Athletics Kenya (AK) and the country’s top elite athletes have a full plate next season upon the release of the 2020 Diamond League calendar that will have one more event.
The calendar, drawn by the Diamond League General Assembly, will not only bring drastic changes and challenges to plans by the AK, but also athletes and their management teams.
Besides the Diamond League, which will have 14 meetings and one grand finale — as opposed to the usual 12 meetings and two grand finales — there will also be Africa Cross Country Championships, African Championships, World Under-20 Championships, the Tokyo Olympic Games and several regional events.
It means that the season that usually starts in May will now get under way in April, in Doha, with China having an additional event to make it two. The events will come in May.
World Athletics will also launch a second international series of one-day meetings titled, “the World Athletics Continental Tour”, which will provide world-class competition, ranking points and opportunities for many more athletes, with a focus on those disciplines not featuring regularly in the Diamond League.
Kenya staged its best ever Olympic show in the 2016 Rio Summer Games. It claimed 13 medals — six gold, six silver and a bronze. All the medals came from athletics.
This calls for proper and early planning from all the stakeholders. The AK must convene a meeting with top athletes coaches and managers to plan for an appropriate calendar that will avoid burnout in athletes.
It should also identify the probables for 2020 Tokyo Olympics as to come up with a plan that will involve their managers so as to cultivate good results.
