a perfect moment for Mekhissi-Benabbad to outclass Kemboi, although he often ruins Kenya’s podium sweep in major competitions. Mekhissi-Benabbad, 28, won silver in Beijing and London Olympics and bronze in Daegu and Moscow worlds.

During the post-match press conference, Kemboi brushed aside French protests saying maybe Mekhissi wanted to be awarded the medal.

“I don’t think I made any mistake, but they can look at the video evidence to see where I went wrong. But I think maybe he wants to be given the medal,” Kemboi said.

It appears now Kemboi has drawn a Red Line between him and Mekhissi-Benabbad, who famously carried the Kenyan at the end of the 2012 London Olympics.

Meanwhile, marathon gold medallist Jemimah Sumgong is among the first batch of medallists expected to arrive home today.

The team that also consists of rugby sevens men team, boxing and Judo arrives in Nairobi at 8pm.