HOME TRUTH FOR UGANDA: Kamworor turns on afterburners to scorch homeboy Cheptegei
Athletics
By
JONATHAN KOMEN IN KAMPALA
| Mar 27, 2017
It was an interesting turn of events in the senior races at the IAAF World Cross Country Championships at Kololo Independence Grounds in Kampala, Uganda.
The greatest challenge was expected from former Kenyans, who switched nationalities to other nations, but it did not materialise.
Kenyan women emerged as the first team to win the top six spots in the history of the IAAF World Cross Country Championships – but failed to attain the 2010 feat in Poland when Kenya won all individual titles.
It was, however, a dream for Geoffrey Kamworor, who arrived at the Entebbe International Airport on Friday evening and vowed: “Nimekuja kumaliza kazi hapa (I have come to finish my tasks here).”
This is despite the fact that Kamworor came to Kampala with his form under scrutiny, having finished third in the national trials in Nairobi.
Kamworor, a police officer, now sits pretty with three World Cross Country gold medals. He won the junior title in 2011 in Punta Umbria, Spain, and the senior title in Guiyang China in 2015.
He had earlier predicted a stiff challenge from Uganda’s world under-20 10,000m bronze medallist Joshua Cheptegei, who ran out of gas in the final 500m to the finish line.
“It’s sweet revenge over my training mate Stephen Kiprotich, who denied us marathon gold medals in the London Olympics and World Championships in Moscow.
“When Cheptegei accelerated, I realised that was a suicide pace that he couldn’t sustain. I just opted to keep up the chase and gained momentum as Kenyans cheered me up.
“After this, I now prepare for battle for gold medal in 10,000m at the World Championships,” he said.
Kamworor and Vivian Cheruiyot are the only Kenyans to have won World Cross Country junior and senior crowns.
Kamworor, Emily Chebet, and William Sigei are Kenya’s two-time World Cross Country winners alongside five-time winners Paul Tergat and John