Organisers for the Great Chepsaita Race this weekend are burning midnight oil to meet the required international standards for
World Athletics.
Organising Committee chairman Barnaba Korir said the event has been upgraded to the World Athletics Series Gold Level, hence the need to plan it properly.
“That’s why we have camped here to inspect everything and ensure all details are in place as per the World Athletics standards,” said Korir.
They have involved experts in different fields in the planning of the event to ensure everything is in place for Saturday.
“We are satisfied with the progress and everything is on course ahead of Saturday,” Korir said.
Preparations for the race are in top gear with over 10,000 runners expected. The event will also bring together more than 50,000 spectators to the once-sleepy Chepsaita Village which is now a beehive of activities.
The event has attracted runners from neighbouring Uganda, Tanzania and South Sudan among others. Korir said there will be several categories to be competed including 5-7 years, 8-10 years, 13 years, 15 years, U20men, U20 women, Elite men and Elite women.
The elite race for men and women will each cover 10km while men and women under 20 will cover 8km and 6km respectively.
The proceeds from the Great Chepsaita Cross Country race will go towards supporting 1,000 needy school-going youth in the region.
The event is also expected to raise money to support infrastructure development in ten schools in the area which have already been identified.
Chepsaita race patron Farouk Kibet, who is President Ruto’s aide, said they picked ‘Running for Education’ as the theme for the event since it fits into the vision of supporting budding runners to grow their talents and access education.
“Education, as we know, is an equalizer in life and we are using this race to ensure we develop upcoming talents in athletics and also academically,” said Kibet.
He said Chepsaita is a great setting for the event because it can easily be accessed by residents from neighbouring counties of Trans Nzoia, Nandi, Bungoma, Vihiga, Busia, Kakamega and Kisii among others.
“We want runners from all those
counties and even neighbouring
countries to come and participate
because there are no boundaries in
education and sports,” said Kibet.
