Posted: March 11, 2004

Athletics: Kenya Names World Olympic Marathon And World Cross Teams

From David Monti

(c) 2004 Race Results Weekly, all rights reserved RaceResultsWeekly.com

By Peter Njenga

NAIROBI (10-Mar) -- World marathon record holder Paul Tergat and Catherine Ndereba, winner of the women's gold medal at Paris world championships over the distance are among eight athletes named in the Kenyan team for Athens Olympics today.

Athletics Kenya also included Olympics silver medallist Eric Wainaina, bronze and silver in Atlanta and Sydney, and Sammy Korir who paced Tergat to a quantum leap world record in Berlin last year.

ING New York City Marathon champion Martin Lel and a previous winner Rodgers Rop were named as reserves.

Ndereba will be joined by New York champion Margaret Okayo and upcoming Alice Chelagat, winner of the first Standard Chartered Nairobi Marathon last year.

Tergat said this would be Kenya's best ever opportunity to win the elusive gold medal. "But it will be a challenging task," he said. "The course is tough with many hilly sections and at the Olympics you will never know about the other person," said Tergat, currently in intensive training in Ngong Hills in the outskirts of the city before London Marathon next month. "Maybe we might be forced to train in hot and humid areas."

Douglas Wakiihuri, a world champion in 1987, won a silver medal in Seoul Olympics the following year then Wainaina won a bronze in Atlanta before improving to a silver behind Ethiopian Gezhegne Abera in Sydney.

Simon Biwott was overtaken by Gezahegne in the stadium in the Edmonton world championships three years ago to win Kenya's second medal in over a decade.

Joyce Chepchumba won a bronze medal in the Sydney Olympics before Ndereba, a former world record holder and also boasting of an impressive record at other events, attained the ultimate crown at the worlds last year.

In another development, Kenya selected an experienced team for the world cross country championships last weekend which was described by overall captain John Kibowen as the best so far from the country's pool of talent.

Kenya world cross country team:

Men 12 km:
Eliud Kipchoge
John Cheruiyot Korir
Wilberforce Talel
Richard Limo
Simon Kiprop
Charles Kamathi

Men 4 km:
Abraham Chebii
John Kibowen
Kiplimo Muneria
Bonifce Songok
Isaac Songok
Eliud Kirui

Junior men 8 km:
Barnabas Kosgei
Hosea Macharinyang
Ronald Kipchumba
Earnest Meli
Moses Masai
George Kirwa

Women 8 km:
Alice Timbilil
Sally Barsosio
Irene Kwambai
Fridah Domongole
Eunice Jepkorir
Jane Ngotho

Women 4 km:
Beatrice Jepchumba
Jane Gakunyi
Edith Masai, Prisons
Peninah Jepchumba
Isabella Ochichi
Vivian Cheruiyot

Junior women 6 km:
Chemutai Rionotukel
Jebichi Yator
Grady Chemweno
Emmy Chepkurui
Zeddy Cheboi
Nelly Jepkurui

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