Mary Moraa rises above the ashes to pose a threat to all in the Women’s 800 meters in Budapest  

The Women’s 800 meters is going to be an intriguing event in Budapest. Mary Moraa is focused on Keely Hodgkinson and Athing Mu, but Coach Bobby Kersee has thrown some uncertainty in the mix, now not saying whether Athing Mu will show or not and perhaps just train for Paris 2024.

Mary Moraa rises above the ashes to pose a threat to Athing Mu and Keely Hodgkinson in Budapest.

What a difference two years can make in sports! As humans, we always tend to fix our minds on the moment, and we tend not to give credence to how other athletes are grinding it out to find their way to the top. In reality, one can’t blame the fans as they fork out their hard-earned money to watch the very best in real-time. The best an athlete can do is to work their way to the top and ensure they are the reason fans turn up at the stadium.

That’s the world we live in now; we just have to follow the rules. It’s why very few people paid attention to Mary Moraa two years ago. The Kenyan runner barely made it to the Tokyo Olympics, and even then, she barely made up the numbers as she placed third in her semi-final with a modest 2:00.47. It was the same time teenagers like Athing Mu and Keely Hodgkinson became Olympic Gold and Silver medalists in Tokyo.

Mu and Hodgkinson were and are still seen as the future of the sport, but life comes at you pretty fast. These two, as expected, were the treat of the crowd at last year’s world championships in Eugene, but Moraa wasn’t far off, as seen by her the Bronze she snagged. This year, the Kenyan will be looking to usurp the established order and hopefully become the second Gold medalist in the event since Eunice Sum won it for the East African nation at the world championships in Moscow. 

Moraa’s 2023 season has been a roller-coaster; capping it up with Gold in Budapest will be the icing on the cake. The Kenyan picked up from where she left off last season, in which she won Commonwealth Gold and the Diamond Trophy, while also lowering her Personal Best to 1:56.71 in Eugene. Not only has she come close to her PB this year, she remains unbeaten in all her races, including the 400m which she ran a National record of 50.38 to win the National title this year. 

Despite her unquestionable talent in the 400m, it is the 800m that she wants to leave a mark. And if Moraa is to win Gold in Budapest, she will potentially have to run faster…