Charles Matata is set to defend his Venloop Half Marathon title on Sunday, as he returns to the streets of Venloop, Netherlands, aiming for back-to-back victories.
Matata claimed the title last year clocking 1:00:39 to lead an all-Kenyan podium finish with James Mutuku (1:01:36) and Raphael Kolian (1:01:42) second and third.
Matata is relatively new to the road races having made his debut at the New Delhi Half Marathon in 2023, where he clocked 1:00:05 for second place.
He trailed World 10,000m silver medallist Daniel Simiu (59:27) and was just ahead of Ethiopia’s Addisu Gobena (1:00:51).
His second appearance was in Madrid 2023, where he made the podium yet again, clocking 1:00:21 for second place behind Victor Kipruto (1:00:04).
However, Matata’s title defence is far from guaranteed, with compatriot Jorum Okombo, the 2024 Paris Half Marathon champion, posing a significant challenge.
Okombo is a seasoned campaigner over 21km with a string of podium finishes to his name.
His runners-up finish in Paris saw him clock 1:02:02— behind Bernard Kiprop (1:00:45) and ahead of Emmanuel Roudolff of France (1:02:11).
In 2017, he clocked 58:48 for a second-place finish in Copenhagen before going on to record another second-place finish in Venlo (1:00:20) the same year.
In 2018, he competed at
the World Half Marathon
in Valencia, Spain, finishing
outside the top 10 in position 18 (1:01:34). Adding
firepower to the men’s race
are Evans Kipkorir and
James Mutuku.
