Uasin Gishu County Governor Jonathan Bii has lauded Nation Media Group’s NTV for getting the rights for the live broadcast of the London Marathon to be held on April 23.
The governor spoke Saturday when NMG Sports Managing Editor Elias Makori and the Nation Sport team paid the governor a courtesy call in his office.
The governor reiterated the county’s commitment to the development of sports, including capacity building in sports medicine in a project being run jointly with the Embassy of France.
“We want to invest in sports medicine and make sure we create awareness so that our sports men and women get special care when they are sick or have injuries. Sometimes our athletes might be treating the wrong thing but with such initiative, we shall be able to even reduce the doping menace which has always reared its ugly head.
Sports development
“I would also like to laud NTV for taking the lead in terms of sports development and we shall ensure we work together to take sports to the next level because we are the city of champions,” said Bii.
Makori said that NMG is committed to making sure that success stories are being told and the company will help in nurturing talents.
Amos Kipruto will be seeking to defend his title that he won last year as a lone ranger from Kenya. He crossed the line in two hours; four minutes and 39 seconds (2:04:39) ahead of Ethiopia’s Leul Gebresilase who clocked 2:05:12 while Belgium’s Bashir Abdi came in third place timing 2:05:19.
This year’s edition has attracted two athletes who have run sub 2:01; Ethiopia’s Kenenisa Bekele (2:01:41) and Kenya’s Kevin Kiptum who is the fastest debutant in history having clocked 2:01:53 at the 2022 Valencia Marathon in Spain.
Ethiopians Birhanu Legese (2:02:48), Mosinet Geremew (2:02:55), Tamirat Tola (2:03:39), Kinde Atanaw (2:03:51), Seifu Tura (2:04:29) and Kenyan’s Vincent Kipchumba (2:04:28) and Geoffrey Kamworor (2:05:23) will all be battling it out for the top honours.
Jepchirchir, Kosgei
Others are Briton Mo Farah, who has a personal best of 2:05:11, Japan’s Yuki Kawauchi (2:07:27) and Australia’s Brett Robinson (2:07:31).
The women’s category will feature 10 women who have run sub 2:19.
Olympic marathon champion Peres Jepchirchir with a personal best of 2:17:16, will be battling it out with world marathon record holder Brigid Kosgei (2:14:04), the defending champion Yalemzerf Yehualaw (2:17:23), Tigist Assefa (2:15:37), Almaz Ayana (2:17:20), Genzebe Dibaba (2:18:05) and Sutume Asefa Kebede (2:18:12).
Other top contenders include Kenya’s world marathon silver medalist Judith Korir (2:18:20), USA’s Emily Sisson (2:18:29), Australia’s Sinead Diver (2:21:34) among others.
