Jepkosgei wins appeal to compete after tumbling out in heats

By Mutwiri Mutota in Berlin

Kenya’s camp at Berlin World Championships erupted in ecstasy after Janeth Jepkosgei’s defence of her women 800m title was resuscitated by a successful appeal.

It all looked over for the ‘Eldoret Express’ when a costly trip by South Africa’s rising teenage star, Caster Semenya, saw Jepkosgei land prostate on the track as they took the final curve for the homestretch.

The world champion could only muster a last place finish in 2:12.81 as Semenya triumphed in 2:02.51 as the Kenyan camp, still high on Linet Masai’s golden triumph on Saturday sunk to the lowest lengths of despair.

Pamela Jelimo competes in her heat. Photos: Reuters

Frenetic activity in ensuing minutes saw the Kenyan delegation immediately petition the competition’s judging panel to reinstate Jepkosgei as the enraged champion left the scene to await her fate.

Tripping jepkosgei

Semenya, who won the Africa junior title in Mauritius last month in a world leading 1:56.72, denied tripping Jepkosgei.

"I didn’t see anything, when Jepkosgei fell down; I twisted my ankle as I skipped over her. I’m not sure I will race tomorrow (today) and I will quit and watch the competition from the stands if my leg does not feel good," the 18-year-old told FeverPitch as she limped to the mixed zone.

Soon after the incident, fellow athletes, including Olympic champion and teammate, Pamela Jelimo, who also survived tripping by German runner, Jane Hartmann in Heat 5 to win in 2:03.50, expressed their disappointment over the incident.

"They pushed us and I don’t know what they were planning against us. I’m very unhappy about what happened to Janeth and I was also cut," Jelimo told FeverPitch as she held up her bleeding right leg.

Britain’s medal hopeful, Jennifer Meadows who qualified from Heat 2 after running 2:02.47 for second, said, "I’m sorry for what happened to Janeth, it is so sad since she is a good runner, I hope they give her the chance to compete."

American runner, Maggie Vessey, who clocked 2:04.07 to finish behind Jelimo, commented: "What happened is disappointing, I didn’t see exactly how it happened but she does not deserve that."

Ninth lane

"The results will not change but Janeth will be added to the start list for the next round," Anna Legnani, IAAF’s Deputy Communications director, told FeverPitch. A ninth lane is usually reserved for such scenarios at major championships though it remains unmarked.

On qualification, Jelimo who sped-off from Vessey in the last 50m said, "It will be very tough at the final but I believe I can do something."

Tiergarten loosely translates to ‘very big garden’ in German.

The park located near the presidential palace in Berlin provides a setting comparable to that enjoyed by the first Biblical couple of Adam and Eve.

Located just a few hundred metres from the Berlin-Berlin team hotel, Tiergarten has provided Kenyan runners with ideal backdrop to do morning runs with its mixture of tarmac, dirt and grass surfaces besides a hushed atmosphere to get into ‘the zone’ ahead of competition. With only 24 hours left before their attempt at bringing back the men 10,000m world title to Kenya for the first time since 1991 when Moses Tanui struck gold, the country’s male 25-lappers turned to Tiergarten for inspiration.

World record

"Everything has gone on well. We are now focusing on the 10,000m final on Monday (today). Personally I’ve been preparing for this moment in Eldoret since the beginning of the year," world 10k world record holder and Olympics 10,000m bronze medallist, Micah Kogo said.