NAIROBI Feb 18 (Reuters) – Japan-based Bedan Karoki
won the men’s Kenyan cross country championship on Saturday over
12 kms ahead of Timothy Too in a sprint finish.
Karoki clocked 35 minutes 19.2 seconds to Too’s 35:25.0 with
Vincent Kiprop third in 35:37.0.
The women’s eight kms race was won by Joyce Chemtai in
26:08.0 ahead of another cross country veteran Margaret Wangare,
who clocked 26:09.4.
World marathon champion Edna Kiplagat finished third in
26:12.8 and the 2010 world cross country champion Emily Chebet
was fourth.
Several leading runners opted to miss the championships
after the world governing body’s decision to make the world
championships a biennial instead of an annual event. The world
championships will not be staged this year.
Saturday’s race will instead decide the team to compete at
the Africa cross country championships in Cape Town on March 18.
The men’s race failed to attract defending champion,
Geoffrey Mutai, who is also the New York and Boston marathon
champion.
Twice world marathon champion Abel Kirui and Commonwealth
Games steeplechase champion Richard Mateelong also stayed away.
Double world champion Vivian Cheruiyot, former 10,000 world
champion Linet Masai and Dubai marathon champion Lucy Kabuu were
absent from the women’s race.
Continued…
