Resilience of old and emergence of new stars witnessed at the Betika Bingwafest track meet in Eldoret

Christmas came some days earlier for the winners, as there were great prizes to be won in races ranging from 100 m to 10,000m. Much focus was given to the two longer track distances, probably to attract the best runners from the region. Both experienced and new talents stepped on the track to showcase their running skills in the two-day event, which began on Thursday, December 19th, and ended on Friday, December 20th.

Christine Njoki won the women’s 10,000m race, arguably one of the most competitive events on the second day of athletics, after breaking away from a leading pack of three in the race’s final stages. Mercy Cherono, the 2013 5000m world silver medalist and 2014 Commonwealth Games Champion, finished second after she had also finished second in the 5000m race the previous day.

“I am preparing to run the track next year. It is my first time running on track, so I have yet to decide if I will do the 5000m or the 10,000m in my quest to make the team to the Tokyo World Championships. Running with Mercy Cherono today gave me the confidence that I can do well on track,” said Njoki.

The 25-year-old, who trains under coach Ben Maiyo at Newton Management, says her racing next year could begin early with the Valencia 10K in January.

The men’s 10,000m race was the first event on the meet’s first day. Ernest Kimutai from Nakuru navigated through a densely populated field that raised dust on the track to emerge victorious in 29:12.4  ahead of  Vincent Towett (29:13.2) and Keneth Kiprono (29:15.1).

The other exciting event on Day two was the men’s 5000m races, in which relatively new stars with great potential made their marks.  Ezekiel Ruto, who trains at St. Patrick’s Iten with coach Ian, broke away from his competitors in the last 1000m to create a comfortable lead on his way to winning his heat in 13:57.5. This was a second faster than the time impressively ran, in a solo run, by Felix Kibet in the first heat.

Mirriam Cherop, who was part of the quartet that won the mixed relay at the 2023 World Cross Country Championships and who won silver at the 2018 World U20 championships, was the star of the track meet after winning both the women’s 800m and 1500m races, in spectacular performances.

After failing to secure a win in the men’s 1500m heats on Day 1, the 2022 world indoor silver medalist, Noah Kibet, returned to his specialty distance to win his heat -in the men’s 800m race. This is a…