by Justin Lagat
Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani, Nairobi, Kenya, photo courtesy of IMG Kenya
The World U18 Championships will take place in Nairobi, Kenya this week, from July 12-16, 2017. This is a preview story from Justin Lagat on how Kenyans are looking at this upcoming championships.
From Wednesday 12th to Sunday 16th this week, the 10th edition of the IAAF World U18 Championships will take place inside the Moi International Sports Centre in Kasarani, Nairobi.
Since the start of the event in 1999, USA has been on top of the medal table six times, Kenya has won it two times and Jamaica one time.
This week, one hundred and thirty one countries, with a total of 801 athletes, are expected to take part in the big event. There were some fears that the event was not going to be that exciting earlier in the year when a few countries that included USA, Japan and Canada pulled out of the event citing security concerns, but so far everything is shaping up well for a great event and many countries have already confirmed their participation.
Countries to watch out for will include the host nation Kenya, especially in the middle and long distance track events. Ethiopia and Uganda are the countries that are always expected to give a big challenge to Kenya. Jamaicans should feature in the sprints with Chinese runners being seen as the ones to provide a strong competition to them. All in all, it promises to be a big event.
Kenya is well known world-wide for her middle and long distance athletes and it will be a great experience for those visiting the country for the first time as they will get a chance to see for themselves the origin of the world’s best runners.
Besides running, Kenya is also known as a tourist destination to watch plenty of wild life. One of the many game parks in the country is located just outside the national capital; the Nairobi National Park. Athletic fans will be able go out and watch wild life in between the breaks during the competitions in the stadium.
The IAAF world under 18 championships will remain a historical and a proud moment to Kenya’s athletic fans for very many years to come. It is one of those rare moments that will be hard to happen twice in one’s life time. For anyone around Nairobi, it will be a pity to miss it.
