On your marks, get set…all roads lead to Kasarani for Kip Keino Classic

The long wait is over as the fourth edition of the Absa Kip Keino Classic, a World Athletics Continental Gold Tour event, rolls out Saturday at Kenya’s premier athletics cathedral. 

The championships that continues to grow in stature has once again attracted Olympic, world and continental champions as well as world and continental record holders alike.

In total, 251 athletes, both local and international, are set to unleash their prowess at the 60,000-seater Moi International Sports Centre, Kasarani as they chase varying aspirations starting at 10am.

Undoubtedly, their ultimate dream and destination will be the World Athletics Championships scheduled for August 19 to 27 in Budapest, Hungary.

Athletics Kenya has been rallying Kenyans to turn out in numbers to witness history being made at Kasarani with entry to the event being declared free.

Absa Kenya came on board as the title sponsor for the third year running with an improved package of Sh60 million as the Kenyan government pumped in Sh320 million to the event.

Integrated telecommunication service provider Safaricom heeded the call with Sh9.5 million.

The international athletes will compete in the core category that has nine races and discretionary category that has eight events while the national category has six events.

The highlight of the championships that will be relayed live on Nation Television (NTV) will be the men’s 100 metres pitting the Africa 100m record holder Ferdinand Omanyala and World 100m silver medallist Marvin Bracy-Williams and others.

The showstopper that will also see fast-rising Kenyan sprinter Steven Odhiambo take the blocks, will close the day’s business at 5.54pm.

Odhiambo has replaced Samuel Imeta, who has been withdrawn from the championships over unspecified reasons.

With multi Olympic and world 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce withdrawing at the last minute with a knee injury, the women’s 100m race that will feature former national champion Monica Safania and Esther Mbagari, has been thrown open.

Those to watch out for are world 4x100m champion Twanisha Terry and 2020 Tokyo Olympics 4x100m silver medallist Daniels Teahna from the United States of America. The race goes down at 4.05pm.

America’s fast-rising sprints sensation Sha’Çarri Richardson will definitely be the highlight in women’s 200m that will feature Kenya’s former national 100m champion and record holder Eunice Kadogo. The race takes off at 5.23pm.

Events to watch out for are the men’s hammer throw that has Olympic champion Wojciech Nowicki from Poland with his fellow country woman, the three-time Olympic champion Anita Wlodarczyk, also defending her hammer throw title.

National men’s champion Dominic Abunda and former national women’s champion Rose Rakamba will take the cage to brush shoulders with some of the world’s finest hammer throwers.

Two-time reigning World javelin champion Anderson Peters brings the battle to the 2015 world champion Julius Yego’s door steps while women’s world high jump silver medallist Yaroslava Mahuchikh from Ukraine is favourite to win her event.

The national program that has six events starts at 10am with men’s long jump and will be followed by men’s shot put at 10.05am.

The men’s javelin throw that is one of the discretionary events will go down at 12.30pm.

The men’s 10,000m is a national event which will go down at 2pm followed by women’s hammer throw that is a core event at 2.12pm.

Then women’s and men’s 400m hurdles, which are national events, will run at 2.38pm and 2.48pm respectively.

The women’s 400m will be the last national event at 2.57pm.

The women’s 5,000m, men’s 400m and men’s 5,000m that are discretionary will take place at 3.06pm, 3.30pm and 3.40pm in that order.

Women’s high jump, which is a core event, will start at 3.45pm.

The live broadcast courtesy of Nation Media Group’s Nation Television (NTV) will commence at 4pm with the women’s 100m.